The Life and Mystery of First Officer William Murdoch

Recommended websites


Encyclopedia Titanica

Titanic passenger and crew biographies, Titanic pictures, exclusive research articles and ongoing discussions about the Titanic disaster.

Murdoch of the Titanic

While it seems this has not been updated since 1999, Murdoch's hometown of Dalbeattie has an official page run by Richard Edkins with a large amount of material on William Murdoch. Although caution is urged regarding some of the content.

William McMaster Murdoch

Murdoch biographer's Susan Stormer's website. Originally in German it has a limited English section.

Titanic Inquiry Project

Electronic, fully searchable transcripts of the complete U.S. Senate and British Board of Trade inquiries, and reports, into the sinking of the S.S. 'Titanic.'

The Truth About the Titanic

An open library digital version of Archibald Gracie's account, published shortly after he died in 1913.

Titanic in Color

Real colourised photographs of Titanic, researched for their accuracy. Requires registration, but some stunning images which have new life breathed into them.

Sources and references

I am most grateful to the variety of books, websites and other reference material from which a large part of this research was sourced. Please note it is possible that links may expire as some were accessed prior to 2000.

Special thanks to the following individuals for their contributions and corrections to this continuing research:

Petra Feyahn
Tiphaine Hirou
Senan Molony
Wendy Murdoch Roberts
Bill Wormstedt
Guilherme Neves
Tracey McIntyre
Steven Leather
Tracey Smith
George Jacub
Ioannis Geogiou
George Behe
Inger Sheil
Paul Lee
Richard Edkins

Copyright Disclaimer Under Section 107 of the Copyright Act 1976, allowance is made for "fair use" for purposes such as criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching, scholarship, and research. Fair use is a use permitted by copyright statute that might otherwise be infringing. Non-profit, educational or personal use tips the balance in favor of fair use.

Sources and references, listed in no particular order, with links where available:

1."Murdoch of the Titanic"
by Richard Edkins

2. "Titanic: An Illustrated History"
by Don Lynch, Madison Press, 1992

3. "Titanic & Her Sisters Olympic & Britannic"
by Tom McCluskie, Michael Sharpe, Leo Marriott, Parkgate Books, 1998

4. The "Titanic"
by Peter Thresh, Parkgate Books, 1992

5. "The Titanic"
by Geoff Tibballs, Reader's Digest, 1997

6. "Titanic Art"
by K. Marshall, Rick Archbold, Allen & Urwin, 1998

7. "Titanic Triumph and Tragedy"
by John P. Eaton and Charles A. Haas, Patrick Stephens Limited, 1995

8. "Encyclopedia Titanica"
by Phillip Hind

9. "Anatomy of the Titanic"
by Tom McCluskie, PRC, 1998

10. "The Discovery of the Titanic"
by Robert D. Ballard and Rick Archbold, Madison Publishing, 1987

11. "Dalbeattie Defense"
by George Behe

12. "Shots in the Dark"
by Bill Wormstedt

13. "William McMaster Murdoch"
by Susanne Störmer

14. "Exploring the Titanic"
by Robert D. Ballard, Scholastic, 1988

15. "Titanic - Untold Stories / Last Mysteries Of The Titanic" [DVD]

16. "The Making of the Titanic"
by James Cameron

17. Firstfoot Genealogy

18. Titanic: End of a Dream
by Wyn Wade Penguin, 1979 & 1986.

19. Titanic in Colour
by Anton Logvinenko

20. A Night to Remember
by Walter Lord, Jarrold and Sons, 1956

21. The Night Lives on
by Walter Lord, William Morrow and Company Inc., 1986.

22. Titanic -James Cameron's Illustrated Screenplay
by James Cameron, Harper Collins, 1997

23. True Heart of Titanic (website) by Loreen Philyaw

24. British Inquiry: Report on the Loss of the "Titanic" (S.S.) 1912

25. Titanic Disaster United States Senate Enquiry (62nd Congress, Subcommittee Hearings of the Committee on Commerce, Washington Government Printing Office, 1912.

26. Dr. Frank Blackmarr's Remarkable Scrapbook,
by James T. Harper (published in the Titanic Commutator, Volume 22, Number 3, 1999.

27. Gunshots on the Titanic
by Earl J.Chapman, Canada, Encyclopedia Titanica article

28. Hard a-Starboard, Reconsidering Titanic's Encounter with the Iceberg
by Nathan Robison, Encyclopedia Titanica article

29. James Cameron's Titanic
Ed W. Marsh HarperCollins, 1997

30. Last Dinner on the Titanic
by Rick Archbold and Dana McCauley, Allen & Urwin, 1997

31. Last Log Of The Titanic, The
by David G. Brown, Encyclopedia Titanica article

32. Sinking of the Titanic and Great Sea Disasters
edited by Logan Marshall, 1912

33. Sinking of the Titanic, Eyewitness Accounts
by Jay Henry Mowbray, Dover, 1912

34. Titanic At 2am
by Paul Quinn, Fantail, 1997.

35. Titanic: R.I.P.: Can Dead Men Tell Tales?
by Diana Bristow

36. Titanic: Sinking the Myths
by Diana Bristow

37. Titanic Touchstones of a Tragedy
by Steve Santini

38. Wall Chart of the Titanic, The
by Tom McCluskie, Parkgate Books, 1998

39. Titanic
by Lee Marriott 1997

40. William McMaster Murdoch, Titanic Hero Unstuck in Time
by Charles Pellegrino

41. Titanic Explorer (CD-ROM)
by Fox Interactive

42. The Virtual Museum of the City of San Francisco

43. The truth about the Titanic
by Archibald Gracie, published 1913

44. William McMaster Murdoch, A Career at Sea. The Complete and Documented Version
by Susanne Störmer (presently out of print/unavailable)

45. Good-bye Good Luck: The Biography of William McMaster Murdoch
by Susanne Störmer (presently out of print/unavailable)

46. Unsinkable: The Full Story of the RMS Titanic
by Daniel Allen Butler

47. Titanic and Other Ships
by Charles Herbert Lightoller

48. Titanic Pages
by Paul Lee

49. Avel Keltia -Sailing to the Past
by Tiphaine Hirou

50. Murdoch Family Genealogy web site (archived)
by Wendy Murdoch Roberts

51. The Man Who Sank Titanic: The Troubled Life of Quartermaster Robert Hichens
by Sally Nilsson

52. Titanic Valour: The Life of Fifth Officer Harold Lowe
by Inger Sheil

53. The Titanic - "Everything Was Against Us
by Simon Angel

54. On A Sea of Glass: The Life and Loss of the RMS Titanic
by Tad Fitch, J. Kent Layton and Bill Wormstedt

55. To The Bitter end
by Elizabeth Gibbons

56. The Titanic and Silent Cinema
by Stephen Bottomore

57. Titanic: The Ship Magnificent - Volume I Design & Construction
by Steve Hall, Bruce Beveridge, Scott Andrews, Daniel Klistorner, Art Braunschweiger

57. Titanic: The Ship Magnificent - Volume II Interior Design & Fitting Out
by Steve Hall, Bruce Beveridge, Scott Andrews, Daniel Klistorner, Art Braunschweiger