Titanic tragedy claimed Pike man’s life

A renowned Pike County resident, author Jacques Futrelle, died more than 100 years ago aboard the Titanic when it sank April 15, 1912, killing more than 1,500 people. His wife Lily May Peel was aboard the ‘unsinkable’ ship with him and urged her husband to get into the lifeboat with her but he refused. She said the last time she saw him, he was on the Titanic’s deck, smoking a cigarette with John Jacob Astor.Futrelle achieved great fame in his 37 years of life. He wrote for many notable newspapers including the Atlanta Journal and the New York Herald and also wrote and directed many theatrical plays and while writing popular mystery stories featuring Augustus S.F.X. Van Dusen for fun in his spare time. Futrelle left Pike County at age 18. He was born April 8, 1875 in Pike to Harmon Heath Futrell and Linnie Bevill Futrell.