{"id":25148,"date":"2013-08-29T00:05:06","date_gmt":"2013-08-29T07:05:06","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.todayifoundout.com\/?p=25148"},"modified":"2013-08-28T16:33:33","modified_gmt":"2013-08-28T23:33:33","slug":"milton-s-hershey-booked-a-vip-ticket-on-the-titanic-but-didnt-end-up-boarding","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.todayifoundout.com\/index.php\/2013\/08\/milton-s-hershey-booked-a-vip-ticket-on-the-titanic-but-didnt-end-up-boarding\/","title":{"rendered":"The Founder of Hershey’s Booked a VIP Ticket on the Titanic But Didn’t End Up Boarding"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"hersey\"<\/a>Today I found out<\/a> that Milton S. Hershey bought a VIP ticket for the Titanic<\/i> but ended up not boarding.<\/p>\n

The Titanic<\/i>, the unsinkable ship, launched on April 10, 1912, carrying some 2,200 passengers and crew en route to the United States. On the night of April 14, 1912, the ship hit an iceberg and sunk, resulting in around just 700 people surviving\u2014only a third of the people on board. However, there were a few lucky people who survived because a twist of fate when they didn\u2019t board the Titanic<\/i> as planned.<\/p>\n

In December 1911, Milton S. Hershey, the founder of the Hershey Chocolate Company, put down a $300 deposit\u00a0(about $7,281 today) for a state room aboard the Titanic. The check for the transaction, made out to White Star Lines, is still in the Hershey Community Archives. Hershey had founded the Hershey Chocolate Company back in 1894, and it resulted\u2014as you probably guessed\u2014in a roaring success. By 1907, Hershey had his own factory to mass-produce chocolates and distribute them nationwide, resulting in enough money to take a lengthy trip to Nice, France. On the return home, he thought he and his wife might as well spend the days at sea lounging in luxury, which is why he put down the deposit on the state room.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s not certain exactly what caused Hershey to abandon the Titanic<\/i> trip at the last minute, as the company will only say that he found it necessary to return to the United States earlier. There are two theories: first, a pressing matter at the factory required his attention, and second, that his wife Kitty had fallen ill, resulting in an early departure. Both stories have some weight; Kitty had notoriously bad health, and the founder of a company would certainly be required to cut his vacation short if \u201can urgent matter\u201d popped up.<\/p>\n

Regardless of what happened, Hershey did not board the Titanic<\/i> as planned. Rather, he and his wife hopped on the German ship Amerika<\/i> and arrived in the United States several days before the Titanic<\/i> sank. Ironically, the Amerika<\/i> passed through the waters the Titanic<\/i> would be sailing through and sent word ahead that there were a few treacherous-looking glaciers along the way, and to watch out for them. Obviously, the warning wasn\u2019t heeded. The Titanic<\/i> was unsinkable, after all.<\/p>\n

Even if he had been on board, Hershey and his wife would have had a better chance at surviving than a majority of passengers. Based on figures given by the British Board of Trade, 97% of female first class passengers were saved during the disaster, along with 33% of male first class passengers. That\u2019s in comparison to the 46% of female third class passengers, 8% of male second class passengers, and 16% of male third class passengers who were saved.<\/p>\n

Hershey wasn’t alone in narrowly escaping the wreck; there were several other famous cases:<\/p>\n