John 'Jack' George Phillips (April 11, 1887 - April 15, 1912) was radio officer on board the fatal maiden voyage of the RMS Titanic. Born Farncombe, England, Phillips was educated locally and, after an initial career in the Post Office, he became Chief Marconi Officer on the RMS Titanic. April 11 is the 101st day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (102nd in leap years). ... 1887 is a common year starting on Saturday (click on link for calendar). ... April 15 is the 105th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (106th in leap years). ... 1912 is a leap year starting on Monday. ... The New York Herald reports the disaster. ... Farncombe, in Surrey, United Kingdom, is now effectively a suburb of the neighbouring town of Godalming. ... Royal motto: Dieu et mon droit (French: God and my right) Englands location within the UK Official language English de facto Capital London de facto Largest city London Area  - Total Ranked 1st UK 130,395 km² Population  - Total (2001)  - Density Ranked 1st UK 49,138,831 377/km² Religion... Small-town post office and town hall in Lockhart, Alabama A post office is a facility (in most countries, a government one) where the public can purchase postage stamps for mailing correspondence or merchandise, and also drop off or pick up packages or other special-delivery items. ...

When the Titanic collided with an iceberg on April 14, 1912, Phillips remained at his post broadcasting the then international distress signal "CQD". On the suggestion of the junior radio operator Harold Sydney Bride, he switched to the new code "SOS" at 12:45 am. Taking the situation humourously Harold said: 'Send SOS, it's the new call, and it may be your last chance to send it.'. It is a myth that this was the first SOS call ever to be sent. April 14 is the 104th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (105th in leap years). ... 1912 is a leap year starting on Monday. ... A distress signal is an internationally recognized means of obtaining help by using a radio, displaying a visual object or making noise from a distance. ... CQD (-·-· --·- -··) was the original standard international Morse code distress signal. ... Harold Sydney Bride (January 11, 1890 - April 29, 1956) was radio officer on board the fatal maiden voyage of the RMS Titanic. ... is the international Morse code distress signal. ...

Phillips remained at his post diligently transmitting the distress signal up to the point when the dynamos stopped working because the engine rooms took water. Phillips made it to a raft but later died of exhaustion.

The Phillips Memorial Cloister in Godalming was designed by Gertrude Jekyll to commemorate his bravery. Godalming is a town in the Waverley district of the county of Surrey, England, seven kilometres south of Guildford. ... Gertrude Jekyll (1843-1932), created over 400 gardens in the UK, Europe and the USA. She contributed over 1,000 articles to Country Life, The Garden and other magazines. ...

External links

• John George Phillips biography from Encyclopedia Titanica (http://www.encyclopedia-titanica.org/bio/c/v/phillips_jg.shtml)