The story of Joseph Philippe Lemercier Laroche, the only documented black passenger on the RMS Titanic's maiden voyage, is being brought to light in a new play.
Laroche, born in Cap-Haïtien, Haiti, in 1886, was 25 when the ship sank on 14 April 1912 after hitting an iceberg. His body was never recovered.
Dr Carlette Norwood, an academic from Washington DC, discovered Laroche's story during a visit to The Maritime Museum in Liverpool. She subsequently wrote and directed a play about his life.
Laroche, the great-great grandson of Jean-Jacques Dessalines, the first emperor of Haiti, moved to France at 15 to study engineering. Despite facing significant racial tensions and difficulties maintaining work in France, he married a white French woman, Juliette Lafargue, and they had two daughters.
The family had planned to move back to Haiti sooner than initially intended when Ms Lafargue became pregnant with their third child. They traded first-class tickets on the SS France for second-class tickets on the Titanic because children would not be able to dine with their parents on the SS France. They also nearly missed boarding the Titanic due to engine trouble on a tender ship.
Ms Lafargue, who was pregnant, and their two daughters were rescued by the RMS Carpathia after boarding a lifeboat. The play is set to debut in Liverpool on 17 October.