Today marked the end of an era

For those of you thinking this is in reference to the murder of abortion doctor George Tiller, you would be in error.

Today, shortly after world media outlets learned of Tiller's murder in the lobby of a Wichita church, the BBC announced that the last living survivor of the Titanic's sinking had died. (Read the AP Story via KMOV) Millvina Dean was just nine weeks old, on her way with her family to Kansas City, when they wound up on the ill-fated voyage of the Titanic when their original ride was stuck in port because of a coal strike. She, her older brother and mother survived the sinking; in her case she was placed in a sack and lowered into one of the few lifeboats that carried the survivors.

Her father, who sought to open a tobacco shop in the KC area, was one of the 1500+ casualties. As a result, she spent her entire life living in the Southampton area, not knowing of her milestone in the Titanic disaster until she was eight, and not visiting what could have been her childhood home until 1998. (The BBC's own video obituary of Ms. Dean features 30 seconds of WDAF's Katherine Bliss reporting on the visit.) However, it was not until she was in her 70s that she became the face of the Titanic disaster and its remaining survivors. This became more prominent when in 1985, Robert Ballard's search team discovered the wreckage of the Titanic, nearly 10,000 feet deep in the North Atlantic. It reached greater heights in 1997, when James Cameron's blockbuster movie Titanic debuted, sparking newfound interest in the incident as well as Dean's story.

But the fame wouldn't take care of her expenses into her late years. Facing increasing assisted health care costs and repeated hip injuries, Dean had to part with personal artifacts from the fated cruise that defined her life last month at auction. She was also helped later on by a fund established by distant family members in addition to stars from the movie.

Millvina Dean never married, but leaves behind a most intriguing story that will forever retain a genuine Missouri connection. She was 97.