Mr Christopher Head was the fifth son of the late Mr Henry Head, a well-known London underwriter. He was in his 43rd year, and was educated at Lancing end at Trinity College Cambridge. Called to the Bar as the Inner Temple, he practiced for a time in the Admiralty Division and on the North-Eastern Circuit. But he had long been a member of Lloyds and, on the death of a brother in 1905 he entered the firm of Henry Head & Co as a director.

In 1910 he married Mrs Hill Trevor, daughter of Mr H.D Chapman of Kilhendre, Ellesmere. From 1909 until 1911 he was Mayor of Chelsea. During this rime he associated himself closely with the artistic life of the Borough, and took a leading part in discussions at the Mansion House of the King Edward Memorial. He was an ardent collector of prints and drawings, particularly those of modern artists, and was a member of the Burlington Fine Arts Club.

Mr Head had long been interested in all that belongs to shipping and insurance, and he had made many voyages in trading vessels of all kinds. Business took him to America, and he undoubtedly chose the Titanic as a means of gathering further experience. For he spared himself neither time nor trouble in all that he undertook, whether in his public or private capacity.