White
Star Line was the company that built the Titanic, and was owned by J.P. Morgan,
an American tycoon.The T I T A N I C Page
A Site to Remember
White
Star Line was the company that built the Titanic, and was owned by J.P. Morgan,
an American tycoon.
The
cost to build the RMS Titanic was $7.5 million
RMS stands for Royal Mail Steamer.
It took 3,000 men two years to build the Titanic. Three million rivets
held its massive hull together.
The Titanic
was never christened. It was not the practice of the White Star Line to hold such
ceremonies.
Price
of a single first-class ticket was $4,700. (equals $50,000 in today's economy)
Although there were 4 funnels (smoke stacks), only 3 were operational. The 4th funnel was
for looks.
As the
Titanic was leaving the port, the suction it caused actually snapped the ropes of a nearby
docked ship. (The S.S. New York) Tugboats had to race to the scene to prevent the
New York from colliding with the Titanic. Some people aboard the Titanic
and on the dock felt this occurrence to be a bad omen.
There
were 6 ice warnings received by Titanic on the day of the collision. They were
all ignored by the wireless operator who was preoccupied with transmitting passenger
messages.
On the
night of the collision, because the moon was not out, and the water was so still, it was
very difficult to see the iceberg. A less calm water would have caused breakers around the
iceberg making it easier to see it from afar.
The
iceberg that the Titanic struck was not a very big one. It did not even come up
as high as the bridge of the ship.
The
iceberg that the Titanic struck was unusual in such a way that it was not white
like most others, but more of a clear look caused by continuous melting. The clear surface
in effect reflected the dark night sky and water like a mirror, thereby making it a black
object, almost impossible to see from a certain distance. The term for this kind of
iceberg is "blackberg", and is similar to the black ice found on cold icy roads.
An
iceberg exposes only 1/10th of it's mass above water. With the other 9/10ths of it's mass
below water, It makes them impossible to budge. Even with a force of a ship like the Titanic.
The Titanic
was traveling 22.5 knots while cruising through iceberg laden waters. Just .5 knot
from her maximum speed capability.
The
collision occurred at 11:40 P.M. on Sunday, April 14, 1912.
Murdoch
had ordered the engines reversed which had, ironically, sealed the Titanic's
doom. Like all ships, the Titanic turned more quickly the greater her forward
motion. Had the Titanic proceeded ahead and turned, it is most likely that she
would have avoided hitting the iceberg all together.
The
gash that the iceberg cut into the hull of the Titanic was between 220 to 245
feet long. The total length of the ship was approximately 882 feet.
Though
the damage in the hull was 220 to 245 feet long, the most recent evidence shows that there
was only a 12 square foot opening (the size of a refrigerator) in the hull allowing water
inside the ship.
The
"watertight" compartments of the Titanic's hull were not actually
watertight. They were open at the tops, which aided in her demise.
The ship could have stayed afloat had only four compartments
flooded... Five became flooded.
1,503
people total died, including passengers and crew.
Only
705 people survived.
962
lifeboat seats were required by law.
1,178
lifeboat seats were carried aboard.
2,208
lifeboat seats were needed.
One of
the first lifeboats to leave the Titanic carried only 28 people; it could have
held 64 people.
There
were 472 lifeboat seats not used.
There
were enough life-jackets for all 2,208 people, and most everyone was wearing one.
300
dead bodies were pulled from the sea the next morning. They were found floating in their
life-jackets. Many other floating bodies were not found because they had drifted off.
Very
few people actually went down with the ship. Most died and drifted away in their
life-jackets.
The
temperature of the Atlantic at the time of sinking was 31 degrees. This temperature was
the biggest cause of death among the population.
There
were many dogs aboard the Titanic. Two of the dogs survived.
Orders
from the Captain were that, women and children were to board the lifeboats first. One man,
Daniel Buckley, disguised himself as a woman to get aboard a lifeboat.
Charles
Joughin was the only person to survive the ice cold Atlantic water...He reportedly had
been drinking heavily.
Of
children fatalities, only 1 child from first class died, while 49 children from steerage
died.
Passengers rode the stationary bicycles in the Gymnasium to pass time before the ship
sank!
The
band played music up to the last few minutes before the ship went under. None survived.
One of
the last songs the band reportedly played before their death was, "Songe
d'Automne".
As the
ship was sinking, the stern rose out of the water, and broke into two pieces between the
third and fourth funnels.
The Titanic
lies 12,600 feet (over 2.33 miles) at the bottom of the Atlantic Ocean.
The two
pieces of the Titanic lay 1,970 feet apart from one another on the ocean floor.
Because
the front section of the Titanic went down nose first, the bow is buried 60 feet
below the ocean floor. The huge gash is also buried. (Recent technology has allowed visual
access to the damaged area of the hull)
The Titanic
was rediscovered on July 14th, 1986. 74 years after it sank.
Only 6
of all the survivors of the Titanic tragedy are still alive today.
Sources used for Titanic Facts: