April 26, 2002 April marks 90th anniversary since Titanic tragedy

The world remembers those defining moments in its history when the impossible happens and the world is changed. The recent terrorist attacks on the twin towers, the symbols of American capitalism, and on the Pentagon, the symbol of the American military, are current example that shocked us all. Most do not remember the 3,700 lives lost in three ocean liner sinkings in the early days of the last century. The Titanic, which sank 90 years ago this month, is the exception because of a variety of circumstances at the time, the 1985 discovery of the wreck, and the recent blockbuster movie, books and television programs. One source notes that after "God" and "Coca-Cola," "Titanic" is the third best-known name in the world today. In this brief article I want to look at the Titanic phenomena and two other disasters from the same era.

The Titanic sank on April 14-15, 1912 when it hit an iceberg 423 miles south of Newfoundland, with a loss of 1,523 lives; the Empress of Ireland was rammed in the St. Lawrence on May 29, 1914 with a loss of 1,012 lives; and the Lusitania was sunk by a German torpedo off south Ireland on May 7, 1915 with a loss of 1,198 lives.

Copy of the Nugget telling about the sinking of the Titanic, 90 years ago this month.

The Age of the Ocean Liner

Just as the development of the airplane led to larger and faster supersonic jet liners over time, the use of the ship for long trips evolved to larger and faster super liners. Travel between North America and Europe evolved from lengthy, uncomfortable, and often life threatening trips, to a luxurious one-week vacation trip across the Atlantic.

The British Cunard Steamship Line was one of the top companies in the world and developed ships noted for their speed. Their 31,000 ton Lusitania and their Moritania were state of the art. The Germans had some outstanding ships as well. In this highly competitive marketplace the British White Star Line wanted to be the best, and decided to build the three largest moving objects ever made. These liners would be 100 feet longer and 50% bigger than the competition. They were the 45,000 ton Olympic, Gigantic, and Titanic. The Titanic was to be the most beautiful, safest, and luxurious of the three and was called "the world’s greatest luxury liner."

As tragic as the other sinkings were, the Titanic stands out for many reasons. The fanfare and anticipation of its sailing was unprecedented. On its maiden voyage, with the elite of society’s royalty and wealthy on board, the "perfect" Titanic sank in four hours, taking many of the famous and wealthy with it to its watery grave. An inquiry tried to find out how the sinking could have happened, and made many recommendations. From then on, there would be sufficient life boats, life jackets, radio contact, and practice drills by staff to ensure maximum security.

The Empress of Ireland

Compared to the Titanic story, the sinking of the Canadian Pacific’s 1,550 passenger Empress of Ireland is relatively unknown. The Ireland, and its sister ship the Empress of Britain, had made many numerous trips from Liverpool to Quebec City in the summer, and to St. John’s New Brunswick in the winter. At the start of the summer season in 1914 on its ninety-sixth trans-Atlantic trip, the Ireland, with 1,477 passengers and crew, left Quebec City. At 1:38 am a six thousand ton Norwegian collier the Storstad was noted six miles away, coming in the opposite direction. Several books have been written about the circumstances of the disaster. In simple terms, fog settled in rapidly and the Storstad hit the Ireland, and in fourteen minutes the ship was gone below the surface. In the morning, 1,012 passengers were gone, with only four of 138 children surviving.

The Lusitania

In what has been called "the single most shocking act of World War I" the engineering marvel, the Lusitania, was hit by a single German torpedo in 1915 on its 101^st voyage, and sank in eighteen minutes killing 1,198 people. The political implications of the sinking in terms of the war, turning people against Germany and bringing the U.S. into the war and many other subplots, can only be mentioned here. There are several fascinating books on the subject including The Lusitania, which was published in 2000 and was written by D.A. Butler, who also wrote "Unsinkable": The Full Story of the R.M.S. Titanic.

A fascinating coffee table book, Lost Liners (1997) by R.D. Ballard, who oversaw the discovery of the Titanic wreck in 1985, includes remarkable photos of the disasters above, plus others including the Normandie and the Andrea Adoria. A similar quality book, Titanic: Legacy of the World’s Greatest Ocean Liner by Susan Wels gives an in-depth look at the Titanic’s history, including the discovery of the wreck two and a half miles under the ocean, which led to the famous Discovery Channel documentary. The Internet also has a wide variety of excellent sites, including the Titanic gravesites and museums in the Maritimes.

The survivors are gone now, but through photography, underwater exploration, and some excellent research, these momentous events can be studied and appreciated as a part of our heritage.