They demanded an investigation into the sinking, shared ideas for the prevention of such disasters in the future, or expressed sympathy for the death of President Taft's military aide, Maj. Taft from citizens who were angered, inspired, or moved by the loss of the Titanic. Dozens of letters came to President William H. The unimaginable scale of the disaster led many people to write to the President of the United States. The ethical question of why first-class passengers were allowed to get into lifeboats ahead of those in second and third class became an issue for future investigation. The highest percentage of victims were steerage, or "third cabin" passengers, who were mainly poor immigrants coming to America. (Records of District Courts of the United States, RG 21) because comparatively few of the third cabin passengers remained in New York City.Ī third-class (steerage) passenger's contract ticket for the White Star Line, similar to those used on the Titanic. Within two days substantially all the survivors of the third cabin passengers and many of the second cabin passengers had been visited and interviewed in their places of temporary shelter or at the Committee's Office. The office of the committee was opened on the following morning, equipped with telephone service, printed stationery, the necessary blank forms and record cards, and with a staff of visitors and clerks supplied by the Charity Organization Society. According to Red Cross "Titanic Relief Fund" documents in the National Archives: The Director and other representatives of the Red Cross Committee were present when the Carpathia landed its passengers. (the British component raised $2,250,000). Bicknell in his capacity as director of the American Red Cross, raised $161,600.95 for Titanic survivors and families of the victims. The Titanic Relief Fund, set up by Ernest P. The manifests collected by the Bureau of Immigration and Naturalization list 29 categories of questions asked of all persons entering the United States, from birthplace to where the person would be staying in the United States. The Carpathia's passenger manifest includes the names of the 706 persons it picked up from Titanic's lifeboats on the morning of April 15, 1912. The Carpathia was the lone ship to respond to Titanic's distress signals, risking a field of icebergs in a daring rescue. While complying with international maritime regulations ( Titanic carried more than the minimum number of lifeboats required), there were still not enough spaces for most passengers to escape the sinking ship. The lack of sufficient lifeboats was chief among the reasons cited for the enormous loss of life. Of the 2,223 people aboard, 1,517 perished. Yet the "ship that could never sink" sank less than three hours after the crew spotted an iceberg at 11:40 p.m. The ship's owners, the White Star Line, boasted of the size and stamina of the largest passenger steamship built until that time. When Titanic set sail from Southampton, England, for New York City on April 10, 1912, no one, especially its builders, dreamed of its demise. These records tell the stories of the survivors in their own words. The National Archives holds Titanic-related "treasures" as well: Senate investigation records, documents pertaining to Titanic passengers from limited liability suits, and congressional resolutions. The discovery of the ship at the bottom of the sea in the 1980s brought to view intriguing artifacts. The centennial of this event brings to mind the myriad films, books, and electronic media the disaster engenders. Perhaps no other maritime disaster stirs our collective memory more than the sinking of the RMS Titanic on April 15, 1912. Any delay in the Titanic's departure would cause too much embarrassment in the press and damage White Star's finances irrevocably, and so fire or no fire, the Titanic would set sail on time, as the theory goes.The Titanic during sea trials. Because of the damage to the Olympic, the prop shaft and propeller from the Titanic were transferred to the Olympic in a bid to get it back to sea sooner. The filmmakers claim that the damage shown in the newly unearthed photos makes it clear that the steel used wasn't strong enough. The effects of cost-cutting were apparently evident when the Titanic's sister ship, the Olympic, collided with HMS Hawke and suffered a huge hole to the hull. To save money, according to the doc, Ismay amended the chief architect's plans, reducing the dimensions of the steel and number of lifeboats. These required new docks to be built-a costly endeavor. He commissioned three new superships that were 50 percent bigger than any other ship to be built. The Oceanic Steam Navigation Company Star White Line was losing business to shipping rivals, and the chairman, Thomas Ismay, was under pressure to turn it around.
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