Tag Archives: RMS Titanic

Titanic

Titanic news for veterans day

Titanic Wreck Bow
Image: Public Domain (NOAA-http://www.gc.noaa.gov/images/gcil/ATT00561.jpg)

Unsinkable Metal Could Lead to Unsinkable Ships. Now Where Have We Heard That Before? (Popular Mechanics, 7 Nov 2019)

The material, which the researchers etched with designs at the nanoscale that allow it to trap air bubbles, could theoretically lead to a truly unsinkable ship or a perfect life preserver, according to Chunlei Guo, a professor of optics and physics at the University of Rochester who coauthored a paper on the new metal in the journal ACS Applied Materials and Interfaces. The research was funded by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the U.S. Army Research Office, and the National Science Foundation.

Metro Atlanta Woman Owns Collection She Says Belonged To Couple Who Died On Titanic (WSB-TV Atlanta, 6 Nov 2019)

Laub’s collection includes three small women’s handbags, a pair of spectacles and a lady’s makeup compact. “When I’m handling it, the purses and such, I feel like I’m almost there,” Laub said. “There’s a little ‘window.’ And you open it up and it has the most beautiful red lipstick I’ve ever seen in my life still in there.” Laub received the items from the great-granddaughter of the Straus family’s personal assistant. The assistant often traveled with the couple and Laub believes she was supposed to take the items to them.

The funerary mask of Tutankhamun
Roland Unger (via Wikimedia Commons)

How King Tut Exhibitions Became a Multimillion Dollar Industry (Artsy.net, 30 Oct 2019)

An ongoing show, which started at the California Science Center in 2018, moved on to Paris’s Grande Halle de La Villette in Paris, where it broke attendance records for a French art show—the previous record-holder was also a King Tut exhibition—and sold around 1.3 million tickets. The show will open at London’s Saatchi Gallery in November; the Australian Museum in Sydney will be its final stop. The general public’s embrace of the Boy Pharaoh shows no signs of relenting, but issues of ownership and repatriation surrounding Tut-related objects still rage.

The Daughter Of A Titanic Survivor Buried In Lannon Shares Her Mom’s Story For The Village’s 90th Anniversary (Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, 28 Oct 2019)

She calls herself a child of a Titanic survivor. Randall’s mother and grandparents survived the sinking of the Titanic on April 15, 1912. But Randall’s great- aunt and uncle Maria and Vincenz Kink were among the more than 1,500 who died. Randall’s mother, grandparents and great- aunt and uncle ventured to Milwaukee in April 1912 for a better opportunity. They traveled by train from Zurich, crossed the English Channel by boat and then took another train to South Hampton, England, where they boarded the Titanic. “My mother says they were looking for a better life,” said Randall.

10 Mistakes That Sunk Titanic: Crew Were Left Without Binoculars As Iceberg Approached (Belfast Telegraph, 26 Oct 2019)

The documentary reveals that before the Titanic left Southampton Captain Henry Wilde swapped places with Captain Edward Smith of sister ship the RMS Olympic. As a result of this Second Officer David Blair also left the Titanic and it is believed he took a key to a cabin with him which contained the officer’s binoculars. Simon Mills, owner of the HMS Britannic wreck, said officers could have used the binoculars to help spot the iceberg. “The best way of spotting an iceberg was basically using your natural eyesight as wide as possible on the horizon,” he told the documentary.

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Titanic, Titanic X Files

Friday Titanic News

J. Bruce Ismay, president of the White Star Line, in 1912
Public Domain(Wikipedia)

Titanic Survivor’s Guilt Over Escape From The Sinking Ship Revealed In Messages Set To Sell For £50,000 (Telegraph, 10 Oct 2019)

Mr Harrison was Mr Ismay’s personal valet and the collection includes a four page letter he wrote home to his wife Ann Harrison about how he was “fed up” with spending hours writing letters to post for Mr Ismay. Days after the tragedy Mr Ismay wrote to Mrs Harrison via telegram: “Words fail to express my sorrow at your terrible loss. “Am overwhelmed by this frightful calamity.”

Once Halloween season kicks in, it is inevitable you get stories with a supernatural tilt to it. The folks who run the Scottsdale, Arizona Titanic Exhibit are no exception. For the Halloween season they are adding a “ghost walk.” According to AzFamily,  on select days “visitors can walk around the haunted galleries and hear the ghost stories from the exhibit’s staff about the artifacts.” Apparently there have been claims of spirits and other things alleged to have occurred at the exhibit. A local psychic is also going to be on hand to add more ambience to the event. About the only thing missing is a ouija board.

Source: Scottsdale Titanic Exhibit Near Scottsdale To Feature The Ghost Walk (AzFamily.com, 10/8/19)

Titanic

Sunday Titanic News

HMHS Britannic seen during World War I.
Image:public domain

Summer is here and Titanic news tends to be thin except for the occasional item auctioned off or something interesting going on. Back in May, there was an auction of fittings from Britannic, sister ship of Titanic that sank in the Aegean in World War I. When the war started, the ship was put into service as a troop ship and most of her fittings were removed. Most were auctioned off and went into private hands.

One of the items sold was maple paneling in the “colonial style” became part a bar in a private home in Dublin, Ireland. According the BBC, there was a lot of interest in the auction and many came to view the items being auctioned. The auction fetched £257,000 ($327,000)at the auction. Names of the bidders and where they reside has not been publicly disclosed.

Source: Titanic sister ship Britannic’s fittings sold at auction (BBC, 1 May 2019) https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-48112113

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Titanic 2017

New York Times Front Page 16 April 1912
Public Domain (Wikimedia Commons)

In April 1912 the unthinkable happened: Titanic sank taking over 1500 lives to the cold North Atlantic. People were stunned. With the headline Titanic Sunk blazing across newspapers around the globe, it made people wonder what had happened to a ship that defined an age of progress. For those with family, either passengers or crew, it was even more dire. Did my husband live? What happened to that family down the road that decided to go to America for a new life?

In the aftermath two investigations would seek to answer the question of what happened. A short concise statement is that Titanic collided with an iceberg that punctured the hull in many places causing water to enter the forward compartments causing her to founder and sink. Yet the investigations showed all kinds of things that were not right: out of date government regulations about lifeboats, the lack of manning wireless communications during all ship watches, the inattention given to numerous ice warnings, the lack of binoculars for the lookouts and much more. Captain Rostron of Carpathia would be labeled a hero for racing to the scene and retrieving the survivors. Captain Lord of California would come under criticism for his indifference to rockets being seen and failing to investigate.

The world of 1912 was a world on a precipice. Ominous clouds were already gathering over Europe. Titanic represented perhaps the pinnacle of the dying Edwardian age. It had everything that a person of means wanted: a comfortable way to cross the Atlantic in style. Down below was the other side, immigrants desperate to leave home and find a new life in the United States. And sadly many of those third class (or steerage as they were called)would perish.  Titanic sinking left a mark on many that something was wrong and would be confirmed when war broke out in 1914. And that war would cut a wide swath in the upper classes that would have lasting effects.

The lessons of Titanic are many. The most important of all is to never become complacent nor think you are so clever as to be divine. It is a lesson that is sometimes forgotten resulting in tragedies like the Challenger explosion. Sometimes Greek mythology delivers warnings about complacency. Icarus forgot his wings were made of wax when he flew up to the sun resulting in his death. And saying Titanic was practically unsinkable comes pretty darn close as well.

Titanic Exhibitions

Titanic:The Artifact Exhibition Opens In South Africa

Titanic:The Artifact Exhibition opened this week at V&A Waterfront in Cape Town, South Africa. This is the first time the exhibition has been in South Africa and expectations are high that it will draw large crowds. The exhibition is open 9am to 6pm daily and will run until March 2016. To purchase tickets and further information, go to http://titanicexpo.co.za/.
Source: CT To Host Titanic: The Artifact Exhibition(Eyewitness News,22 Nov 2015)

https://youtu.be/RWez8lhTqEg

Titanic

In Memoriam, Titanic

Front Page, New York World, 16 April 1912 Photo:Public Domain (U.S.Library of Congress, digital id# cph 3c16257)
Front Page, New York World, 16 April 1912
Photo:Public Domain (U.S.Library of Congress, digital id# cph 3c16257)


Titanic, Titanic Exhibitions

Okay We Thought It Was Belfast, England, Las Vegas….Now Atlanta; Update On Titanic Exhibit Allegedly Shut Down By Water

Another day, another city where a Titanic exhibition may have been shut down by a water leak. The Daily Mail is reporting they think it was the Titanic exhibition in Atlanta, Georgia. That exhibition is at Atlantic Station in Atlanta, GA along with the Bodies exhibition. However Daily Mail is cautious and in the bullet points notes:

  • Exhibition believed to be taking place in Atlanta, USA
  • Not known when sign was put up or for how long exhibition was closed

Which means they are dart throwing and hoping it lands in the right place. I checked the Twitter page for this exhibition and found no mention (thus far) of any closure due to water. There are other cities out there with Titanic exhibitions. Let’s spin the wheel and see where it takes us next.

Wonder how that Titanic sinking hotel is doing these days. 🙂

Sources: Sunk Again! Titanic Exhibition ‘Closed Due To WATER DAMAGE‘(7 November 2o13,Daily Mail)

Titanic:The Artifact Exhibition-Atlanta

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Titanic, Titanic Exhibitions, Titanic Miscellaneous

Sunday Titanic Newswrap

Photo courtesy George Behe
Photo courtesy George Behe

1. Crain’s Detroit Business examines the possible sale of the Titanic artifacts and who might be in the running to buy it. Candidates are Mariners’ Museum in Newport News, VA; Titanic Belfast museum (Belfast, N.I), and the Luxor Hotel in Las Vegas along with some very wealthy individuals. I would add, considering the interest of bringing Titanic II to UAE, that wealthy business people from there are also interested. Some might scoff at that but remember they have lots of money to spend and are tightly connected to their government (in some cases, they are actually in it). Having genuine Titanic artifacts on display would be a huge tourist draw.

A good portion of the article is divided between what the valuation might be for shareholders and a examination of Mark Sellers III, who took control of Premiere some years ago after getting frustrated with it’s then leadership. Sellers tells Crain’s he is in no rush to sell quick but admits there is pressure to do so. You think? Look at how much time has passed since the salvage award came down till now. At first it seemed like things might be proceeding towards a sale and then it just stopped. This year we finally learned this mysterious consortium that signed a non-binding letter of intent could not get the money. Shareholders thought they would be reaping benefits right now and have not. Sooner or later patience will run out if Seller’s cannot get the sale done. I see lawsuits and demands for transparency about the sale coming soon if nothing happens in six months.

Source: Buyer Sought For Titanic Artifacts; One Estimate: $189 Million(11 Aug 2013,Crain’s Detroit Business)

2. You learn of people finding something spectacular in garage sales or scrap yards, but this is the first I think for a Titanic plaque. Doug Turner spotted something dusty and dirty with “Titanic” on it. He bought it for $138 and cleaned it up. Turns out it is a memorial plaque for Titanic’s musicians. He found after checking it out online that it was really one of one. A photo he saw of it in a Titanic book said its whereabouts were unknown. It was was last seen in 1982.That is when he learned it was something really special–a genuine Titanic artifact of that time. Turner, who is in law enforcement, is making sure it cannot be stolen by Titanic fortune seekers. As to its worth, he has no idea but one can fairly guess since it is one of a kind it would fetch a very high price at a Titanic auction. For now he is not interested in selling it. It is currently on loan to Titanic Experience in Orlando where it will be shown next week.

Sources:
1. Titanic Artifact Found In Naples Scrapyard(9 Aug 2013,WFTX-TV)

2. Plaque With Ties To The Titanic Ends Up In Naples Scrap Yard(9 Aug 2013,WINK)

3. The Titanic exhibit in St.Claire, MI which ended on 27 Jul had 4,2000 visitors and brought in $75,000 for the  St. Clair Endowment Fund. The exhibit focused on the engineering behind the construction and included an18 foot long model of the ship done by Gary Kohs. His model has won praise for its accuracy. Kohs began designing the model in 1997 and completed in 2002. According to Randy Maiers, president of the endowment fund, they had people from all over the country came to the exhibit at the Moore Boathouse.

Source:Titanic Exhibit Money Goes To St. Clair Fund(7 Aug 2013,Times Herald)

Titanic, Titanic II

Sunday Titanic News

Clive Palmer and his plans for Titanic II still fill the news. At the press conference where the actual plans and pictures were revealed, he was asked if it was a hoax. His actual response cannot be printed here (this is a family-friendly forum) but it was a resounding no. Many are skeptical and rightly so. Building a Titanic replica will be very expensive but Palmer insists he will do it. Certainly the pictures of the proposed ship and its interiors are remarkable. He really does want to recreate Titanic by making it look like it was in 1912.

There will, of course, be some modern additions like a casino but normal luxuries like spas (there will be Turkish spas as on the original), televisions, outdoor pools, and Internet connections will be absent . As to what entertainment will be on Titanic II, Palmer is unclear. However one does not need to be clairvoyant they will likely try to sign some major stars (calling Celine Dion for one!) to do shows. I think a lot of well known comedy and musical performers will line up to perform on Titanic II.

Passengers can expect to find period clothing in their rooms and Palmer intends to sell packages that allow you to rotate through first, second, and third class. Titanic II will have less passengers than the original. Titanic and ships like her made money from cramming every nook and cranny to make money in the transatlantic trade. Today passengers are coming aboard for a holiday and ships are built differently. While large cruise ships can carry 2,800 passengers and up, smaller tonnage ships may just have 450.

Palmer likes to say sailing on Titanic II will be a chance to spend time with family. And he insists people are already lining up to buy tickets. Even better he expects people to line up to come aboard in port to have pictures taken on the bow to recreate a scene from the famous movie (you know that one, right?)

So is this for real? Many are skeptical but if anyone could pull this off, Palmer just might. As for Titanic II being in bad taste, he disputes that and says it will pay tribute to those who sailed on Titanic. The papers with the shipyard are scheduled to be signed in the next few weeks. Come 2016, the big news might very well the launch of Titanic II and possibly another Titanic replica down the road.

Some Recent Titanic II News Articles

1. Titanic II Is No Hoax, Insists Billionaire Mining Magnate(2 Mar 2013, Metro)
2. Titanic II ‘Not In Bad Taste’, Insists Maker(2 Mar 2013, Sky News)
3. The Titanic time warp: We knew it was being rebuilt, but as these amazing new designs show, it really WILL be 1912 all over again (Daily Mail, 2 Mar 2013)
4. New Titanic II liner Will Be So Successful A THIRD Titanic May Be Built Says Magnat(2 Mar 2013, Daily Echo
5. Australian To Build ’21st Century Titanic'(2 Mar 2013,Irish Times)*

*We no longer provide links to Republic of Ireland newspapers due to policy demanding payment for news links.

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Titanic

Major Decision: Federal Judge Awards Title To Titanic Artifacts

The long awaited decision of Federal Judge Beach regarding title to Titanic artifacts has been rendered. Judge Beach granted RMS Titanic, Inc. title to fine china, ship fittings, and other artifacts recovered from the ship by the company. The condition is that the artifacts be preserved so the court will have to approve sales.

Sources:

1. The Virginian-Pilot, Norfolk Judge Awards Rights To Titanic Artifacts, 16 August 2011

2. Associated Press, Judge: Salvage Firm Has Title To Titanic Artifacts, 15 Aug 2011