Monthly Archives: April 2021

Titanic

Titanic Chronology: Titanic Adds Crew (6 April 1912)

The only picture of the Marconi radio room onboard the Titanic. Harold Bride is seated at his station. Photo was taken by Father Francis Browne, SJ, while aboard Titanic.
Public Domain/Wikimedia Commons

Titanic fills the remaining vacancies in ship’s crew. Coal and cargo also begin loading today

688 crew members would be aboard Titanic when it sailed. The wireless operators, Harold Bride and Jack Phillips, were actually employees of Marconi. For ship purposes, they were made part of the Victualling Department as they provided a service rather an essential operation. The ship’s orchestra were not employees of White Star but contracted from the Liverpool firm of C.W. & F.N. Black. This firm provided musicians for most British liners. They were treated as second class passengers.

Due to a miners’ strike that ended on 6 April, there was a shortage of coal. To make up for the shortage, coal from other White Star ships were transferred to Titanic so she could sail on 10 April. Passengers on those ships would be transferred as well to Titanic.  The ship would carry 5, 892 tons, which was more than sufficient for the voyage.

 

Sources:

Books

Behe, George TITANIC: SAFETY, SPEED AND SACRIFICE, Transportation Trails, Polo, IL 1997

Eaton John P. & Haas Charles, TITANIC TRIUMPH AND TRAGEDY, SECOND EDITION, W.W. Norton & Company, New York, New York, 1995 First American Edition

Lord, Walter, A NIGHT TO REMEMBER, Holt Rinehart and Winston, New York, New York, 1955. Multiple revisions and reprints, notably Illustrated editions (1976,1977,1978 etc)

Lord, Walter, THE NIGHT LIVES ON, Willian Morrow and Company, New York, New York, 1986 (First Edition)

Lynch, Don & Marshall Ken, TITANIC AN ILLUSTRATED HISTORY, Madison Press Books, Toronto, Ontario Canada, 1992

Internet

Britannica.com
Encyclopedia Titanica
History.com

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Holidays

Easter Monday

Children enjoy treats at the annual White House Easter Egg Roll on Easter Monday, 1911
U.S. Library of Congress
Public Domain/Wikimedia Commons

Easter Monday is the day after Easter and during the Eastertide season. In many countries, the day is a national or state holiday. In the case of the former, it means government, banks, and most businesses are closed. In the latter, it is only a state or bank holiday so only the government and banks are shut down. Australia, Austria, Canada (optional in two provinces), France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, New Zealand, Poland, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, and United Kingdom (except Scotland) celebrate the day as a national holiday. A full list of countries can be found here. Eastern Orthodox countries celebrate Easter based on the Julian calendar so their Easter Monday will be different from those in the West. Also, countries have different traditions. Some have parades, Easter egg races, picnics or other activities, or special foods for the day. For most, it extends the Easter holiday from Good Friday through Monday.

Titanic

Titanic Chronology: Titanic Arrives Southampton (3 April 1912)

After departing Belfast at 20:00 (8 pm), Titanic arrives in Southampton just after midnight. She would be towed to Berth 44. She traveled 577 nautical miles (664 miles) and her recorded maximum speed is 23 1/3 knots. That is approximately 26 miles per hour.

Titanic advertising from New York Times, 10 April 1912.
Public Domain (Wikimedia)

Sources:

Books

Behe, George TITANIC: SAFETY, SPEED AND SACRIFICE, Transportation Trails, Polo, IL 1997

Eaton John P. & Haas Charles, TITANIC TRIUMPH AND TRAGEDY, SECOND EDITION, W.W. Norton & Company, New York, New York, 1995 First American Edition

Lord, Walter, A NIGHT TO REMEMBER, Holt Rinehart and Winston, New York, New York, 1955. Multiple revisions and reprints, notably Illustrated editions (1976,1977,1978 etc)

Lord, Walter, THE NIGHT LIVES ON, Willian Morrow and Company, New York, New York, 1986 (First Edition)

Lynch, Don & Marshall Ken, TITANIC AN ILLUSTRATED HISTORY, Madison Press Books, Toronto, Ontario Canada, 1992

Internet

Britannica.com
Encyclopedia Titanica
History.com

,,,

Miscellaneous

Wayback Machine: George Carlin “Hippy Dippy Weatherman” on the Tonight Show

George Carlin had a long career as a stand up comedian. He was genuinely funny and consistently delivered hysterical laughter.  One of his early schticks was the Hippy Dippy Weatherman. It was hilarious how he did it. Here he his back in 1966 doing it on The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson. Carson liked Carlin a lot and it shows here. Enjoy.

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Religion

Today is Good Friday

Ecce homo by Antonio Ciseri(1821-1891)
Public Domain

Today is Good Friday, an important event in the Christian liturgical calendar. Some argue the word Good is a corruption and used to mean God Friday. Others argue it always meant that the day is meant to be pious or holy. For Christians, Good Friday is the day Jesus was crucified on the cross. Observant Christians will mark the day by silent meditation, prayer, and church attendance. Many will fast during the day, particularly during the hours of 12 noon to 3 p.m. Hot Cross Buns are a traditional food many cultures use on this day (and through the Easter season). Most Catholics and Christians will avoid eating meat on this day and usually the main meal will be fish. Good Friday (and sometimes Easter Monday)are public holidays in many countries. Good Friday always occurs on the Friday before Easter Sunday.

Titanic

Titanic Chronology: Titanic Sea Trials (2 April 1912)

Titanic leaving Belfast with two guiding tugs, 2 April 1912
Robert John Welch (1859-1936), official photographer for Harland & Wolff
Public Domain/Wikimedia Commons

Due to delays in fitting out, repairs to Olympic and bad weather, Titanic began her sea trials on 2 April 1912. The trials began at 0600 (6 am). There were stokers, greasers and fireman along with crew members aboard. Thomas Andrews and Edward Wilding were aboard representing Harland & Wolff. Harold Sanderson represented IMM. Both Bruce Ismay and Lord Pirrie were ill and could not attend. Francis Carruthers from the Board of Trade was also present to see that the ship was fit to carry passengers. Marconi wireless operators Jack Phillips and Harold Bride were also aboard.

The sea trials took 12 hours and tested the ship’s ability to travel at different speeds, turning ability, and ability to stop quickly. Titanic was tested both in the Irish Sea and in Belfast Lough. About 80 miles were covered during the trials. The ship would return to Belfast around 1900 (7 p.). The surveyor from the Board of Trade signed papers that the ship was seaworthy for the next 12 months.

Titanic would depart an hour later to head to Southampton to take on additional crew, passengers, and supplies.

Sources:

Books

Behe, George TITANIC: SAFETY, SPEED AND SACRIFICE, Transportation Trails, Polo, IL 1997

Eaton John P. & Haas Charles, TITANIC TRIUMPH AND TRAGEDY, SECOND EDITION, W.W. Norton & Company, New York, New York, 1995 First American Edition

Lord, Walter, A NIGHT TO REMEMBER, Holt Rinehart and Winston, New York, New York, 1955. Multiple revisions and reprints, notably Illustrated editions (1976,1977,1978 etc)

Lord, Walter, THE NIGHT LIVES ON, Willian Morrow and Company, New York, New York, 1986 (First Edition)

Lynch, Don & Marshall Ken, TITANIC AN ILLUSTRATED HISTORY, Madison Press Books, Toronto, Ontario Canada, 1992

 

Internet

Britannica.com
Encyclopedia Titanica
History.com

 

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Titanic

Remembering History: Hitler Jailed For Failed Coup (April 1, 1923)

The aftermath of World War I left Germany in a national crisis. Its new government, the Weimar Republic, had to deal with the staggering terms of the Versailles Treaty imposed on it by the victorious allies. The economy was in shambles, hyperinflation made buying even the ordinary items expensive, and discontent was in the air. This is where many different groups vied to convince Germans it had the solution to the country’s woes. One of these was a new party called the National Socialist German Workers Party (NSDAP) led by Adolf Hitler. It would become known as the acronym Nazi Party.

On the evening of 8 November 1922, Hitler and the Nazi Party attempted to seize power in the Beer Hall Putsch in Munich. Storming a meeting of 3,000 people where the state commissioner was speaking, Hitler proclaimed the revolution was underway to the surprised attendees and speakers. The next day Hitler with Hermann Goring, General Ludendorff and about 3,000 supporters marched to the center of Munich. At first, they pushed aside the small number of police sent to stop them. However, the police firmed up and ordered the march to stop. And then the shooting began which ended with Nazi’s lying dead on the street and many (like Hitler) forced to flee. Most of the chief perpetrators like Hitler would be arrested and brought to trial.

Defendants in the Munich Beer Hall Putsch, 1 April 1924
Photographer: Heinrich Hoffmann (1885–1957)
Source: German Federal Archives via Wikimedia Commons

The attempted coup was a failure, but it brought a lot of attention on Hitler and the party. The trial was covered by German and international newspapers. It gave Hitler and his party a chance to express their views on many things as to why the tried the coup.  It was a case where the defendant was winning in the court of public relations even while losing it by being convicted of a crime. Hitler was sentenced to five years but only served nine months in Landsberg am Lech before being released. During that time, he wrote the first volume of Mein Kampf, the bible of the National Socialist movement. Designed to appeal to dissatisfied elements in Germany, its influence spread beyond Germany’s borders and its virulent anti-Semitic, anti-democratic, and anti-Catholic (to name a few) still finds approval today in some places where hatred of Jews and democracy exists.

Sources

Book

Snyder, Louis Dr, Encyclopedia of the Third Reich, Marlowe & Company, New York 1976.

Internet

History.com