Rections to the Sinking of the Titanic
One of the most advertised events of the 1910's was the so-called Unsinkable Titanic and it's controversial sinking on April 14, 1912. When news of this British made luxury liner, weighing 46,000 gross tons reached American shores the press went wild. The idea of an unsinkable ship was bewildering. Then when the ship sank on her maiden voyage the press had a second hay-day. The sinking of the Titanic was a national event. It effected the 1910's in several ways, 2 examples of this would be the death of American social icons, and the reforms made to ships technology and travel codes. (MSN Learning)
The death of two admired Americans affected the 1910's by turning the sinking of the Titanic into a national affair. Mr. Isidor Straus, one of the American millionaires killed on the titanic, operated a company that engaged in blockade running for the confederate states during the American Civil War. After the war he moved to New York and obtained R.H. Macy & Co. He also severed as Congressman for New York Tate in 1895. Mr. Straus was a social icon in America. His death saddened citizens across America. (Straus Encyclopedia Titantica) Also social icon Colonel John Jacob Astor IV was killed in the shipwreck. He wrote the novel A Journey in Other Worlds. He invented mechanical devices like the bicycle brake, turbine engine, and a pneumatic road-improver. Astor also built the Astoria Hotel. Under the staff of General Levi P. Morton he became Colonel during the Spanish-American War. Mr. Astor contributed vastly to America's development. The country was deeply moved by his death. The decade of 1910 was effected by the loss of these and other social icons. (Astor Encyclopedia Titantica)
The sinking of the Titanic directly contributed to the 1910s' and subsequent years through reforms in ship policies and travel codes. When investigators of the shipwreck found that there were only enough lifeboats for about half of the passengers aboard many reforms were issued. Such as the maintenance of a full-time radio watch on each ship while at sea, and in international ice patrol. The reforms made travel on large sea vessels much safer in the years following the accident.
More businesses became aware of the difficulties, which caused businesses to not expand and start new projects. This caused job insecurity and uncertainty in incomes for employees. The crash was also used as a symbol of the changing times. The crash led the American people out of the roaring 1920’s into a new decade.
used by the boat was essential for communication and the safety of its passengers. The Titanic,
The Panic of 1893 was one of the most grim and profound problems that plagued America at the end of the 19th century. The financial catastrophe began in May of 1893 when two companies – The Philadelphia and Reading Railroad and The Cordage Company declared bankruptcy after failing to fulfill payments on their loans. The joint financial failures of the companies sparked a crash in the stock market. This served as a catalyst for a surge of bank failures because many New York banks were big investors in the Stock Market. The financial disaster began in New York and soon permeated its way throughout the country. Over a six-month period, over 8,000 businesses, 156 railroads, 400 banks failed, and 20% of Americans were unemployed By July of 1893, there was massive unemployment in factories and extensive wage cuts....
Dating back to the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, steamships were ideal for travel. Steamships were wildly popular during this time because they were an advanced transportation that was more efficient than a railroad because it traveled across sea. The steamboat helped advance trade along the Mississippi and brought new towns, new industry, and new jobs. During this time, America was divided into social classes based on social backgrounds and socioeconomic factors. Although the steamship died, the steamer trunk still lives on.
The sinking of the Lusitania was a tragic event. It occurred on May 7th, 1915 in the North Atlantic ocean. The famous British ocean liner had departed from New York City and was off the coast of Ireland when a German submarine fired torpedoes. The ship had roughly 1,900 passengers on board, most of which were American citizens. The ship was meant for passengers and not for cargo but as lots of reporters have stated there was in fact a handful of war materials aboard the ship which was kept secret from its passengers.Prior to the sinking the Germans had declared that the waters around the British Isles were considered to be a war zone.1 This war zone idea was backed by the fact that the Germans admitted to enforce unrestricted submarine warfare; meaning if you were in the water you were getting blown up with or without prior knowledge. It took a total of eighteen minutes for the Lusitania, in its entirety, to disappear beneath the waves of the North Atlantic ocean.2 After the ship had sunk the American press had openly and with lots of determination and passion deemed the event uncivilized. However, the Lusitania was not the only ship that was torpedoed. A year later in 1916 the Sussex, an unarmed French passenger ship was sunk by another German submarine. 3
The 1920s became known as an era memorable for being a time when new products, new ways of marketing and advertising, and standardization gave the country new ways to interact, enjoy themselves, and introduce them to new products. Although very common today, standardization of mass culture like magazines, radio, movies, music, and sports were exciting new innovations to the people of this time. Not only did they distract from the monotony and stresses of work but they created celebrities that people aspired to be like.
After the heavy stresses of WWI, many young soldiers returned home with a need to feel alive again. With the war over and the American economy growing, many US citizens found themselves with money, time, and new ways of expressing themselves. Over one long, prosperous decade, United States grew and changed drastically. The younger generations turned the societal norms of their forefathers on their heads and women began to take large steps away from their stereotyped lifestyle. There were movements in art, music, writing, and politics, as well as an introduction of new cars and machines. With changes in constitutional laws, public ideas, and everyday ideals, the 1920s are considered some of the most pivotal times in the history of the United States.
During the 1920's America experienced an increase like no other. With the model T car, the assembly line, business skyrocketed. Thus, America's involvement in World War II did not begin with the attack on Pearl Harbor. Starting in October 1929, the Great Depression, the stock market crashed. It awed a country used to the excesses of the 1920's. These are the events that lead up to the crash.
There are mysteries which man can only guess at, which may only ever truly be solved in part; the SS Edmund Fitzgerald’s sinking is one of them. At the time it was launched in 1958, the 729-foot long, 75-foot wide freighter was the largest ship to ply the Great Lakes. Although, on November 9, 1975 the ship embarked upon what would become its final voyage. She was carrying 26,000 tons of iron ore pellets and bound for Detroit, and though the day was bright, in her path laid great turbulence. On November 10, at 1:00am, the first signs of trouble appeared, and prevailed into the afternoon. As the waves built, luck was neither with the ship nor the crew. At 7:10 PM, Captain McSorley delivered what was to be his final message "We are holding our own." Ten minutes later, the Fitzgerald could neither be raised by radio, nor detected on radar, and no distress signal was received. With that, the ship and crew of 29 men sank to the bottom of Lake Superior. Several expeditions have been mounted to the wreck and have been the subject of some controversy. There are many theories for how the Fitzgerald found itself hundreds of feet below the water; however none of them have been proven indefinitely. One possible cause of this disaster includes the ship crossing the Superior Shoal, with water as shallow as 22 feet. Additionally, the ship may have suffered a stress fracture and broke apart on the surface. Another possibility is that the ship succumbed to the forces of the Three Sisters, a Lake Superior phenomenon, consisting of massive waves. These current theories are merely conjectures, and since each holds the possibility of being true, it cannot yet be determined which one actually is.
An article about Ismay and the Titanic says, "The Titanic designer Thomas Andrews was pushing for 48 lifeboats enough to carry everyone on board. But Ismay said no to the 48 lifeboats and only put 20 on board." The article also says, “ Because of his choice it puts some obligation to stay aboard the ship and take whatever comes.” If there would of been 48 lifeboats then so much more lives could of been saved. But Ismay for whatever reason only put on 20. The 1500 other people that died on the Titanic could of survived if Ismay would have put 48
The water temperature that night was below freezing. The wrought iron rivets that fastened the hull plates to the Titanic's main structure also failed because of brittle fracture during the collision with the iceberg. Low water temperatures contributed to this failure [Garzke and others, 1994].
Then on the fifth day of its journey, Titanic was progressing across the Atlantic. Captain Edward Smith had plotted a new course upon hearing earlier reports of ice from other liners, there were many more communications that day of ice in Titanic's path. On that very night of Sunday 14 April 1912. The sea was calm, the sky dark and clear, and the temperature was getting colder by the minute. With conditions like this an ice berg is very hard to spot. Then, at 11.40pm the lookout rang the alarm and telephoned the bridge saying "Iceberg, right ahead.” It was already too late to avoid the iceberg and Titanic began to start sinking within less than 40 seconds later, a series of holes appeared on the hull. It also took 3 ho...
Millions of people have heard about the massive ship that claimed to be ¨unsinkable¨ (Callery 14). The ship exploded with excitement and hope for the passengers. Travelers from various different lifestyles and incomes came together for one purpose, to glide across the ocean one wave at a time. Passengers onboard the Titanic had no idea what they would encounter or the fame that would come out of this already famous ship. No one expected the tragedy that would take place in the middle of the ocean. The structure, passengers, and the sinking of the Titanic made it one of the most famous ships of the twentieth century.
“...the TItanic hit the iceberg at 11:40 pm and sank at 2:20 am” (Lord 173). April 12, 1912 marked the night the RMS Titanic vanished into the vast Atlantic Ocean. The Titanic only had enough lifeboats for ⅓ of the 2208 people on board. This survival rate is so meager because the appearance of the Titanic was more salient than its passengers’ safety. Captain Edward Smith figured all the necessary amount of lifeboats would look “cluttered” on deck. The Titanic also had the prominent title of “unsinkable ship” because of that, the captain thought lifeboats wouldn’t be needed but indeed they were. The impact of the lifeboat shortage on the Titanic forced the captain to call the BirkenHead drill, caused men to dress as women, and brought passengers to participate in bribery.
The story of the Titanic was told long before the ocean liner was even a thought. Fourteen years prior to the sinking of the Titanic, Morgan Robertson wrote a book called The Wreck of the Titan. In his book, a passenger ship called Titan set sail from England and was headed to New York loaded with first class passengers and luxurious items. The Titan hits an iceberg in the North Atlantic, causing the ship to sink and the passengers to panic. The lack of lifeboats and life jackets on the Titan lead to the loss of many lives. Morgan Robertson’s book would predict the fate of the great ocean liner, the Titanic, fourteen years after.