The Titanic: 100 Years Ago Today

April 15, 2012 marks one hundred years since the Titanic sank in the North Atlantic Ocean on her maiden voyage. 

The Titanic was the largest ship in the world at that time, and considered to be unsinkable. With over 2,200 passengers aboard, she set out from Southampton, England, bound for New York.

At 11:40 pm on April 14, 1912, the unthinkable happened: the “unsinkable” titan of the sea was doomed to sink beneath the cold waters of the Atlantic. Within 2 hours and 40 minutes of hitting an iceberg, the Titanic went down, killing over 1,500 of the passengers aboard. 

There was public outrage over the huge loss of life. One major factor was that Titanic was designed to carry 64 life boats (enough to accommodate 4,000 people), but at the time was only carrying 20 life boats.   

In 1985, Dr. Robert Ballard discovered the wreckage of the Titanic: long lost 13,000 feet beneath the icy surface of the North Atlantic Ocean.

Over the last hundred years the tragedy of the Titanic’s maiden voyage has inspired just as much as it has horrified.  Notably, James Cameron’s 1997 Titanic was re-released in 3D last week, just in time to commemorate the centennial. 

Some interesting statistics from Titanic International Society and The Herald Times:

Passengers and crew:      2223

Survivors:                            706

Lives lost:                            1517

Cost of building the Titanic: $7,500,000, or approximately $216,000,000 today

Tonnages:             Gross – 46,329

Dimensions:          Length 882’9” overall

Beam (width):        92’6”

Depth:                     59’6”

Height:                    175’

Horsepower:          46,000