100 hundred years ago today the Titanic set sail on its maiden voyage. While plenty of us have seen the movie with Leo and Kate there are so many facts and parts about the Titanic that kids and adults alike might find fascinating. I became interested in this great ship at the age of nine, right when Dr. Robert Ballard was beginning his search for it, and my curiosity towards it and all its intracies has never waned. Now I have gotten TD into the Titanic by showing her bits and pieces of the James Cameron film and purchasing books like Titanicat and a children’s version of A Night to Remember
Titanic Facts-
-The ship had a newspaper, The Atlantic Daily Bulletin, that was printed daily and featured news, advertisements, stock prices, horse-racing results, society gossip, and the day’s menu. The food eaten on the Titanic is very different from today’s daily fare. The book, Last Dinner On the Titanic: Menus and Recipes from the Great Liner
-There were only two bathtubs in the third class (steerage) portion of the ship. That’s two tubs for over 700 people. Do some math on how long it would take each person to take one five minute bath. Would they all have time to bathe before the ship met its fate on April 14 at 11:40 p.m.?
-The ship could have stayed afloat for hours if only four of its watertight compartements had flooded. How many flooded? Five.
-Though the damage in the hull was 220 to 245 feet long, the most recent evidence shows that there was only a 12 square foot opening (the size of a refrigerator) in the hull allowing water inside the ship.
-Some passengers rode the stationary bicycles in the Gymnasium to pass time before the ship sank. Many believed that that Titanic was unsinkable. As fellow passengers and friends boarded lifeboats they told others, “We will see you tomorrow.”
-Foreshadowing? In 1898 a novel, by Morgan Robertson, was published. It was called ‘Futility’ and told the story of a ship, ‘Titan’ the world’s largest ship. It hits an iceberg on a cold April night and sinks. It too was called “unsinkable”.
Ticket Prices on Titanic
- First Class: $4,350 (price of finest 1st class suite) comparable to $50k today.
- Second Class: $1,750
- Third Class: $30
Great Titanic Books for Kids
Inside the Titanic (A Giant Cutaway Book)
Exploring the Titanic: How the Great Ship Ever Lost- Was Found
882 1/2 Amazing Answers to Your Questions About the Titanic
There are many great specials on The National Geographic channel this week featuring Dr. Robert Ballard and James Cameron, who continues to study the ship and how is sank. You can read survivor stories at Titanic.org or look at pictures online of artifacts taken from the ship. If you live in the Washington, DC area then visit The National Geographic museum, which is has a Titanic exhibit from now until July 8, 2012.
