Titanic Article

Here's an interesting article:

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/03/02/science/02ships.html

Cunard vs. White Star Line

For years, the Cunard and White Star line have gone head-to-head. The Cunard Line was started by Samuel Cunard and after his first ship, he built more and more putting others out of business. The White Star Line was started by Pinkerton and Trelfall and the company was given to many other business-men including J.P. Morgan. The two companies were trying to make their ships bigger, faster, and more luxurious ships. At one point, Cunard built the Lusitania and Maurentania which became the fastest (setting a record time across the Atlantic Ocean), largest, and most luxurious ships ever. That fame and glory lasted only two years when the White Star Line built three ships far bigger and more luxurious than the Lusitania and Maurentania. The three ship's names were the Olympic, TITANIC, and Gigantic. The Olympic was built and became world-famous. The TITANIC was built but as you know, she sank on her maiden voyage. The White Star Line renamed it's final sister Britannic. The Britannic was being constructed and the paneling was just beginning to be installed when his majesty's royal navy pressed the ship into military service. The Britannic was made a hospital ship. On it's 6th voyage, the Britannic struck a mine and sank. The White Star Line lost it's credibility and soon, the Cunard Line won. The White Star Line became Cunard-White Star Line. The Olympic remained in the fleet and was retired and scrapped. The Cunard-White Star Line went out of business and later, Cunard was bought out by the Carnival Line which currently owns all of the ship companies. There remains today, one White Star Line ship as far as we know.

The TITANIC Artist

Ken Marschall inspires me to draw and draw again the TITANIC and his paintings are so good, that many think his paintings of the wreck are photographs! He was quiet as a child, and always drew. He was in oil paints which is for the advanced painters at the age of 4. He would draw plains, trains, and yes boats. He drew his first picture of the TITANIC when he was sixteen after seeing "Titanic" starring Clifton Webb and Barbara Stynwick, and hasn't stopped. His first real commission was by Walter Lord the author of A Night To Remember and the top Titanic expert at that time. Walter Lord and Ken had been in touch, since Ken was able to find out his address and ask him what he needed to know about the ship in detail. Ken painted for Walter Lord, a picture of the Titanic entering New York. Over the years, he has collected information, designs, and photographs of the Titanic. He has also collected things from Titanic's identical sister, Olympic which was scrapped and it's pieces now distributed throughout all the world. During that time, he and fellow Titanic Historian Don Lynch had gotten the information about survivors, and had visited them asking for their accounts of the disaster. Two of those survivors were Edwina Troutt, and Ruth Becker. When the Titanic was found, he got all the information he could about the wreck and the pictures from magazines. Then, he did his first painting of the wreck. It was accepted by Time Magazine for their cover on the story. By now, Ken Marschall is one of the most respected and influential Titanic Historian and Artist in the world of Titanic Mania. He has undergone commissions for him to paint shipwrecks and ships. He was actually a part of the team with Robert Ballard that found the TITANIC and the Bismark. He did the paintings for "Inside the TITANIC", "TITANIC an Illustrated History," and tons of other books of which you can find anywhere. His work is very detailed for instance if you look through the book "Ghost Liners," you'll see a painting by Ken Marschall of the Lusitania Wreck. That painting is so detailed and painstakingly painted, that I don't think anyone would be able to paint that well. Ken Marschall is one of the most famous maritime painters in the world today.

TITANIC myths 2

Myths 1,2,and 3: At the store, have you seen this magazine that is in black and white called "World Weekly News? Well they say that they are the most reliable magazine but I say that's a big fat lie ! They say things like "TITANIC bodies found in ice" when the nearest ice was 2 miles away and the average person lasted 20 minutes. Another said "Baby found alive in life preserver wearing 1912 clothes" which is clearly a lie. They also say that the TITANIC was sunk by a giant fish but I say that's the biggest fish story I've ever heard !

Myth 4: Some people say that if the lookouts had binoculars, they would have seen the iceberg sooner and the TITANIC would have turned and missed the iceberg but through testing, binoculars would not have changed anything.

Myth 5: Gash in the hull- There was no 300 foot long gash; there were small holes where the steel plates had buckled.

Myth 6: Frank Tower- there is a legend of Frank Tower surviving the TITANIC, Lusitania, and Empress of Ireland but he appears in none of the lists of those aboard any of the ships when they sank. He is probably just an urban legend.

Competition

The Lusitania was built by Cunard and was sure that this ship would put the White Star Line which was the company that the TITANIC. It was completed on June, 1906 along with it's sister ship, Maurentania. The Lusitania was christened by lady Inverclyde because Lord Inverclyde, (the ship's owner) died earlier that morning. They were the biggest, grandest, and fastest ships afloat and even set a record across the Atlantic Ocean carrying the Blue Riband . The ships had all of the latest technology and the most famous people on board.

The Germans were beginning to attack English ships and sinking them with submersibles. This was often a very common threat. The Maurentania was transformed into a army transport and was rented by the Royal Navy for 150,000 english pounds. The Royal Navy also paid the Cunard 64,000 english pounds to use the Lusitania as a mail transport. There was a submarine (U-20) spotted off the coast of the English Channel, headed straight for the Lusitania.

The Lusitania was told that a submarine was in the area but the wireless operator ignored the message and it didn't go to the bridge. It was 30 miles off the coast of Clear Sound Island. It was May 7, 1915 the passengers were just sitting down to breakfast when a huge explosion erupted. Then, there was a second explosion. Immediately, water started coming into the hold. The order was given by Captain Turner to begin to lower the lifeboats but the crew was already loading and lowering. The lifeboats were lowered so quickly, that some of them were flipped over dumping the passengers into the sea. The Lusitania sank in 18 minutes. On the way down to the bottom, most of the boilers exploded causing great damage to the ship. 1,198 people died out of the 1,959 on board.

The bodies that were not recovered on the shore of Queenstown, Ireland were more than likely trapped in the wreck. Mrs. Stephens was one of the bodies recovered and on the way to America, the ship carrying
her remains was sunk by U-20: the same submersible that killed her on the Lusitania.
Today, the wreck is barely distinguishable except a few bones and personal belongings.