April 18, 1912, 9:30 pm - The Carpathia docks in New York with the survivors of the Titanic disaster. First, she dropped some of the Titanic’s recovered lifeboats at the White Star Line’s pier, before continuing to Cunard’s pier to let the survivors and passengers disembark. Approximately 40,000 people were anxiously waiting to greet her.
The story of the giant ship that sank on its maiden voyage is so rife with symbolism that if it hadn’t actually happened, we might have had to invent it.
Yet it did happen, on that cold, clear April night in 1912. And it happened to real people—stokers, millionaires, society ladies, parsons, parlormaids—people who displayed a full range of all-too-human reactions as the events of the night unfolded. The recollections of those who survived, conflicting and embroidered though they often are, allow us to place ourselves on that sloping desk and ask: “What would we do?”
The unsinkable story sails on.
"15th April 1912. The unsinkable ship finishes her maiden voyage on the bottom of the Atlantic Ocean. Over 1500 souls disappeared with her.
….that’s the Olympic. Titanic’s sistership.
The last official White Star Line building in Liverpool, England, shortly to be demolished.
April 14, 1912 (11:40 p.m.) The lookouts spot an iceberg directly in the path of the Titanic. First Officer Murdoch orders a hard starboard (left) turn, but the Titanic’s right side still scrapes the iceberg. Only 37 seconds passed between the sighting of the iceberg and hitting it.
April 15, 1912 (12:05 a.m.) Captain Smith orders the crew to prepare the lifeboats and get the passengers and crew up on deck.
April 15, 1912 (12:45 a.m.) The first lifeboat is lowered into the freezing water.
April 15, 1912 (2:18 a.m.) The Titanic snaps in half.April 15, 1912 (2:20 a.m.) The Titanic sinks.
April 15, 1912 (4:10 a.m.) The Carpathia picks up the first of the survivors.
April 15, 1912 (8:30 a.m.) The Carpathia picks up survivors from the last lifeboat.
April 17, 1912 The Mackay-Bennett is the first of several ships to travel to the area where the Titanic sank to search for bodies.
April 18, 1912 The Carpathia arrives in New York with 705 survivors.
Harold Bride in Titanic’s wireless room.
101 years ago the RMS Titanic sank taking with her over 1,000 souls.
In honor of the 101st anniversary of Titanic’s sinking, we have created some images to depict various points in the sinking:
- The night of April 14th, 1912 - Titanic sails towards New York, not a sign of danger to her passengers.
- 11:40 PM - Lookouts Frederick Fleet and Reginald Lee spot an iceberg directly in Titanic’s path. The bell is rung three times, the bridge is phoned, orders are given to stop the engines and turn the ship, but she still strikes the berg on her starboard side and begins to take on water through an area of damage totaling about 12 square feet in the form of opened seams between the steel shell plating across 5 watertight compartments. Shortly after, her engines are stopped for good and crewmen are sent to inspect the damage.
- 11:55 PM - Titanic’s Post Office is flooding as postal workers struggle to save as much mail from the hold as possible. Meanwhile, some passengers emerge from their cabins to find out what happened.
- 12:07 AM, April 15th, 1912 - The boiler rooms continue to flood. Thomas Andrews, the ship’s head designer, meets with Joseph Bell in the boiler rooms to inspect the damage, and concludes the ship will sink within an hour or so. Still unaware of the danger below, John Phillips and Harold Bride, Titanic’s Marconi operators, are told by Captain Smith to stand by and prepare to send out distress calls.
- Approximately 1:30 AM - Officer Lightoller orders the Boatswain’s Mate to go down and open a shell door on D-Deck so that they can attempt to load passengers into boats from there. This is never done, and water eventually begins flooding into the open door.
- 2:00 AM - Water floods the Forward Well Deck and Forecastle. At this point, it’s increasingly clear to the passengers that the ship will not stay afloat.
- 2:02 AM - Water begins to pour into the Third Class Dining Saloon on F-Deck through Scotland Road on the deck above. There were reports that a few third class passengers were stuck in the saloon until the very end.
- 2:05 AM - The water reaches B-Deck. The final distress rockets are launched around this time.
- 2:15 AM - The water breaks over the Boat Deck, submerging the bridge, washing the two collapsible lifeboats out to sea, and accelerating the sinking. Number one funnel collapses, and water rushes through the corridors.
- 2:20 AM - Rising approximately to an angle of 23 degrees, the hull is no longer able to take the stress and the ship splits in two, cutting out her lights forever. The stern falls back, and then is pulled down by the bow. The bow breaks away, leaving the stern to sink on its own. With the ship on its way to the bottom of the ocean, over 1,500 people are left to freeze to death on the surface, or have already drowned or are being taken to the bottom inside the bow and stern sections. Only 705 survivors in the lifeboats are rescued by the Carpathia.
For more detailed historical descriptions of each image and more, please visit our Facebook page here: https://www.facebook.com/TitanicHonorandGlory
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April 15, 1912, approximately 9:00 AM - All the Titanic survivors are finally aboard the Carpathia.
April 15, 1912, approximately 3:30 AM - the RMS Carpathia is spotted by the survivors.
April 15, 1912, 2:20 AM - The RMS Titanic breaks in half, the bow being quickly pulled underwater, while the stern floats in a nearly vertical position for a few moments before sinking.
