The subcommittee's chairman, Senator William Alden Smith (R-Michigan), spoke fervently of why he wished to document the event quickly: Our course was simple and plain–to gather the facts relating to this disaster while they were still vivid realities. Senate's "Titanic Disaster Hearings." The report's 1,042 pages document what a commerce subcommittee learned over its 17-day investigation of the causes of the wreck. Extensive documentation of the Titanic's voyage is contained within the proceedings of the U.S. Butt, one of Taft's closest friends, was returning from a six-week vacation aboard the Titanic, and his leave of absence papers and a copy of a letter of introduction from Taft to Pope Pius X are also in the National Archives.Ĭongressional Hearings Lead to Legislation, RegulationsĪlmost immediately after the disaster, a congressional hearing was convened on April 19, 1912. They demanded an investigation into the sinking, shared ideas for the prevention of such disasters in the future, or expressed sympathy for the death of President Taft's military aide, Maj. Taft from citizens who were angered, inspired, or moved by the loss of the Titanic. Dozens of letters came to President William H. The unimaginable scale of the disaster led many people to write to the President of the United States. The ethical question of why first-class passengers were allowed to get into lifeboats ahead of those in second and third class became an issue for future investigation. The highest percentage of victims were steerage, or "third cabin" passengers, who were mainly poor immigrants coming to America. (Records of District Courts of the United States, RG 21) because comparatively few of the third cabin passengers remained in New York City.Ī third-class (steerage) passenger s contract ticket for the White Star Line, similar to those used on the Titanic. Within two days substantially all the survivors of the third cabin passengers and many of the second cabin passengers had been visited and interviewed in their places of temporary shelter or at the Committee's Office. The office of the committee was opened on the following morning, equipped with telephone service, printed stationery, the necessary blank forms and record cards, and with a staff of visitors and clerks supplied by the Charity Organization Society. According to Red Cross "Titanic Relief Fund" documents in the National Archives: The Director and other representatives of the Red Cross Committee were present when the Carpathia landed its passengers. (the British component raised $2,250,000). Bicknell in his capacity as director of the American Red Cross, raised $161,600.95 for Titanic survivors and families of the victims. The Titanic Relief Fund, set up by Ernest P. The manifests collected by the Bureau of Immigration and Naturalization list 29 categories of questions asked of all persons entering the United States, from birthplace to where the person would be staying in the United States. The Carpathia's passenger manifest includes the names of the 706 persons it picked up from Titanic's lifeboats on the morning of April 15, 1912.
The Carpathia was the lone ship to respond to Titanic's distress signals, risking a field of icebergs in a daring rescue. While complying with international maritime regulations ( Titanic carried more than the minimum number of lifeboats required), there were still not enough spaces for most passengers to escape the sinking ship.
The lack of sufficient lifeboats was chief among the reasons cited for the enormous loss of life. The sinking of the Christmas tree ship in Lake Michigan.
Stories from the Titanic on the Prologue blog.Of the 2,223 people aboard, 1,517 perished. Yet the "ship that could never sink" sank less than three hours after the crew spotted an iceberg at 11:40 p.m. The ship's owners, the White Star Line, boasted of the size and stamina of the largest passenger steamship built until that time. When Titanic set sail from Southampton, England, for New York City on April 10, 1912, no one, especially its builders, dreamed of its demise. These records tell the stories of the survivors in their own words. The National Archives holds Titanic-related "treasures" as well: Senate investigation records, documents pertaining to Titanic passengers from limited liability suits, and congressional resolutions. The discovery of the ship at the bottom of the sea in the 1980s brought to view intriguing artifacts. The centennial of this event brings to mind the myriad films, books, and electronic media the disaster engenders. Perhaps no other maritime disaster stirs our collective memory more than the sinking of the RMS Titanic on April 15, 1912.
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