The Titanic

The Grandest Ship

Construction of Titanic began in 1909. At that time, America was falling in love with machines. Cloth, steel, railroads, cars, and bridges were all being churned out at record rates. The Wright brothers tested their new flying machine in North Carolina just a few years earlier. Automobiles were replacing horses and buggies on city streets.

Inspired by this increase of technology, J. Bruce Ismay, head of White Star Line ship company in Great Britain, wanted to make headlines. He decided to build three magnificent ships: Olympic, Titanic, and Britannic. All three ships were to be unparalleled by any other passenger ship.

The ships were constructed in Belfast, Ireland. Titanic and Olympic were made side by side, and people stopped to admire the 45,000 ton ships being built every day.

With these new ships, for the first time, sailing across the Atlantic Ocean would take only a week, instead of a month or more. In the 1860s, shipbuilders began making ships safer and more comfortable. They added windows, clean water, better bathroom facilities, and more comfortable beds. Ships started offering different classes of tickets. First-class ticket holders would have the nicest rooms and food. They’d have access to lounges, libraries, and dining rooms. Third-class passengers were usually poor immigrants and laborers. They’d have small cramped rooms in steerage, the lowest part of the ship.

Robert Douglas Spedden was six when he sailed in first class on the Titanic. His family was traveling in Africa, but now they were almost home to New York. Nine-year-old Maria Touma was traveling with her mother and younger brother in third class. They were immigrants on their way to meet Maria’s father in Michigan. But even their small room was comfortable by comparison to the camels, freighter ship, and train they’d taken to get to Southampton.

Samantha’s Log: Praying for News

Jenny, Bridget, and Samantha sit in Uncle Gard and Aunt Cornelia’s library. Nobody is talking as Uncle Gard paces across the room. They hear the tick of the mantel clock. They’re all waiting anxiously for news. Although the news says that most of Titanic’s passengers are safe, Samantha has a sinking feeling in her chest.

Six years ago, Samantha, Nellie, Grandmary, and her husband, Admiral Beemis, sailed across the Atlantic on Queen Caroline. She was an elegant ship, and Samantha’s cozy little cabin in first class had thick curtains to keep her warm at night. Samantha would often sit at the little writing desk and journal in her “log.” She’ll never forget when she explored down to third-class. The passengers were so crowded.

Nellie told Samantha about what it was like to travel in steerage, for that’s where Nellie and her family were when they immigrated from Ireland.

Tears fall from Samantha’s cheeks. Will she ever see Nellie again?