Primary Sources for Students - Lesson 1
Periodical articles at the time of the event:
Periodical articles of the times offer a variety of points of view, accuracy, etc. Access these through the paper index to Readers' Guide to Periodical Literature vol.1910-1914 (pages 2568-2569).
Examples: "
High Speed Though the Ice Fields
" Scientific American. 107: 2. July 6 1912; also "
Wireless and the Titanic
". World's Work 24:225-6. June 1912.
Newspaper articles at the time of the event:
The sinking of Titanic made headlines around the world. Access articles in The New York Times Index through its paper index. Example: "
Several trans-Atlantic captains tell of encountering same icebergs that sank Titanic
" (April 16).
Wireless Operator Bride's account of the event in the New York Times can also be found in can also be found in Eyewitness to America:
500 Years of America In the Words of Those Who Saw it Happen
, pages 325-330.
A very select group of newspaper headlines about the event can be found at the Virginia Newspaper Projects's online exhibit "
R.M.S.Titanic - 83 Years Later
", http://vsla.edu/vn. There are many good links: "Inaccurate or Misleading Reporting" -"Headline Coverage" - "Editorial Cartoons" -"Aftermath and Inquiry", etc.
From the British perspective, see
David Bryceson's The Titanic Disaster
: As Reported in the British National Press April - July 1912.
Photographs:
Titanic: An Illustrated History
. Text by Don Lynch. (New York: Hyperion,
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1992). This lavishly illustrated book contains dozens of paintings created by Ken Marcshall as well as hundreds of archival photographs.
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E.E.O'Donnell's The Last Days of the Titanic
: Photographs and Mementos of the Tragic Maiden Voyage This book includes a cache of photos taken by Francis ("Father') Brown who got off the Titanic in Ireland after Southhampton found in a Dublin basement.
Government Documents:
"The Titanic Inquiry Project Website", http//www.3.mwis.net/ ~breaktym/ TIP.htm. Contains transcripts from the U.S.Senate inquiry; transcripts to the British Inquiry are in progress. Excellent primary sources such as testimony affidavits, memos, geologic info, charts, etc. Included here are interviews with the Titanic's surviving wireless operator as well as other wireless operators.
Kuntz, Tom. The Titanic Disaster Hearings: The Official Transcripts of the 1912 Senate Investigation. New York: Pocket, 1998.
Wireless messages/Marconigrams:
"The R.M.S.Titanic Radio Page", http://usersnetinfo.com.au/anars. This site presents the numerous Marconi Radio messages that were sent and received.
Poems:
The great outpouring of emotion at the time of this event resulted in many poems. NYTimes Index is one source. Especially of interest is the black perspective.
Letters:
Alistair Forsyth's Titanic Voices: Memories from the Fateful Voyage
. Find here unedited letters from the servants as well as previously unpublished photos and oral histories.Many of the third Southhamtpon
Oral Histories:
The Titanic and the Sinking of the Titanic: A Survivors' Story by Archibald Gracie and John B.Thayer
. Read the words of these survivors.
Geofrey Giuliano's That Fateful Night: True Stories of the Titanic Survivors in Their Own Words
Included here are interviews with British survivors.
Jay Henry Mowbray's The Sinking of the Titanic: Eyewitness Account.
This is a republication of 1912 book and contains 32 photos.
Artifacts:
The Titanic Collection: Mementos of the Maiden Voyage by Eric Sauders. This box contains reproductions of actual tickets, deck plans, menus as well as replicas of telegraph warnings and other documents.
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Songs:
"History in Song", http://www.fortunecity.com/tinpan/parton/2/ has song lyrics through a link from "Tragedies and Disasters"
Other primary sources:
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"
Titanic: Tragedy at Sea
". Two videos "
Echoes of Titanic
" and "
Titanic Remembered
" Distributed by Madacy Entertainment, 1997. Both videos rely extensively on primary sources of many kinds (newspapers, interviews with survivors, other documents, photographs, film) to tell the story.
Some Secondary Sources for Students - Lessons 1 and 2
A search on www.Amazon.com shows over two hundred books related to Titanic from juvenile fiction to scholarly imports. Here are some of particular interest.
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Ballard, Robert. The Discovery of the Titanic
. Toronto: Madison, 1987.
The oceanographer details the exciting underwater discovery.
Brewster, Hugh. 882 1/2 Amazing Answers to Your Questions about Titanic.
Toronto: Madison, 1998. You can find the answers to 882 1/2 questions (because
Titanic was 882 1/2 feet long).
Davie, Michael. Titanic: The Life and Death of a Legend
. New York: Knopf, 1986.
A solid overview is presented here.
Dudman, John, The Sinking of the Titanic
. New York: Bookwright, 1988.
This juvenile title in the Great Disaster series is very readable.
Lord, Walter. A Night to Remember
. New York: Henry Holt, 1955. This readable
account includes Lord's interviews with survivors.
Lord, Walter. The Night Lives On
. New York: William Morrow, 1986. Lord
continues his research.
Wels, Susan. Titanic: Legacy of the World's Greatest Ocean Liner
. New York: Time- Life,1997. Great illustrations can be found here.
Web Sites - Lesson 3
More sites can be found using a search engine such as AltaVista and the search terms: Titanic and wireless.
"Article from Shipbuilder Midsummer 1911,http://www.geocities.com/Pentagon/2519/titanic/marconi.htm>, July 17, 1999. Article from 1911 describing wireless equipment on Titanic; includes diagrams.
Johnson, Dwight. "The Radio Legacy of RMS Titanic." http://www.avsia.com/ djohnson/ titanic.htm> May 14, 1999.
The RMS Titanic Radio Page, http://usersnetinfo.com.au/anars> April 18,
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1999. Nineteen pages specializing in the radio aspects of the Titanic disaster.
"Titanic Inquiry Project Website", http: www3.mwis.net/~breaktym/TIP.htm>, July 17
1999. Contains transcripts from the U.S .Senate inquiry; transcripts to the British Inquiry are in progress. Excellent primary sources such as testimony affidavits, memos, geologic info, charts, etc. Included here are interviews with the Titanic's surviving wireless operator as well as other wireless operators.
"Titanic Disaster as Viewed from Cape Race", http://titanic.gov.ns.ca/wireless.html> July 19, 1999. The nearest land-based station to Titanic recorded the wireless traffic; facsimile of records
"Titanic Wireless Operators", http://starway.org/Titanic/WirelessOperators.html> July 17, 1999. Brief information on operators Bride and Phillips.
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"Wireless and Titanic", http://www3.sympatico.ca/hrc/haida/radio/titanic.htm>, July 17,1999. This site discusses the distress calls.