RMS Republic (1903)
Republic
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History | |
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United Kingdom | |
Name |
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Owner |
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Operator |
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Port of registry | Liverpool |
Builder | Harland and Wolff , Belfast |
Yard number | 345 |
Launched | 26 February 1903 |
Completed | 12 September 1903 |
Fate | Sunk after collision with SS Florida on 24 January 1909 |
General characteristics | |
Tonnage | 15,400 gross register tons |
Length | 570.0 ft (173.7 m) |
Beam | 67.8 ft (20.7 m) |
Draft | 34 ft 1 in (10.39 m) . |
Depth of hold | 24 ft (7.3 m) |
Propulsion | Twin propeller |
Speed | 16 knots (30 km/h) |
Capacity | 2,830 passengers |
Crew | 300 |
RMS Republic was a steam-powered
History
White Star acquisition
The ship was originally built in Belfast, Ireland, for the
Collision with SS Florida
This section needs additional citations for verification. (January 2013) |
In the early morning of 23 January 1909, while sailing from New York City to
Taking standard precautions and maintaining her speed, the steamer regularly signaled her presence in the outbound shipping traffic lane by whistle. At 5:47 a.m., another whistle was heard and Republic's engines were ordered to full reverse, and the helm put "hard-a-port". Out of the fog, the Lloyd Italiano liner SS Florida appeared and hit Republic amidships on her portside, at about a right angle. Two passengers asleep in their cabins on Republic were killed when Florida's bow sliced into her, liquor wholesale manager Eugene Lynch's wife Mary and banker William J. Mooney. Eugene Lynch was critically injured and died as a result of his injuries at Long Island College Hospital, Brooklyn, 26 January. On Florida, three crewmen were also killed when the bow was crushed back to a collision bulkhead.[6] Six people died in total.
The engine and boiler rooms on Republic began to flood, and the ship listed. Captain Sealby led the crew in calmly organizing the passengers on deck for evacuation. Republic was equipped with the new Marconi
responded to the distress signal as well. Passengers were distributed between the two ships, with Florida taking the bulk of them, but with 900 Italian immigrants already on board, this left the ship dangerously overloaded.The White Star liner Baltic, commanded by Captain J. B. Ranson, also responded to the CQD call, but due to the persistent fog, Baltic was not able to locate the drifting Republic until that evening. Once on-scene, the rescued passengers were transferred from Gresham and Florida to Baltic. Because of the damage to Florida, that ship's immigrant passengers were also transferred to Baltic, but a riot nearly broke out when they had to wait until first-class Republic passengers were transferred. Once everyone was on board, Baltic sailed for New York.
At the time of Republic's sinking, ocean liners were not required to have a full capacity of lifeboats for their passengers, officers, and crew. On the busy North Atlantic route, assistance from at least one ship was believed to be ever-present and that lifeboats would be needed only to ferry all aboard to their rescue vessels and back until everyone was safely evacuated. That scenario, unlike during the
Captain Sealby and a skeleton crew remained on board Republic to make an effort to save her. Crewmen from the Gresham tried using collision mats to stem the flooding, but to no avail.[9] By this time, the steamers New York and Lucania (from Cunard) had also arrived and waited while a futile attempt was made by Gresham to take Republic under tow. On 24 January, Republic sank stern first; at 15,378 tons, she was the largest ship to have sunk until then.[10][11] All the remaining crew were evacuated before she sank.
Reported cargoes
Some reports indicate that Republic was carrying gold and other valuables when she sank. One report is that she was carrying gold worth $250,000[12] in American gold coins to be used as payroll for the US Navy's Great White Fleet.
In addition to the US Navy coin-monies shipment, various sources reported
Rediscovery
The wreck of Republic was found by Captain
in a depth of around 270 feet (82 m) of water.See also
- RMS Empress of Ireland,, which also sank as a result of a collision
- Treasure hunting (marine)
References
- ^ "The Republic and The Delhi". Daily Telegraph. London. 16 April 1912.
- ^ Dunn, Laurence (1964). Famous Liners of the Past Belfast Built. London: Adlard Coles. pp. 70–71.
- ^ "RMS Republic II People On Board". WRECKSITE. 25 November 2010. Retrieved 11 October 2022.
- ^ "RMS Republic Passenger List". RMS Republic. 30 May 2021. Retrieved 11 October 2022.
- ^ "SS Florida / SS Republic Collision (TBT)". Martin & Ottaway. 13 August 2014. Retrieved 26 May 2018.
- ^ "Ship Wrecks of New England - SS Republic". att.net. Archived from the original on 15 June 2006.
- ^ "Rescue at Sea". The American Experience. PBS. Archived from the original on 9 November 2012. Retrieved 22 March 2012.
- ^ "Gresham, 1896" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 27 September 2012. Retrieved 16 November 2010.
- ^ "TITANIC - A Voyage of Discovery (allships)". Archived from the original on 24 May 2006. Retrieved 11 December 2018.
- ^ ISBN 0-7922-7472-5.
- ^ a b "Treasure of the RMS Republic". New York: MVSHQ, Inc. 2009. Retrieved 22 March 2012.
- ISBN 978-1406768947.
- ^ "The Rumor, The Reports, The Legend | RMS - Republic".
- ^ Diving Bell Gropes for Lost Gold, By Robert Talley The Washington Post, June 24, 1934, Pg. M5.
- ^ Lusitania's Treasure of Gold and Gems to Be Salvaged By Alexander J. Wedderburn, Jr. The Washington Post, Dec. 1, 1935, Pg. B6.
- ^ Clarence E. Lovejoy, Maps Give Skippers Chance at Sunken Gold - Week-End Cruising Can Now Include Treasure Hunt New York Times, July 10, 1959, 18.
External links
- Historical News Coverage of the Sinking of the RMS Republic
- The Hero of the Republic
- "CQD" by Alfred M. Caddell, Radio Broadcast, April 1924, pages 449-455.
- "The Triumph of Wireless", The Outlook, 6 February 1909, pages 294-297.
- The American Experience |Rescue at Sea
- R. M. S. Republic | Samuel Cupples House
- Billions in gold? Former dive shop owner to salvage RMS Republic
- RMS Republic - Sad Times for Older Sister of Titanic
- Details of Baltic's effort to find Republic