• White Star Lines needed to construct new vessels to compete with the new vessels of the time.They needed to build ships better, faster, and bigger than those of Cunard liner's Mauretania and Luistania.
  • Early in 1907, Lord Pirrie of Harland and Wolff, and J. Bruce Ismay discussed plans for 2 giant ocean vessels
  • On July 29, 1908, the plans were unveiled to a party of distinguished guests at Harland & Wolff.
  • On December 16, 1908, the first keel plate was laid for the Olympic. Three months later, on March 31, 1909, the construction of the Titanic began.
  • The completed Titanic cost about $7,500,000(in 1912).
  • Harland and Wolff, the shipyard where White Star Lines ships were built, had to make new gantries and piers to accommodate the new vessels: Titanic, Olympic, Britannic.
  • The hull weighed 26,000 tons
  • The ship weighed 46,328 Gross Registered Tons. Each ton equal 100 cubic feet
  • She was 882' 9" long and 92.5" in the beam.
  • Each funnel was large enough to drive two trains through.(right)
  • There were nine decks and
  • It was as high as an eleven story building.

  • The three anchors weighed a total of 31 tons.(top left)
  • Each chain link weighed about 175lbs!! ( making of the chains top right)
  • The rudder weighed 20,250 lbs.

  • There were 29 boilers, each one weighing nearly 100 tons!( below)

  • She had three propellers. The middle one was 16 feet across and the other two were over 23 feet across.
  • Although there were four funnels, only the bow(front) three were used. The stern funnel was used as ventilator.
  • The outdated British regulations required ships over 10,000 tons had to have lifeboats for 962 people. The Titanic exceeded this regulation by carrying enough lifeboats for 1,178 people, however this was not enough for her 3,511 passengers and crew. Over one thousand people would not have a seat on the lifeboats if each boat was filled to maximum capacity.
  • There were four elevators, three in First Class and one in Second Class. This was the first boat to have elevators for second class

  • The Titanic was the first ocean liner to have a swimming pool and a
    gym.(Gym below)

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  • The Titanic was divided by 15 transverse bulkheads which were said to be watertight because the bulkheads extended well above the waterline. The ship could still remain buoyant if at most four compartments were filled with water
  • For her time, all passengers were accommodated very well. Even third class cabins were bigger and more luxurious compared to others.
  • It had four parlor suites, which were the most expensive cabins. Each were 50 feet in length and two of them had their own private promenade deck!(one of these cabins, below left)
  • She had a French Cafe with French waiters and cooks(below right).

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