Have you ever wished you could see inside the Titanic? Hi everyone,
Ken here, welcome to "ThisHouse"!
With all the news revolving around the submersible, the Titan, I’ve received
tons of comments and emails asking me to showcase the Titanic, and while this is a little outside
of the norm for This House, I think we will all appreciate the architecture of the ship’s rooms.
Without further ado, let’s dive right in.
In 1909, construction started on what would become the largest passenger ship of its time.
The Titanic was built alongside its sister ship the Olympic in Northern Ireland, so that the two
would be nearly identical in every way, though the Titanic would end up being bit heavier and longer,
in fact, it was over 882 feet long and over 92 feet wide, reaching a staggering
height of 104 feet. It was equipped with modern technology, such as wireless radio, heated water,
and electricity which was powered by a 16,000 horse power steam turbine. All total, the Titanic
could hold a maximum capacity of 3,339 passengers, including over 900 crew. Everything on this ship
was built in mammoth proportions, as we can see the propeller next to these men in this photo.
To market the ship’s maiden voyage,
illustrated ads were placed in major cities all around the world to stir up
hype and attract wealthy passengers to be the first to stay at this new “hotel on the sea.”
Guests would enter the titanic and find themselves circulating about the
Grand Staircase carved from English Oak. It spiraled as it bifurcated through 7 stories
of the ship bringing the various classes of passengers to their suites and amenities.
Depending on which class of ticket you had purchased,
you would be sent to different parts of the Titanic with separate amenities and restaurants.
Let’s start by exploring life aboard the Titanic as a First Class passenger.
After your staff dropped off your bags with the crew, you would wind your way up the stairs to
find the First Class reception room where servers were ready to hand you a drink and hors devours.
We can now begin exploring the grand spaces, starting with the smoking room, hazy from cigars.
Then we can make our way into the reading and writing room and note it as a quiet
escape should we want some alone time for ourselves during the voyage.
Let’s venture further along to find the dining room, where we will recognize some
of society’s most elite, such as the Astors, dining with their families.
This space is light and airy with large windows that look out over the ocean and is decorated in
earth tones, and considered highly fashionable. But, as first class passengers, this isn’t our
only dining option. We can dine with only the wealthiest passengers in the separate first
class restaurants such as Café A la Carte. And if we want a meal prepared by a 5 star,
world renowned chef, we can take a seat in Café Verandah with checkered marble floors,
rattan furniture, and lattice walls overgrown with ivy. Similarly, we can head over to the Parisien
Café to experience traditional French meals, once again prepared by a world renowned chef.
Now that we’ve seen our dining options, let’s go check out the amenities.
The gymnasium is open to every class of passenger, but we didn’t pay extra to mingle with them.
We’ll head over to the first class pool where we know we’ll make lasting memories with the people
in our circles. Then we can play a round of squash in the squash courts. After wearing ourselves out,
we can relax at the Turkish baths where we can be pampered with massages, and steam in the saunas.
It’s about time to change into our evening wear, so let’s go check out our 1st class suite.
Each of these suites was decorated by famed interior designers and master carpenters
and artisans provided hand crafted details and elaborate hand stenciling. Since we want the very
best experience, we can stay in the Louis the 16th style suite with gilded wall panels and electric
lights. We will even have our own sitting room and dining room with a coal burning fireplace.
That was the best that money could buy, but staying in second class is nearly
as luxurious and certainly worth the money. Our cabin has plenty of room for the family
to stay in their own beds with built in sofas that look out through portholes at the waves.
The dining room, far fancier than any restaurant we’ve ever seen as upper-middle class passengers,
is clad in wood panels with Jacobean ceilings, and every table is set so
perfectly that we might fumble figuring out which fork or spoon to use for which course.
The second class library boasts amazing views out to the ocean, and even though we might not
want to spend time reading, this is a great place grab a cocktail and make new friends.
While second class was a perfectly acceptable and wonderful vacation experience, third class
will have us wishing we would have just stayed home. We are crammed into shared cabins with
strangers with one water basin to share and we can hear the engine room roaring all night long.
The dining room is finished out with white paint over the steel frame with stiff wooden chairs,
though its still marketed as an attainable and luxurious experience. There is nothing to do in
the General room, nor any views to see through the portholes, just dim light reflecting from mirrors
hung every few feet. At least the third class gentlemen on board can retreat to the smoking
room where they can play cards, smoke cigars, and drink until the bartender cuts them off.
Aside from a fire which had been uncontrollably burning in the engine room since 10 days before
it’s maiden voyage, everything seemed to be going great aboard the Titanic.
It’s thought that this might have contributed to the weakening of the steel when it struck an
iceberg, and it has been largely rumored to have been the reason that the Titanic’s ultimate owner,
J.P. Morgan cancelled his trip for its maiden voyage. Though the ship had been touted as
“unsinkable” it very much was sinkable and as it began filling with water, the ship split in two
and the seven story staircase was ejected through the glass dome crowning the ship,
making it nearly impossible for elders and those with disabilities to escape the lower decks.
And while the Titanic has often been criticized for not having enough life boats for every
passenger, it held in excess of what was required by law. The theory was that the
radio room could send out a distress signal and a nearby ship would help ferry passengers to safety,
reusing the same lifeboats before the ship sank. But, this didn’t happen. The nearby SS Californian
ignored the flares and distress calls coming over the radio and refused to help until sunrise.
Had the SS Californian done the right thing, it is possible that no life would have been lost,
but instead, over 1,500 people lost their lives that day.
As news broke on mainland about what had happened, entire business empires crumbled as some of the
world’s wealthiest men and women had gone down with the ship. To this day, ruins of their
palatial estates can be found scattered primarily across the US East Coast. And at the bottom of
If you enjoyed this video, let me know and maybe I’ll cover a historic yacht
or sailboat in a future episode. As always, let me know which room was your favorite and
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