TITANIC INTERESTING FACTS

Hello, dear speakers and listeners! I am English Trainer, Christelle. Goal: The purpose of this activity is to practice your English reading accuracy, pronunciation and free-talking skills. We will also learn some vocabulary words from the text. So sit back, relax and enjoy the journey as you are about to discover fascinating facts about the Titanic.

TITANIC FACT # 1 "The Titanic was the world's largest passenger ship when it entered service. It measured 269 meters (882 feet) in length and was the largest mobile object on earth to be made by man. The ship burned around 600 tonnes of coal a day – hand shoveled into its furnaces by a team of 176 men."

TITANIC FACT # 2 "The ship carried 2,223 passengers and crew. Of the 2,223 people aboard the Titanic, 1,517 did not survive the collision with the iceberg. The ship was not even at full capacity -- it could hold more than 3,500 people."

TITANIC FACT #3 "When they built the Titanic, and they were going to sail from Liverpool to New York for the first time, one of the inventors of the ship was asked a question in an interview if this whole ship could actually sink in the ocean? Replying to the question asked, he said, "Not even God himself could sink this ship." The man who made this statement was known as Edward John Smith." The British merchant steamship SS Mesaba sent a warning radio message to the Titanic on April 14, 1912 while crossing the Atlantic. The message was received by the Titanic -- which was advertised as unsinkable -- but did not reach the main control center of the vessel.

TITANIC FACT # 5 "Englishman, Charles Herbert Lightoller was assigned to load passengers into lifeboats and evacuate them. To the detriment of many passengers, took his captain’s orders to mean only women and children should be sent out in the lifeboats – no men. With no lifeboats left, Lightoller dove off the bridge into the water where he joined others hanging onto an overturned collapsible boat until they were rescued. He was not only the last person rescued by the RMS Carpathia, but was the highest-ranking officer to survive the wreck."

TITANIC FACT #6 "Milton Hershey was supposed to be on the Titanic: Hershey? Sounds familiar? Well, Milton Hershey, the man who invented the famed or famous 'Hershey's Milk Chocolate Bar,' wrote a $300 check to reserve his stateroom on the RMS Titanic. Business took precedence, and Hershey and his wife missed out on the excursion."

TITANIC FACT #7 "The chief baker treaded water for two hours before being rescued. The chief baker, Charles Joughin, supposedly treaded water for two hours before he was found. He claimed the copious amounts of whiskey he had consumed before the ship sank had kept his body warm enough to sustain the subfreezing water."

TITANIC FACT #8 "Two young brothers survived the ship without a guardian. Edmond and Michel Navratil went down in history as the only children to survive the Titanic without a parent. They were two years apart in age and were nicknamed the "Titanic Orphans." Their father, Michel Sr., kidnapped them from their mother, whom he was no longer with, and planned to take them to America. The last anyone saw of him was when he put his children in a lifeboat."

TITANIC FACT #9 "Only 23 of the 908 crew on board were female. Of the 23 female crew members, only three did not survive the collision. Of the 885 male crew members, a tragic 693 went down with the ship. "

TITANIC FACT #10 "There were twenty five engineers and ten electricians and boilermakers aboard ship. These men were the highest paid of the crew and none of them survived. These men worked feverishly after the collision to keep the ship afloat as long as possible. These men had also been battling a fire in Boiler Room 6 for most of the voyage. There were apparently 163 stokers to keep the boilers running. Only a handful of the stokers, trimmers and greasers survived."

TITANIC FACT #11 "The Titanic had eight musicians on board who traveled as second-class passengers and played during teatime, Sunday services, after-dinner concerts, and more. The Titanic’s band was led by Wallace Hartley. The musicians of the RMS played for more than two hours as the ship sank down. All eight perished when the ship sank in 1912. They played music, intending to calm the passengers, for as long as they possibly could, and all went down with the ship. All were recognized for their heroism. In the movie "Titanic," one of the songs played was "Nearer, My God, to Thee," which is believed to be the last song played on the ship in real life."

TITANIC FACT #12 "Over half the people on board could have survived if all of the space available on the lifeboats was used."

TITANIC FACT #13 "The first lifeboat was released an hour after the iceberg struck. It may seem like common sense for a ship to immediately release safety lifeboats upon hull breach. The Titanic, however, did not release its first lifeboat until an entire hour elapsed. "

TITANIC FACT #14 "The ship took over two years to build. The ship took 26 months to build. Construction crews used 3 million rivets to build the 26,000-ton hull, a combination of iron and steel."

TITANIC FACT #15 "14,000 gallons of drinking water were consumed each day on the ship. For perspective, one gallon of water is equivalent to 16 cups. So, 14,000 gallons means there were 224,000 cups of water distributed among some 2,223 people every 24 hours."

TITANIC FACT #16 "A lifeboat drill had been scheduled for the morning of April 14 before the ship sank, but was cancelled, allegedly because the ship’s captain, Edward Smith, wanted to deliver one last Sunday service before he went into full retirement."

TITANIC FACT #17 "The Titanic carried 20 lifeboats, enough for 1178 people. The existing Board of Trade required a passenger ship to provide lifeboat capacity for 1060 people. Titanic’s lifeboats were situated on the top deck. The boat was designed to carry 64 lifeboats but this number was reduced to 20 because it was felt that the deck would be too cluttered."

TITANIC FACT #18 "There was plenty of liquor and cigars onboard. There were 20,000 bottles of beer and 1,500 bottles of wine stocked on the ship. In addition to plentiful alcohol, there were 8,000 cigars onboard, all of which was available for first-class patrons."

TITANIC FACT #19 "Around 6,000 artifacts were recovered from the wreckage site. Treasures rescued from the Titanic are in high demand. Among the 6,000 artifacts was a violin that sold for $1.7 million in 2013 at an auction house in the United Kingdom. The Titanic's ship plan sold in 2011 for $336,000."

TITANIC FACT #20 "Passengers on the Ship of Dreams were divided into first, second, and third Titanic classes. The lower classes occupied the lower part of the ship and the upper levels – you guessed it – had the top part. But the big difference was in the Titanic food. According to the official inventory, 40,000 fresh eggs were taken aboard at Southampton for the voyage, as well as huge volumes of meat, cheese and other essentials. The Titanic’s crew and passengers also consumed 14,000 gallons of drinking water a day. Plus, for the first-class passengers, the ship’s cellars were filled with 12,000 bottles of wine and champagne – many of which still lie on the floor of the Atlantic Ocean, unopened and perhaps even drinkable."

TITANIC FACT #21 "A voyage across the Atlantic to New York City must have seemed like a romantic idea for a Honeymoon at the time. And, indeed, the Titanic set off with 13 honeymooning couples on board. As with the passengers in general, some drowned, and some were saved through a combination of heroism and simple dumb luck. The most famous newlyweds were 47-year-old Jacob Astor IV and his 18-year-old bride Madeleine, who was pregnant. It’s said that Astor had to step into the lifeboat on four occasions to persuade his young wife to leave him and escape. He died in the tragedy."

TITANIC FACT #22 "12 dogs were onboard the Titanic – and 3 of them even survived the ship’s sinking. Along with the many passengers and huge crew, 12 dogs were onboard the Titanic for its maiden voyage. All but three got on at the French port of Cherbourg. And they were treated very well indeed. The ship had its own luxury kennels for its four-legged guests – after all, only First Class passengers were permitted to bring their dogs, and they demanded the very best. Tragically, of the 12 dogs on the Titanic, only three survived, including two Pomeranians who were carried onto a lifeboat by their wealthy female owners."

TITANIC FACT #23 "The decisions made by Captain Smith on that fateful night continue to be the source of much debate. However, even his detractors concede that he stayed true to the ‘laws of the sea’ and stoically went down with his ship. The last confirmed sighting of Smith was on the bridge, with some survivors even claiming he was at the wheel. Before the Titanic went under, he released the crew of their duties, giving them the chance to save themselves. Smith was heralded as a true British gentleman and his last reported words – “Well boys, do your best for the women and children, and look out for yourselves” – were widely cited as proof of this."