In the early morning hours of April 15, 1912. the White Star ocean liner RMS Titanic struck an iceberg en route to New York City and sank in the Atlantic Ocean. Survivors were rescued by the Cunard liner Carpathia and brought to their berth at Pier 54 on the rainy evening of April 18.
On that very spot today, a fanciful waterfront development juts out into the Hudson River, a place called Little Island which opened in 2021. This recreational oasis will draw thousands of people, New Yorkers and tourists alike, this spring and summer.
But on the southern side of Little Island, peering out of the water, are dozens of wooden posts – these are the remains of the former Pier 54.
And it was on this pier, on April 18, 1912, that survivors of the Titanic disembarked and touched land.
This is the story of the places that figured into the aftermath and the story of how New York memorialized those lost to the tragedy.
And in the end we return to Little Island and to the ghost of Pier 54, the place where this disaster became reality for most people. Where survivors were greeted with joy and where many hundreds of people faced the reality that their loved ones were never coming home.
Visit our website for images and more information.
FURTHER READING:
A short history of New York City’s various Titanic memorials
The doctor, the heiress and the accidental nanny: New York women who survived the Titanic
A haunting look inside the Lusitania
FURTHER LISTENING:
Chelsea Piers: New York City in the Age of the Ocean Liner
The Complicated History of the Waldorf-Astoria
How Chelsea Became A Neighborhood
Support the Bowery Boys Podcast on Patreon
#386 On the Trail of the Old Croton Aqueduct
Now Playing: History Daily Podcast
#385 Frederick Law Olmsted and the Plan for Central Park
#384 Nuyorican: The Great Puerto Rican Migration
#383 The Temple on Fifth Avenue
#382 Architect of the Gilded Age
Introducing: Love Thy Neighbor
#381 The Wonderful Home of Louis Armstrong
#380 Dorothy Parker's Last Party
#379 How Chelsea Became a Neighborhood
#378 The Ansonia: Only Scandals In The Building
The Real Mrs. Astor: Ruler or Rebel?
Rewind: West Side Story and the Making of Lincoln Center
Gilded Age or Gilded Cage? (With The Bowery Boys)
#377 The Rockefeller Center Christmas Tree
Introducing: The Gilded Gentleman
#376 Skid Row: The Bowery of the Forgotten
Toxic Turkey Day: HISTORY This Week
#375 The Great Bank Robbery of 1878
#374 Gotham's Greatest Ghost Stories
Create your
podcast in
minutes
It is Free
Dark Histories
The Best Song Podcast
Irish Songs with Ken Murray
The Rest Is History
American History Tellers