Titanic and Liverpool

Distributed for Liverpool University Press

Paper $19.95 ISBN: 9781846312229 Published March 2010 For sale in North America only

On the fateful night of April 14, 1912, if you could have stood behind the “unsinkable” RMS Titanic as she went down in the frigid waters off of the Great Banks of Newfoundland, the last sight that would have flashed before your eyes as the great ship became lost to the sea would have been the word “Liverpool.” The loss of such a storied liner, a national and international tragedy, was also a tragedy for its home port—and this fascinating, first of its kind volume explores the history and myths surrounding the sinking in terms of the extraordinary stories that link Europe’s preeminent port city of Liverpool and its most famous maritime loss.

Many of the ship's key officers and crew were either from Liverpool or had strong links with the port, and many of the most colorful tales emerging from the disaster relate to lower-class Liverpudlians who scurried to join the voyage. Using material from the archives of the White Star Line, the extensive holdings of the Merseyside Maritime Museum, rich newly discovered illustrations, and a variety of other topical historical sources, author Alan Scarth unearths the unbelievable back story of key characters, minor crewmen turned unsung heroes, and company officers who, though not on the ship, were intimately connected to the events of that infamous evening. We also find out what happened to the survivors when they went on with their lives following the ship’s sinking.

Filled with previously unpublished source material and illustrations, Titanic and Liverpool will be compulsory reading for anyone interested not only in the fateful events of that unforgettable night.