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The Wreck of the "Atlantic"
Built in 1871, by the same shipyard that built the "Titanic," the "Atlantic" was 420 feet long and had a max speed of 14 knots. She soon became one of the top liners on the Atlantic route. Setting sail to New York from Liverpool on 20 March 1873, she carried 931 passengers and crew and met heavy gales from the beginning. Seven days into the voyage, Captain Williams decided to alter course to Nova Scotia. Not only was the "Atlantic's" coal bunkers running low, but the ship's narrow beam caused her to roll badly - causing the passengers and crew awful seasickness. As the "Atlantic" approached the coast, the weather created more havoc. Unable to take any star or sun readings to determine their position, the crew of the "Atlantic" had to rely on "dead reckoning." Since it had been several days since their last accurate reading, that fact, combined with the gale winds, meant that the "Atlantic" had no real idea where they were. To add to the foolhardiness, the "Atlantic" was sailing full speed at 3 a.m. on the 1st of April when she ran into the rocks off Meagher Island, Nova Scotia. Panic set in aboard the ship as the wind and waves began to batter the ship. It was only a matter of time before the ship began to break up and sink. The sledgehammer waves bashed the lifeboats from the decks, but a few brave officers jumped into the boiling surf with a line and managed to attach it to a rock 150 yards away. Using this lifeline, about half of the passengers were saved, but the rest succumbed to the waves, exhaustion and exposure. As dawn came, local fishing boats came out to rescue survivors, but around 560 lives had been lost.
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The copyright of the article The Wreck of the "Atlantic" in Maritime History is owned by Neal West. Permission to republish The Wreck of the "Atlantic" in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.
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