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RMS Titanic Life Vest

American History Museum

Life vest from the RMS Titanic, picked up by a physician aboard the RMS Carpathia
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  • Life vest from the RMS Titanic, picked up by a physician aboard the RMS Carpathia
  • Life vest from the RMS Titanic, picked up by a physician aboard the RMS Carpathia

    Object Details

    Description

    Chicago physician Dr. Frank Blackmarr, a passenger aboard Titanic's rescue ship RMS Carpathia, helped the survivors suffering from hypothermia, exposure, and shock. He collected a Titanic life vest during the voyage as a souvenir. Five days into its maiden voyage in 1912, the White Star ocean liner Titanic struck an iceberg at full speed in the North Atlantic, en route from England to the United States. For the next few hours, the giant ship took on water and began to nose down into the sea. At 2:20 a.m. on April 15, the gigantic ship sank in 12,500 feet of water 350 miles off the coast of Canada. Within about two hours, Carpathia arrived and rescued the Titanic's 705 surviving crew and passengers. Around 1,500 people aboard were lost.

    Credit Line

    Gift of Chicago Historical Society (through Teresa Krutz) and Dr. Frank H. Blackmarr

    date made

    1912

    ID Number

    1982.0319.01

    catalog number

    82.0319.01

    accession number

    1982.0319

    Object Name

    life jacket

    Other Terms

    life jacket; Maritime

    Physical Description

    textile (outside material)

    Measurements

    overall: 23 in x 12 in; 58.42 cm x 30.48 cm

    Related Publication

    National Museum of American History. On the Water exhibition website

    Related Web Publication

    http://americanhistory.si.edu/onthewater

    See more items in

    Work and Industry: Maritime
    Industry & Manufacturing
    Transportation
    On the Water exhibit
    Titanic

    Exhibition

    On the Water

    Exhibition Location

    National Museum of American History

    Data Source

    National Museum of American History

    related event

    The Emergence of Modern America

    Metadata Usage

    CC0

    Link to Original Record

    https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ng49ca746a6-9a85-704b-e053-15f76fa0b4fa

    Record ID

    nmah_844465

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