Director’s Thoughts, April, 2019

Titanic Remembrance Day

Date When Celebrated: Always April 15

Titanic Remembrance Day is dedicated to the memory of the Titanic, and over 1500 people who died. On this day in 1912, the Titanic sank in the icy waters of the North Atlantic ocean.

The Titanic was called “unsinkable” and the “safest ship afloat” by her builder and designer. However, on her maiden voyage from England to New York City, the cruise ship Titanic hit an iceberg in the Atlantic Ocean. This occurred on April 14, 1912 at 11:40p.m. Two hours later, with a gaping gash in her side, the ship quickly sank in icy waters. 1522 passengers and crew died.

The historic sinking of the Titanic spurred numerous television documentaries, specials, and big screen movies. The most recent was the blockbuster movie Titanic, starring Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet.

Did you know? The Titanic had a sister ship, the Olympic. The ships were constructed around the same time, with the Olympic starting first. The Olympic was launched in 1910. She served as a cruise liner until pressed into service during WWI as a troop carrier. She was retired in 1935.

Both ships were labeled “unsinkable”. RMS stands for Royal Mail Steamer. RMS, in formal terms, means “Royal Merchant Ship”. However, the dual meaning was also “Royal Mail Steamer”, because the Titanic carried mail under the auspices of His Majesty’s postal authorities.

• In 1898 (14 years prior to the Titanic tragedy), Morgan Robertson wrote a novel called Futility. This fictitious novel was about the largest ship ever built hitting an iceberg in the Atlantic Ocean on a cold April night. The fictional ship (named Titan) and the real ship Titanic were similar in design and their circumstances were remarkably alike. Both ships were labeled “unsinkable”.

• RMS stands for Royal Mail Steamer. RMS, in formal terms, means “Royal Merchant Ship”. However, the dual meaning was also “Royal Mail Steamer”, because the Titanic carried mail under the auspices of His Majesty’s postal authorities. At that time, all ships, military and civilian, that were under the British flag carried the distinction of “R.M.S.” This, in effect, gave the ship the protection of the British Crown. An attack on an R.M.S. was considered an attack on the crown and an act of war.

• Two dogs were among the Titanic survivors.

• There were no cats on the Titanic. Cats were often brought on ships as a form of good luck. They also controlled rodents.

• The Titanic is about as long as the Empire State building is tall.

• The Tower Bridge, located in London England, is approximately the same length and height as the Titanic.

• Originally, the Titanic’s design only included 3 funnels (smokestacks). The aft most funnel (towards stern) was added to make the Titanic look more impressive-it gave the feeling of “power and grace”. It only functioned as an air vent.

• No one ever claimed that the Titanic was “unsinkable”. The quote, “practically unsinkable” was taken out of context. In 1911, Shipbuilder magazine published an article describing the construction of the Titanic. The article stated that when the watertight doors were closed, the ship would be “practically unsinkable”.

• It was customary to break a bottle of champagne on the bow of a boat when launched. The Titanic launching did not include the traditional bottle-breaking.

• Many of the passengers were not originally suppose to be traveling on the Titanic. Due to a strike, coal was in short supply. This shortage threatened Titanic’s maiden voyage and forced the White Star Line to cancel travel on the Oceanic and Adriatic and transfer their passengers and coal stocks to the Titanic.

• There were 13 couples on board celebrating their Honeymoons.

• Captain Smith was planning to retire after Titanic’s maiden voyage.

• The Titanic had 4 elevators (3 in First class and 1 in Second class).

• At the time, Titanic’s whistles were the largest ever made.

• Titanic’s whistles could be heard from a distance of 11 miles.

• The Titanic carried 900 tons of baggage and freight.

• The Titanic used 14,000 gallons of drinking water every 24 hours.

• Coal consumption per day: 825 tons.

• Carried 20 lifeboats and 3560 life jackets. The life jackets were made of canvas and cork.

• More than 3 million rivets were used to build the Titanic.

• In a test done to determine stopping distance, the Titanic was accelerated to 20 knots and then the engines were reversed at full power. The distance required to stop the Titanic was about half a mile.

• The Titanic’s radio call sign was: MGY.
• Port of Registry – Liverpool, England. Registry date: March 24, 1912.
• Official ship number: 131,428
• The number 3909 04 was NOT assigned to the Titanic as a hull number.
• The lookouts in the crow’s nest did not have binoculars. Having binoculars might have prevented the Titanic tragedy.
• The time interval from first sighting of the iceberg to impact was a little over 30 seconds.
• The Titanic sank 2 hours and 40 minutes after hitting the iceberg.
• It probably took Titanic about 15 minutes to sink to her final resting place on the ocean floor. That means that Titanic sank at a rate of 10 miles per hour (or 16 km per hour).

• The Titanic hit the iceberg on the starboard (right) side of the bow. It has been speculated that the Titanic may have suffered only minor damage and minimal loss of life had it hit the iceberg head-on. It has also been suggested that the Titanic may have completely avoided colliding with the iceberg had the bridge not requested that the engines be reversed (“Full Astern”), prior to steering the ship to the left (“Hard-a-starboard”). This action would have decreased the forward momentum of the Titanic causing it to turn at a slower rate.
• July and August are the only two months the weather permits expeditions to the Titanic wreck site.

Price of a ticket (in 1912):

• First Class: $4,350 (price of finest 1st class suite)
• Second Class: $1,750
• Third Class: $30

Lifeboats? The Titanic carried a total of 20 lifeboats. 14 of these lifeboats were wooden and each one had a capacity of 65 persons, 2 were wood cutters with a capacity of 40 persons each and 4 were collapsibles (wood bottoms and canvas sides) and each collapsible was capable of carrying 47 persons. The total capacity of all 20 lifeboats was 1,178 people. This was obviously not enough lifeboats to save all the 2201 people on board the Titanic. If every lifeboat left the Titanic filled to maximum capacity, 1,023 persons would have been left behind. Unfortunately, very few lifeboats were filled to maximum capacity when they were lowered from the Titanic into the icy water. This caused the death toll to rise dramatically. When the order came from Captain Smith to commence loading the lifeboats, the Titanic’s Officers were probably unaware of the magnitude of the situation. Their apparent complacency did not instill a sense of urgency and therefore caused many passengers to balk at the opportunity to get into a lifeboat. To make matters worse, there were never any lifeboat drills and the crew had not been informed that each lifeboat could be safely lowered when filled to capacity. Only 711 persons were rescued and 1490 died. Luckily, the Titanic was not filled to capacity (3,547 persons). If this were the case, there would only be enough lifeboats to save one-third of the people (assuming that every lifeboat was filled to capacity).

Why so few lifeboats? Well, believe it or not, the Titanic actually exceeded the number of lifeboats required by the Board of Trade at that time. The regulations, ratified in 1894, applied to ships of 10,000 gross tons or larger. As ships increased in size over the years, the lifeboat requirements stayed the same. The Titanic was designed to carry a total of 48 lifeboats, but the White Star Line decided that passenger comfort was most important. They believed that an increase in the number of lifeboats (beyond 20) would have cluttered the decks and taken up valuable space. Harland and Wolff tried to persuade the White Star Line to install more lifeboats, but eventually gave up the fight. As they say, “the customer is always right”.

When the lifeboat needs were finalized, the general feeling was that the modern ship was engineered and built so well that even if a ship was in a situation where it might sink, there would be plenty of time for other ships in the area to come to the rescue. It was also believed that the main purpose of the lifeboats was to ferry passengers and crew from the distressed ship to the rescue ship(s). The Titanic tragedy prompted laws requiring that ships carry enough lifeboats for all passengers and crew.

Whatever happened to the Iceberg the Titanic hit? Compared to others, the iceberg that Titanic hit was fairly small. Titanic survivors estimate that its height was about 100 feet above the water. It is estimated that the iceberg extended 500 feet below the surface. It kept floating south until it reached warmer waters and eventually melted away.

I hope you enjoyed a bit of history. I have always been intrigued with the R.M.S Titanic since I watched the movie made for TV years & years ago. Years ago, we visited the traveling presentation on the Titanic shown in Philadelphia, Pa. We all were given a name, place of birth, & reason to come to America on this great ship! If my memory serves me right, Brent was a little boy who survived this disaster during our visit. Thought I’d share with all of you this month.

Your Elected Director, Sally Getz

“Free Spirit” Chapter Meeting Minutes, MARCH 5, 2019

Meeting called to order @ 7:31 pm, 15 members in attendance. Motion to accept February meeting minutes as printed in the March newsletter, Debbie Brady, seconded by Don Atwood, so carried.

Treasurer’s Report = February 2019 report given, motion to accept, Don Atwood, seconded by Alan Robertson, so carried.

COMMITTEE REPORTS:

A. Historian – no report

B. Lehighton Show (formerly Kempton Show) – flyers available during the Hamburg meet, March, 2019. Show now to be held @ Phifer’s Ice Dams, Lehighton, Pa, October 27, 2019.

C. Membership – no report

D. Newsletter – received 13 out of 14 newsletter ad renewals. Labrandi’s Plating opted NOT to renew.

E. Programs – April guest speaker = a rep to speak about “EVANS radiator coolant(s)”. May= guest speaker will be Stephen Harvilla, a Nutrition Health Evangelist. Buick day tour to Eastwood Co., Pottstown = April 6, 2019 (read on for further information).

F. Publicity – no report

G. Technical – no report

H. Ways and Means – RAFFLE: Alan Robertson was the recipient of a 1953 Buick Roadmaster ornament.

OLD BUSINESS: Please call David/Debbie Brady about attending the April 6 th tour to Eastwood Company, Pottstown, Pa. Saw & spoke w/ 11 “Free Spiriters” during the Hamburg meet, March 5. It was good to see those who attended! AACA Club House Museum Meet, anyone going to attend? See March newsletter for details.

NEW BUSINESS: Received an email request from a local native of Allentown, wanting to know if anyone in the club would be interested in driving her 90 year old father in a 1953 Buick Roadmaster in honor of his 90 th birthday. This year Buick was his when he & his wife met & dated. David Brady took some information.

Received an invitation via US mail for the Warren Hills Regional High School, Washington, NJ Car show.

Received an email from Thym Smith, Car Selection Committee member of the 2019 Radnor Hunt Concours d’Elegance, Malvern, Pa, on September 8, 2019. They are looking for BUICKS, PRE-WAR & POST-WAR, to be the featured marque during this event. Information was handed out to several members about how to apply for selection. If you are interested, please see the following: Thym Smith, tsmith3557@aol.com, 302-573-5287

Received an email from Danilelle Gress, Development Coordinator of Friends of Washingtom Crossing Historic Park, NJ, inviting our chapter to attend their “Rebels & Redcoats Car Show” July 4 th , 2019. She invited our chapter to attend a meeting to assist in organizing this event celebration.

Motion made to adjourn = Isabel Lenny, seconded by Shirley Schaffer, so carried @ 8:05 pm.

Respectfully submitted, substitute, Sally Getz

Chapter Badges

Please remember to wear your chapter badge that has your name on it. Wearing it to the monthly chapter meetings is a must, or you will owe $1.00 to Dolores Kennedy. Also, please wear it to the periodic chapter events, thus everyone can get to meet/greet you if you are a new member. If you do not have a badge w/ your name on it, please contact Dolores Kennedy & she’ll be more than happy to see you receive a badge!

Day Tour, Eastwod Co., Pottstown, Saturday, April 6, 2019

Eastwood Co., Pottstown, Pa will be the tour for April 6, 2019. Members to meet @ the corner of Cedar Crest Blvd. & Chestnut Street, Emmaus, in the Weis grocery store parking lot. Meet there by 9:15 SHARP, will then take a leisurely drive to Pottstown, approximately 30-35 minutes, for about a 2 hour tour w/ demonstration. The demonstration will be about telling & showing about powder coating. ALL items can be of purchase along w/ various solvents & paints for all of your automotive needs! Lunch will follow this tour for you to enjoy. The “BEL-AIR” Restaurant, Rt. 100, Bechtelsville will be glad to see us BUICK people! There one will enjoy many items on the menu from sandwiches to burgers, from crapes to combo plates, from milkshakes to ice cream, from coffee to sodas! When you order, note the names of the items! While waiting for your marvelous food selection(s), the atmosphere can be taken in by all! The décor will take you back in time of the 1950’s! So come on out to enjoy the day w/ Debbie & I. PLEASE reserve your chair/seat by April 4 th . 610-965-2172, danddbrady@rcn. David/Debbie Brady

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ANNUAL CHAPTER PICNIC, June 2, 2019

Annual “FREE SPIRIT” CHAPTER picnic to be held @ Weeping Willow pavilion, Macungie Park, Macungie, Pa. Chapter will be supplying the meats, drinks, utensils, & paper products. Members to fill in with other goodies for everyone to enjoy!

The following schedule will prompt you on what to bring: Last name(s) starting with

• A- H = cold selection
• I – P = hot selection
• Q – Z = dessert selection

Members, put on your Buick thinking caps & bring your SCRUMPTOUS SELECTIONS for all to share. Lunch to begin around 12:30 m. Bring yourself, your delightful food selection, & your “COMFY” chair. Don’t forget to wear your BADGE!! If you forget, you owe a $1.00 to Dolores Kennedy! Dolores will also be accepting chapter renewal dues, $12.00. Hope to see you all there!! Sandy/Dan Reiniger

Calendar of Events

APRIL 2019

• 2 – Monthly chapter meeting, Starlite Diner & Lounge, Allentown, Pa. Dinner = 6 pm, business meeting @ 7:30 pm. Guest Speaker = Stephen Harvilla
• 6 – Chapter Tour to Eastwood Co., Pottstown, Pa. Tourmasters = David/Debbie Brady
• 13 – Eastwood Spring Swap Meet, Pottstown, Pa
• 24-28 – Spring Carlisle, Pa
• 26-28 – Berkshire Mall Indoor Car Show, Wyomissing, Pa
• 28 –Sticks n Slicks Car Meet, Grantville, Pa

MAY 2019 HAPPY MOTHER’s DAY

• 4 – Allen Township Fire Co. show, Northampton, Pa
• 4 – 45 th Annual Antique & Classic show, Leesport Farmers Market, Leesport, Pa
• 5 – 41 st Annual GM on Display, Macungie Pa
• 7 – Monthly chapter meeting, Starlite Diner & Lounge, Allentown, Pa. Dinner @ 6 pm, business meeting @ 7:30 pm.
• 18 – Good Shepherd UCC Church Car Show, Mtn. Rd, Slatington, Pa 18 – Steve Ryan Model A show/swap meet, Breinigsville, Pa 484-548-0632 18 – Wheels On the Canal, Northampton, Pa 610-440-2407

JUNE 2019 “HAPPY FATHER’s DAY!”

• 2 – Annual Chapter picnic, Weeping Willow Pavilion, Macungie, Park, Macungie, Pa 23 – West End Show, Gilbert, Pa
• 25 -28 – ROA Show, Gettysburg, Pa

CARS/PARTS “FOR SALE”

• 1965 Buick Electra 225 4 dr, hardtop, Black. 62,634 original miles. 425 engine. Aluminum valve covers, chromed air cleaner. Vacuum trunk release, PS, PW, PB, power seat & antenna. AM/FM radio. Chrome wheels, remote mirror. UNRESTORED, ALL ORIGINAL CAR! Trim code 642. Needs headliner & has slow trans leak. Garage kept! $6,000. 610-377- 6130.
• 1967 Buick Skylark 4 Dr Sedan 340 2-barrel, ST 300 Switch Pitch, PS, manual brakes, cassette player, no air. 70,100 original miles. Maroon color ext., cloth maroon/int. Was repainted. Interior still original! Garage kept! $10,000. 610-377-6130
• 1967 Buick Skylark Special Deluxe Sport Coupe 2 dr, 300 2-barrel. Spruce Green exterior w/ vinyl top, black interior. 68,305 original miles. Power steering, manual brakes. RH mirror, AM/FM radio. Spinner wire wheel covers. UNRESTORED. Garage kept! $8,500. 610-377-6130
• 1987 Turbo Regal HT, 73k original miles, 100% rust free, original dark blue ext & int, chrome trim, factory aluminum wheels, drums, & bumper inserts.  A/C, PW, tilt, cruise, posi, original exhaust. $20k. Steve Perry 914-262-9965, Carmel NY. sep440@aol.com
• 1991 Chevy Suburban, 2500,  Big block, 454 engine, 111,530 original miles.  2×2. Turbo 400 transmission. Black w/ gray interior, 3^rd seat, AC (front/rear), AM/FM radio, tow package, cassette player, power door locks/windows, vent shades, tailgate window, in GREAT condition.  Garage kept! Very powerful! $8,000. 610-377-6130