View source for RMS Republic (1903)

{{short description|Steamship}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=January 2018}}
{{Use British English|date=January 2018}}
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{{Infobox ship image
|Ship image= RMS Republic.jpg
|Ship caption= ''Republic''
}}
{{Infobox ship career
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|Ship country=United Kingdom
|Ship flag={{shipboxflag|United Kingdom|civil}}
|Ship name=* ''Columbus'' (1903)
* ''Republic'' (1903–1909)
|Ship owner=* British & North Atlantic Steam Navigation Co. Ltd. (1903)
* Oceanic Steam Navigation Company (1903–1909)
|Ship operator=* [[Dominion Line]] (1903)
* [[White Star Line]] (1903–1909)
|Ship registry = [[Liverpool]]
|Ship ordered=
|Ship awarded=
|Ship builder=[[Harland and Wolff]], Belfast
|Ship yard number=345
|Ship registration number=118043
|Ship laid down=
|Ship launched=26 February 1903
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|Ship completed=12 September 1903
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|Ship fate=Sunk after collision with [[SS Florida (1905)|SS ''Florida'']] on 24 January 1909
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}}
{{Infobox ship characteristics
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|Ship tonnage=15,400 [[gross register tons]]
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|Ship length={{convert|570.0|ft|m|abbr=on}}
|Ship beam={{convert|67.8|ft|m|abbr=on}}
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|Ship draft={{convert|34|ft|1|in|m|abbr=on}} .
|Ship hold depth={{convert|24|ft|m|abbr=on}}
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|Ship propulsion=Twin propeller
|Ship speed={{convert|16|kn|km/h}}
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|Ship capacity=2,830 passengers
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|Ship crew=300
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'''RMS ''Republic''''' was a steam-powered [[ocean liner]] built in 1903 by [[Harland and Wolff]] in [[Belfast]], and lost at sea in a collision in 1909 while sailing for the [[White Star Line]].  The ship was equipped with a new Marconi [[wireless telegraphy]] [[spark gap transmitter|transmitter]], and issued a [[CQD]] distress call, resulting in the saving of around 1,500 lives. Known as the "Millionaires' Ship" because of the number of wealthy Americans who traveled by her, she was described as a "palatial liner" and was the flagship of White Star Line's Boston service.<ref>{{cite news |title=The Republic and The Delhi |work=Daily Telegraph |location=London |date=16 April 1912}}</ref> This was the first important marine rescue made possible by [[radio]], and brought worldwide attention to this new technology.

==History==

===White Star acquisition===
The ship was originally built in Belfast, Ireland, for the [[International Mercantile Marine Co.|International Mercantile Marine's]] [[Dominion Line]] (a sister company to the White Star Line) and was named {{SS|Columbus||2}}. She was [[Ceremonial ship launching|launched]] on 26 February 1903, and made her maiden voyage in October 1903 from [[Liverpool]] to [[Boston]].<ref>{{cite book|last1=Dunn|first1=Laurence|title=Famous Liners of the Past Belfast Built|date=1964|publisher=Adlard Coles|location=London|pages=70–71}}</ref> After two voyages with the Dominion Line, ''Columbus'', along with three other Dominion liners: [[SS Scandinavian|''New England'']], {{SS|Commonwealth||2}}, and {{SS|Mayflower||2}}, were sold to the White Star Line for use on their new service between Liverpool and Boston. ''Columbus'' was renamed ''Republic'', the second ship under White Star livery to hold the name (White Star's original {{SS|Republic|1872|2}} of 1872 had been sold to the [[Holland America Line]] in 1889 and renamed ''Maasdam''), while her three fellow former Dominion liners were renamed ''Romanic'', ''Canopic'', and ''Cretic'', respectively.

===Collision with SS ''Florida''===
{{more citations needed section|date=January 2013}}
In the early morning of 23 January 1909, while sailing from New York City to [[Gibraltar]] and [[Mediterranean]] ports with 742 passengers and crew and Captain Inman Sealby (1862–1942) in command, ''Republic'' entered a thick fog off the island of [[Nantucket, Massachusetts]]. Amongst the passengers were some illustrious people, such as James Ross Mellon, his wife Rachel Hughey Larimer Mellon, their daughter Sarah of the [[Mellon family|Mellon banking family]] and family maid, Mrs. Sophie Mansfield Curtis, wife of George Munson Curtis (treasurer of the [[International Silver Company]]), Mrs. Mary Harriman Severance, wife of [[Cordenio Severance|Cordenio A. Severance]], Professor [[John Merle Coulter|John M. Coulter]] with wife and children, General [[Brayton Ives]], St. Louis millionaire [[Samuel Cupples]], historian [[Alice Morse Earle]], and Mildred Montague, Countess Pasolini.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.wrecksite.eu/wreck.aspx?150557 |title=RMS Republic II People On Board |website=WRECKSITE |date=25 November 2010|access-date=11 October 2022}}</ref> <ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.rms-republic.com/passengers.html |title=RMS Republic Passenger List |website=RMS Republic |date=30 May 2021|access-date=11 October 2022}}</ref> Travelling in first class were also Mr. Leonard L. McMurray, who, in 1915, would survive the sinking of the [[Cunard Line|Cunard liner]] {{RMS|Lusitania|3=2}}, and Mrs. Bessie Armstead Davis, daughter-in-law of senator [[Henry G. Davis]] of [[West Virginia]] with two children.
[[File:"Florida" After Collision with "Republic".jpg|thumb|This picture of SS ''Florida'' was taken by Martin & Ottaway, a New Jersey marine consulting firm, after ''Florida'' collided with ''Republic''. ''Florida'' survived the collision and was repaired in 24 days.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.martinottaway.com/blog/hannah-van-hemmen/ss-florida-ss-republic-collision-tbt |title=SS Florida / SS Republic Collision (TBT) |website=Martin & Ottaway |date=13 August 2014|access-date=26 May 2018}}</ref>]]
Taking standard precautions and maintaining her speed, the steamer regularly signaled her presence in the outbound shipping traffic lane by whistle. At 5:47&nbsp;a.m., another whistle was heard and ''Republic''{{'}}s engines were ordered to full reverse, and the helm put "hard-a-port". Out of the fog, the [[Lloyd Italiano]] liner [[SS Florida (1905)|SS ''Florida'']] appeared and hit ''Republic'' amidships on her portside, at about a right angle. Two passengers asleep in their cabins on ''Republic'' were killed when ''Florida''{{'}}s bow sliced into her, liquor wholesale manager Eugene Lynch's wife Mary and banker William J. Mooney. Eugene Lynch was critically injured and died as a result of his injuries at Long Island College Hospital, Brooklyn, 26 January. On ''Florida'', three crewmen were also killed when the bow was crushed back to a collision bulkhead.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://home.att.net/~rstinchcomb/newreck/republic.html |title=Ship Wrecks of New England - SS Republic |website=att.net |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060615105304/http://home.att.net/~rstinchcomb/newreck/republic.html |archive-date=2006-06-15}}</ref> Six people died in total.

The engine and boiler rooms on ''Republic'' began to flood, and the ship listed. Captain Sealby led the crew in calmly organizing the passengers on deck for evacuation. ''Republic'' was equipped with the new Marconi [[wireless]] [[telegraph]] system, and became the first ship in history to issue a [[CQD]] distress signal, sent by [[Jack Binns (radio operator)|John R. Binns]].<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex/rescue/filmmore/transcript/transcript1.html |work=The American Experience |title=Rescue at Sea |publisher=[[PBS]] |access-date=2012-03-22 |archive-date=9 November 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121109192118/http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex/rescue/filmmore/transcript/transcript1.html |url-status=dead }}</ref> ''Florida'' came about to rescue ''Republic''{{'}}s complement, and the [[U.S. Revenue Cutter Service]] [[Cutter (boat)|cutter]] {{USCGC|Gresham|WPG-85|2}}<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.uscg.mil/history/webcutters/Gresham1896.pdf |title=Gresham, 1896<!-- Bot generated title --> |access-date=16 November 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120927164756/http://www.uscg.mil/history/webcutters/Gresham1896.pdf |archive-date=27 September 2012 |url-status=dead |df=dmy-all }}</ref> responded to the distress signal as well. Passengers were distributed between the two ships, with ''Florida'' taking the bulk of them, but with 900 Italian immigrants already on board, this left the ship dangerously overloaded.

The White Star liner {{RMS|Baltic|1903|2}}, commanded by Captain [[J. B. Ranson]], also responded to the CQD call, but due to the persistent fog, ''Baltic'' was not able to locate the drifting ''Republic'' until that evening. Once on-scene, the rescued passengers were transferred from ''Gresham'' and ''Florida'' to ''Baltic''. Because of the damage to ''Florida'', that ship's immigrant passengers were also transferred to ''Baltic'', but a riot nearly broke out when they had to wait until first-class ''Republic'' passengers were transferred. Once everyone was on board, ''Baltic'' sailed for New York.

At the time of ''Republic''{{'}}s sinking, ocean liners were not required to have a full capacity of lifeboats for their passengers, officers, and crew. On the busy North Atlantic route, assistance from at least one ship was believed to be ever-present and that lifeboats would be needed only to ferry all aboard to their rescue vessels and back until everyone was safely evacuated. That scenario, unlike during the [[sinking of the RMS Titanic|''RMS Titanic'' sinking]], played out flawlessly during the ship's sinking, and the six people who died were lost in the collision, not the sinking itself.

[[File:RMS Republic sinking.jpg|thumb|right|''Republic'' sinking by the stern after the collision]]
Captain Sealby and a skeleton crew remained on board ''Republic'' to make an effort to save her. Crewmen from the ''Gresham'' tried using collision mats to stem the flooding, but to no avail.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.euronet.nl/users/keesree/allships.htm |title=TITANIC - A Voyage of Discovery (allships)<!-- Bot generated title --> |access-date=11 December 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060524070422/http://www.euronet.nl/users/keesree/allships.htm |archive-date=24 May 2006 |url-status=dead |df=dmy-all }}</ref> By this time, the steamers ''New York'' and {{RMS|Lucania||2}} (from [[Cunard Line|Cunard]]) had also arrived and waited while a futile attempt was made by ''Gresham'' to take ''Republic'' under tow. On 24 January, ''Republic'' sank stern first; at 15,378&nbsp;tons, she was the largest ship to have sunk until then.<ref name="LTS">{{cite book|last=Pickford|first=Nigel|title=Lost Treasure Ships of the Twentieth Century|url=https://archive.org/details/losttreasureship0000pick|url-access=registration|location=Washington, D.C.|publisher=[[National Geographic Society]]|year=1999|isbn=0-7922-7472-5}}</ref><ref name="The Official RMS Republic Website">{{cite web|url=http://www.rms-republic.com/index1.html|title=Treasure of the RMS Republic|publisher=MVSHQ, Inc.|location=New York|year=2009|access-date=2012-03-22}}</ref> All the remaining crew were evacuated before she sank.

====Reported cargoes====
Some reports indicate that ''Republic'' was carrying gold and other valuables when she sank. One report is that she was carrying gold worth $250,000<ref>{{cite book|last=Connolly|first=James B.|title=Sea Borne - Thirty Years Avoyaging|year=1945|publisher=Doubleday, Doran and Company, Inc|isbn=978-1406768947|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=DTlZSaIBOhwC}}</ref>  in American gold coins to be used as payroll for the US Navy's [[Great White Fleet]].
In addition to the US Navy coin-monies shipment, various sources reported <ref>{{cite web| url = http://www.rms-republic.com/story_rumor.html| title = The Rumor, The Reports, The Legend {{!}} RMS - Republic}} </ref>{{better source|date=February 2023}} on a much larger cargo, $3,000,000 in US gold double eagles ($20). Among these, ''The Washington Post'' reported, "Three million dollars in gold coins lie in the rotting hulk of the White Star liner Republic, lost off Nantucket in January, 1909. The ''Republic'', damaged in a collision, was being towed toward New York by the Coast Guard cutter'' Gresham'', when she sank in 240 feet of water. A salvage attempt in 1919 was unsuccessful."<ref>Diving Bell Gropes for Lost Gold, By Robert Talley The Washington Post, June 24, 1934, Pg. M5.</ref> And again one year later, "In 1909, the [White] Star Liner Republic was damaged in a collision. While being towed to safety, she sank in over 200 feet of water. At the present, all attempts to salvage the $3,000,000 in her holds have been unsuccessful."<ref>Lusitania's Treasure of Gold and Gems to Be Salvaged By Alexander J. Wedderburn, Jr. The Washington Post, Dec. 1, 1935, Pg. B6.</ref> The New York Times reported, "The White Star Liner Republic, lost off Nantucket Shoals in 1909, carried $3,000,000 in gold eagles. However, the Republic rests in 185 [270] feet of water."<ref>Clarence E. Lovejoy, Maps Give Skippers Chance at Sunken Gold - Week-End Cruising Can Now Include Treasure Hunt New York Times, July 10, 1959, 18.</ref>

== Rediscovery ==
The wreck of ''Republic'' was found by Captain [[Martin Bayerle]] in 1981. the wreck lies upright roughly {{convert|50|mi|km}} south of [[Nantucket Island]]<ref name="LTS" /><ref name="The Official RMS Republic Website"/> at {{coord|40|26|0|N|69|46|0|W}} in a depth of around {{convert|270|ft|m}} of water.

==See also==
* [[RMS Empress of Ireland|RMS ''Empress of Ireland,'']], which also sank as a result of a collision
* [[Treasure hunting (marine)]]

==References==
{{reflist}}

==External links==
* [https://www.rmsrepublic.news/ Historical News Coverage of the Sinking of the RMS Republic]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20090618112145/http://www.jackbinns.org/jack_binns The Hero of the Republic]
* [https://archive.org/stream/radiobroadcast04unse#page/n470/mode/1up "CQD"] by Alfred M. Caddell, ''Radio Broadcast'', April 1924, pages 449-455. 
* [https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=mdp.39015048389285;view=1up;seq=322 "The Triumph of  Wireless"], ''The Outlook'', 6 February 1909, pages 294-297.
* [https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex/rescue/ The American Experience |Rescue at Sea]
* [http://www.slu.edu/samuel-cupples-house R. M. S. Republic &#124; Samuel Cupples House]
* [http://www.rms-republic.com/in_the_news/mvt7_21_05.html Billions in gold? Former dive shop owner to salvage RMS Republic]
* [http://shipwreck.blogs.com/shipwrecks_historical_tim/2005/07/rms_republic_sa.html RMS Republic - Sad Times for Older Sister of Titanic]
* [http://rms-republic.com/reference/ranson.html Details of ''Baltic's'' effort to find ''Republic'']

{{White Star Line ships}}
{{1909 shipwrecks}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Republic (1903)}}
[[Category:Shipwrecks of the Massachusetts coast]]
[[Category:Steamships]]
[[Category:Ships built in Belfast]]
[[Category:Ships of the White Star Line]]
[[Category:Ships of the Dominion Line]]
[[Category:Maritime incidents in 1909]]
[[Category:1903 ships]]
[[Category:Ships sunk in collisions]]
[[Category:Ships built by Harland and Wolff]]
[[Category:Treasure from shipwrecks]]