The RMS Republic was a luxury ocean liner of the White Star Line, built in 1903 by Harland and Wolff. In January of 1909, while on voyage from New York to Gibraltar, she was struck by the Italian liner SS Florida in dense fog off Nantucket. The ship’s Marconi wireless radio sent the first ever CDQ distress signal resulting in a successful rescue. While only three people died as a result of the collision, and three sailors on the Florida as well, the Republic was badly damaged. Passengers were evacuated first to the Florida and then again to the RMS Baltic. The following day the Republic sank while being towed back to New York. Millions of dollars of gold coins and other valuables are rumored to have gone down with the ship, adding to the lore and legend of the Republic.
Famed maritime writer James B. Connolly was on board the Republic, on special assignment from President Teddy Roosevelt. He went through great lengths to write and publish his story about what happened, despite the efforts of the White Star Line crew.
Descendant of James B. Connolly, Paul O’Donnell is my guest.
Gallery
Sources
- Connolly, James B. Sea Borne – Thirty Years Avoyaging. Doubleday, Doran, and Company, Inc., 1944.
- O’Donnell, Paul. Interview. Conducted by Richard Napolitano. October 11, 2023.
- https://www.rms-republic.com/index1.html
- https://www.jackbinns.org/morejackbinns.html
- https://www.whitestarhistory.com/republic2
- https://www.ggarchives.com/OceanTravel/Passengers/WhiteStarLine/Republic-PassengerList-1907-08-14.html
- https://waratahrevisited.blogspot.com/2013/12/rms-republic-1903.html
- https://www.shipwrk.com/rms-republic.htm
- https://latecruisenews.com/2016/03/28/100-years-ago-the-end-of-the-plant-line-other-cruise-news-hanseatic-cruise-services/
- https://ethw.org/The_Sea_and_Early_Electrical_Technology
- https://irishheritagenews.ie/irish-connections-with-the-millionaires-ship-the-rms-republic/