10 Surprising Facts About the Titanic That Will Blow Your Mind

1. The top speed the Titanic could reach was 23 knots or just over 26 miles an hour. At the time the Titanic collided with the iceberg, she was traveling at a speed of 22.5 knots.

2. The Titanic was gigantic. She was built in North Belfast, Ireland and took over 15,000 men to complete her construction. When she was finally finished, the Titanic was 882.5 feet long, 92.5 feet wide, and 175 feet high.

3. Titanic had a sister ship named Olympic. Unlike Titanic, Olympic had a long career, spanning 24 years from 1911 to 1934. She also served as a World War I troop transport carrying U.S. and Canadian troops to the war front, in which she earned her nickname “Old Reliable,” for her trustworthy service.

4.The Titanic sunk another ship. Long before her tragic accident, the Titanic sunk another, much smaller ship, simply by sucking it into her wake during her first launch.

5. The boat itself cost $7.5 million dollars to build. That would be equivalent to $400 million today.

6.Two dogs were rescued from the Titanic. Women and children were the first to be ordered onto the lifeboats when the Titanic began to sink. Even though there weren’t enough lifeboats for everyone aboard the ship, two dogs somehow made it into the lifeboats. The two rescued were a Pomeranian and a Pekinese.

7. Passengers aboard the Titanic enjoyed state-of-the-art amenities. Amenities included a squash court, gymnasium, two different libraries (one for passengers in first class, one for those in second) and a swimming pool.

8. The most expensive ticket to ride the Titanic was called the First Class Parlor ticket. The price for this particular boarding pass was $4,350, or what would be close to $70,000 in today’s money.

9. Many of the women in first class were rescued in their silk evening gowns. Dinner on the Titanic was the most elegant event on the luxurious ocean liner, thus passengers would wear the most formal dinner. For women, this consisted of silk evening gowns, white gloves, satin shoes, a fan, and a scarf.

10.The 1,000 passengers in third class had to share two bathtubs. Although there was close to 1,000 passengers in third class, they were expected to share only two bathtubs, one for men and one for women.