Analyzing Victorian Sensation Amidst Tragedy
Dear Reader,
I am writing to you as a sort of cover letter. The following pages will feature a series of interviews published via phonograph, curated by myself from a made up press source surrounding the sinking of the SS Princess Alice in London on Tuesday, September 3, 1878 (www.eastlondonhistory.co.uk). The date of this horrible disaster occurred just one year after the invention of the phonograph by Thomas Edison (www.americaslibrary.gov). I thought the proximity of both of these notable times in history would be fitting to connect.
The interviews that I curate will be intended to be published on the phonograph, marking the stories of the ship’s sinking on one of the most modern devices of publication in the Victorian era. My purpose for creating these faux interviews is to demonstrate the different perspectives of this tragedy and how each person highlighted experienced the sensation of this event. While you read each account of the event, pay close attention to the way their story’s differ and how that relates to the different emotional sensations the interviewee faced.
Before you begin reading the different interviews, I want to give you a brief account of the sinking of the Princess Alice, so you have the proper knowledge of the event. All of the following information was provided by www.eastlondonhistory.co.uk. Around 11 in the morning the SS Princess Alice left the London Bridge Pier on the Thames River with around 900 passengers. It was a day of leisure and entertainment for everyone on the boat, with rides on the ship being something Londoners coveted often. After a full day of travel, the ship began its journey home, hitting a notably dangerous curve in the river named “Gallion’s Reach.” The winds are high in this area of the river, making any nearby ship cause for concern. Considering this, the close proximity of the Bywell Castle–a coal collier weighing more than five times what the Princess Alice weighed—was the reason for the fatal events to come. The two ships soon collided, with the Bywell Castle splitting the Princess Alice straight in two pieces which promptly sank below the water line. Most of the passengers had no chance of survival, resulting in between 600 and 700 deaths of passengers of all ages and genders. This horrific event, although occurring in the latter part of the 19th century, lives on in history as one of the worst maritime disasters in London.
Now that you know what exactly occurred making September 3, 1878 so infamous you are ready to move on the interviews. Remember, these relate specifically to the sensations that the people of London experienced surrounding this tragedy. Please note that the different characteristics of each subject will be noted at the beginning of each session. Happy reading!
Sincerely,
Rachel Todd
Interview #1
Interviewer: Welcome to the series of interviews being published on the catastrophic event that occurred on the Thames River just recently with the Princess Alice. The first to be interviewed will be Captain Harrison, of the Bywell Castle (www.eastlondonhistory.co.uk).
Interviewer: Captain Harrison, it’s great to have the opportunity to talk with you about what happened. Can you tell me about your ship, the Bywell Castle?
Captain Harrison: It’s great to be able to do this, thank you. The Bywell Castle is a coal collier ship that weighs in at about 890 tons. It has gained the nickname the “great black phantom” because of this fact (www.eastlondonhistory.co.uk). We were en route to northern England when the collision occurred.
Interviewer: Now, could you tell the listeners what you were experiencing right before the Bywell Castle collided with the Princess Alice?
CH: Oh, it was dreadful to watch. I do not believe many of the passengers had any knowledge of what was about to happen until right as the incident occurred. As soon as I, myself, realized the direction these events were heading I turned off all engines and demanded for the ship to be directed in reverse to try and avoid what was inevitably coming (www.eastlondonhistory.co.uk). Alas, it did no good.
Interviewer: What did you do, if anything, to aid in the destruction of the crash?
CH: As soon as the Princess Alice split in half, most of the passengers were met with immediate death to my horror. After turning on our siren to signal that an emergency had occurred, my small, but mighty crew went to work to throw lines and lower our boats to save those passengers that managed to make it into the river alive (www.eastlondonhistory.co.uk).
Interviewer: Thank you so much for your time, and your service, Captain.
Interview #2
Interviewer: The next subject of the publication will be Mary Schneider, a surviving passenger on the Princess Alice. Ms. Schneider, I want to first say I am so sorry for what you have been through recently. It is a truly horrific accident. My first question is regarding what your experience on the Princess Alice was like before the collision?
Mary Schneider: Oh, it was a truly magical experience! My family and I traveled from many miles outside London to take this journey and we could not have been more excited. We left the pier at the bridge in the late morning and had such a pleasant time aboard. Although there were so many people that we were all quite packed in, people still enjoyed themselves. There was a band playing music, people danced, and everyone was having such a merry time (www.eastlondonhistory.co.uk). I had never experienced anything like it!
Interviewer: And what were your thoughts surrounding the collision with the Bywell Castle?
MS: Well, you see, right before it happened no one was the wiser. Then, all of the sudden the ship was in half, it was horrid! It started sinking immediately and oh, the shrieking! That was the worst part, the screams of the passengers in peril. I still wake up from nightmares hearing those screams. I wished more than anything I could have prevented the deaths of so many of them. Some people did not even perish from the river itself, but they were stabbed or crushed from the wreckage of the ship splitting (www.eastlondonhistory.co.uk). I have never seen anything like it before, I was shocked. I could not even speak of it for days because the utter thought of speaking out loud what I had witnessed was just too much to bare. I am just so blessed to have made it out with my life.
Interviewer: My sincerest apologies to you, Ms. Schneider, for having to endure this terrible tragedy.
Interview #3
Interviewer: The third and final subject of this series is Edward Kennington, a London city worker. Now, Mr. Kennington, please explain to the listeners what information you have regarding the shape of the Princess Alice before it left the pier that fateful day.
Edward Kennington: Well, you see, the Princess Alice was originally engineered to only hold around around 500 passengers, but it had recently been certified to carry 900 passengers (www.eastlondonhistory.co.uk). It has become clear that this certification was a mistake, considering how many unfortunate casualties this accident caused. I find myself quite angry with the idea that this could have been prevented in a wide scale if the Princess Alice had never been permitted to allow so many people on board.
Interviewer: What other consequences has this event caused the city of London in regards to the mistakes that were made?
EK: The city has been forced to review its rules and policing of the Thames, the different legal requirements for dealing with mass deaths, and the overwhelming task of properly burying those who lost their lives in this unspeakable tragedy (www.intriguing-history.com).
Interviewer: Yes, the burial is quite important indeed. Is there anything else you have to comment on regarding that?
EK: In fact, yes there is. In spite of the deep sorrow that surrounds this event, there is a beautiful memorial cross made of marble in remembrance of the victims along with memorial cards that were passed out to the people of London (www.yellins.com). It is a lovely way to help the city heal amidst all of the loss.
Interviewer: Thank you for your time and information, Mr. Kennington. That officially concludes the publication.
Resources
Edison Invents the Phonograph, www.americaslibrary.gov/aa/edison/aa_edison_phonograph_1.html.
Hlb. “Princess Alice 1878 Disaster.” Intriguing History, 6 Mar. 2015, www.intriguing-history.com/thames-shipping-disaster/.
King, John. “The Princess Alice Disaster.” Princess Alice, www.yellins.com/woolwichferry/thames/PrincessAlice.htm.
Oakley, Malcolm. “Sinking of The Princess Alice, River Thames History.” East London History, Facts About The East End, 9 May 2017, www.eastlondonhistory.co.uk/sinking-princess-alice/.