Richmond, Virginia, and the Titanic

by Walter S. Griggs Jr.

Stories of tragedy and valor from the sinking of the Titanic in 1912 filled the pages of the Times-Dispatch in Richmond. Residents gathered to honor the fallen and cherish the survivors. From editorials to sermons, an outpouring of remembrance and remorse spread throughout the city. Debate ensued over who was to blame and what to think of it all. Richmonders of all walks of life joined the discourse. Author and local historian Walter Griggs Jr. reveals the interesting connections between the epic tragedy and the River City.

144 pages, Paperback

First published February 23, 2015

Reviews

[J.M. · Rating 3 out of 5]

Rehashes a lot of what is already written about the Titanic's fateful journey, and is quite repetitive -- could've done with a strong editorial hand to cut through a lot of the sentimentality, as well. The author is fond of dramatic turns of phrase and I found one or two lines reminiscent of the James Cameron film, too.

While there are many photos throughout the book, I was disappointed to see that they were drawn heavily from Wikicommons. Since the author quotes the Richmond newspapers of the era, describing photos that appeared in the pages of the Times-Dispatch in 1912, I would've liked to have seen those images reproduced. Since they would be out of copyright, I can't imagine there would've been an issue with that, so I don't know why those documents don't appear in this book instead of the images so commonly found online.

Still, it was nice to read about the daily attitudes of the people in regards to the tragedy as captured by the papers, though honestly, I could've done without some of the poetry reprinted from letters sent in to the press. An interesting read for Titanic fans but doesn't break any new ground.