The Tragic Story of the SS Atlantic (1873)
April Fool's Day, 1873 - The grand steamer Atlantic of the White Star Line crashes hard onto the rocks of Lower Prospect, Nova Scotia (not too far from Halifax), with almost 1,000 people on board.
1873-04-01 12:00:00 - Part-Time Explorer
The ship is rapidly tearing apart as the waves batter it against the rocky coastline.
The lifeboats wreck before they can escape and the stern sinks rapidly.
It seems hopeless for everyone aboard Atlantic, but rescue is on its way in the form of a small group of local fishermen.
At that time, the SS Atlantic was the worst disaster in the North Atlantic to date, and the worst disaster for the White Star Line until the sinking of the Titanic in 1912.
April 1st, 2023 marks the 150th anniversary of the wreck, and even though it's a wreck I've covered thoroughly on my channel in the past, including with a detailed full length documentary, new research and a better understanding of the disaster make it worth revisiting this story.