Unsinkable page 6

Unsinkable page 6 by ric Gustafson


The person in charge of the building of the Titanic was the shipyards Managing Director Thomas Andrews. He was born in February of 1873 and his father Thomas was a local politician. His father married Lord Pirrie's daughter Eliza. Young Thomas became an apprentice at Harland and Wolff when he was only sixteen years of age. Thomas's apprenticeship lasted five years where he worked in the joiner's shop, the cabinetmaker's shop and then working on the ships themselves. The last year and a half of his apprenticeship was spent working in the drawing office.
Ships at the turn of the century were put together by rivets. The riveting of the shell plating was done mostly by hand. The men who did the riveting were strong and tough. Their day started at 6:00 am and ended at 5:30 pm. Working in teams of four, they were paid by the number of rivets each team did. A heater boy would work up a fire in the coke brazier using a foot bellows. Using long tongs, he would heat the rivet until it was red hot. Then he would toss it to the catch boy who would put it into a wooden bowl. Then he would use the tongs to place the rivet into the hole of two steel plates. Then a holder up man would place a heavy hammer over the head of the rivet and then a basher man would strike the rivet until it filled the hole. The shipyard workers were a tight knit group.
The shell plating of the Titanic was finished by October of 1910 and the launch date was set for May 31 1911.


research help: ' Unsinkable' by Daniel Allen Butler


Peace and God's blessings. Love Ric