Titanic does not hit anything and docks in NY

[ivanotter]

Probably something we have discussed at least 1 million times before.

However, let us try to look at it differently:

Titanic is slowing down and doing a slightly more southerly route. She is docking in NY after a splendid maiden voyage although no records set.

So far so good.
Here comes my twist: The passengers!

Astor, Guggenheim, etc etc. will now all survive. Ismay as well for that matter.

Will the survival of the absolute top magnates in the world change history in any way?

 

[Risenemperor7]

Then these guys get to live longer

While very rich, most of them were not history changing figures. Some inheritances not changing hands wouldn't have that much of an effect

 

[Sekhmet_D]

I recall that Astor was an inventor as well as a real estate magnate and speculated about things such as state-sponsored space/planetary exploration long before most others did. If any Titanic passenger's survival could potentially change history, I'd bet money on him.

 

[DougM]

The difficulty with this topic is that you are not creating 1 POD (the survival of the Titanic itself) but you are creating 1501 PODs (1500 people survive plus the Titanic itself).

That is a LOT of potential changes.

 

[Aluma]

The difficulty with this topic is that you are not creating 1 POD (the survival of the Titanic itself) but you are creating 1501 PODs (1500 people survive plus the Titanic itself).

That is a LOT of potential changes.

That is true, but its nothing out of the usual here
A "WI: No Napoleonic Wars" for example impacts millions of people who would've died IOTL, each their own POD
Same for say No Nazis and so on

 

[jlckansas]

One of the direct things associated with this is the new safety at sea laws that made it safer on board ship. This included making sure you had enough life saving equipment for everyone on board incase of a sinking and that you needed bulkheads that went all the way up on a ship not just so many deck highs. This would have later consequences if you don't do it, example would be if another ship later on has some problem and it sinks with people getting killed.

 

[Gillan1220]

The difficulty with this topic is that you are not creating 1 POD (the survival of the Titanic itself) but you are creating 1501 PODs (1500 people survive plus the Titanic itself).

That is a LOT of potential changes.

This is where it becomes difficult. We simply don't have information about those 1500 people. How they will affect the late 20th century will never be known.

 

[omnidirectional]

I think it would change things, but more subtly than a war changing outcomes. But I think the Titanic will still be sunk later in World War I when the British use it for munitions and the U boat go for it in the Atlantic.

 

[ehbowen]

How about a slightly modified POD (it's probably already been done, but I didn't search)? When the news about Titanic first came in there was a mysterious message which was eventually explained as being two separate garbled messages for two separate ships unintentionally combined: "Titanic damaged by collision, towing to Halifax." Suppose that message was actually true; that Titanic rammed the iceberg head-on but the forward collision bulkheads held and she remained afloat long enough to be taken in tow to repair facilities in Halifax. No loss of passengers and the only crew lost were those asleep in the far forward berthing compartments, mainly stokers and coal passers. Still, the collision is recognized as a near-disaster and at least some steps are taken to improve safety of life at sea. After all, Titanic and her sisters had been designed to carry double rows of life boats; one could see Andrews insisting on filling them once repairs were completed and Ismay and management acquiescing. Especially if you postulate that, while not completely ruptured, the collision bulkhead was damaged and leaking badly under tow and that it was a race to make it to Halifax with all pumps working full speed all the way. Possibilities?

 

[Somedevil]

I think it would change things, but more subtly than a war changing outcomes. But I think the Titanic will still be sunk later in World War I when the British use it for munitions and the U boat go for it in the Atlantic.

or when it's used a troop transport/ Hospital ship. it very likely could hit a mine or get torpedoed

 

[mattep74]

Many of the men in third class would end up fighting in ww1

 

[History Bender]

I think it would change things, but more subtly than a war changing outcomes. But I think the Titanic will still be sunk later in World War I when the British use it for munitions and the U boat go for it in the Atlantic.

A probable scenario when we look at the fate of the Britannic, a sister ship to the Titanic. She was sunk during WWI after hitting mine

 

[gatordad699]

Kate Winslet needs a new breakout movie?

 

[lerk]

Who knows maybe one of the small children that ended up dying could've become Giga Hitler and actually win.

 

[ehbowen]

How about a slightly modified POD (it's probably already been done, but I didn't search)? When the news about Titanic first came in there was a mysterious message which was eventually explained as being two separate garbled messages for two separate ships unintentionally combined: "Titanic damaged by collision, towing to Halifax." Suppose that message was actually true; that Titanic rammed the iceberg head-on but the forward collision bulkheads held and she remained afloat long enough to be taken in tow to repair facilities in Halifax. No loss of passengers and the only crew lost were those asleep in the far forward berthing compartments, mainly stokers and coal passers. Still, the collision is recognized as a near-disaster and at least some steps are taken to improve safety of life at sea. After all, Titanic and her sisters had been designed to carry double rows of life boats; one could see Andrews insisting on filling them once repairs were completed and Ismay and management acquiescing. Especially if you postulate that, while not completely ruptured, the collision bulkhead was damaged and leaking badly under tow and that it was a race to make it to Halifax with all pumps working full speed all the way. Possibilities?

Just thinking aloud: Given this revised POD, Captain Smith's reputation might be tarnished even more than in OTL (where he's largely regarded as an heroic figure who made one fatal mistake), and he would be alive to endure an ignominious retirement. Murdoch (who had the watch) would suffer likewise. The both of them might actually prefer OTL to my revised POD.

 

[ehbowen]

Who knows maybe one of the small children that ended up dying could've become Giga Hitler and actually win.

There weren't a whole lot of children who died ('women and children first') and those who did were almost entirely third class passengers of very modest socioeconomic standing and future prospects. Plus, most of them would have been British subjects or American citizens, or on their way to become American citizens. I wouldn't say the prospect is impossible, but it's remote enough to be ignored IMHO. It took a VERY special set of circumstances to produce OTL Hitler. I like to propose a TL where he was accepted into architecture school and eventually ended up with a modestly successful practice designing warehouses and factories....

 

[RandomChance]

Olympic lasted into the 30s, but had a pretty nondescript career. If Titanic survived the war, she’d probably fair the same.
We wouldn’t get the terribly overrated DiCaprio film.

 

[ehbowen]

Olympic lasted into the 30s, but had a pretty nondescript career. If Titanic survived the war, she’d probably fair the same.
We wouldn’t get the terribly overrated DiCaprio film.

I'm a fan of the 1997 DiCaprio/Winslet film, but you're correct. Olympic's days as the largest transatlantic liner were numbered even before Titanic launched (competition abuilding in Germany) and her modest post-Titanic success was largely due to her sister's infamy.

 

[DougM]

My point was that this kind of POD can swing many many different directions. From WW1 is stopped. WW1 ends much sooner to WW1 is worse and a TON of different possibilities beside. In fact i believe there was a time travel book that was based on Titanic not going down stops WW1 and saves the hero’s (the Time Traveler from book 1 i think) kid from getting killed in WW1.

So this is a very Multi Barreled Shotgun POD. and it is usually better if the poster at least narrows it down. Say to What hapoens to the Titanic. and or other ships. How does this effect WW1 or even WW2. What happens to famous person X. Etc. This general topic is such that your average person is either going to not reply, or will be very broad in the reply such as my reply to a similar post were i basicly said that no one really remembers the Titanic as it sinking is why it is remembered.

Any interesting PODs involving specific people requires the commenter to have a goid knowledge of who went down with the ship something most folks don't know. This my attempt to point out that this is a pretty general topic. And a more focussed topic would be easier to discuss. This is why Generic topics such as. “No WW2“ or “Japan Wins WW2” really need a true POD so that the topic is narrowed down to a reasonable size so we can all discuss the same version of the subject.

 

[Darth_Kiryan]

My point was that this kind of POD can swing many many different directions. From WW1 is stopped. WW1 ends much sooner to WW1 is worse and a TON of different possibilities beside. In fact i believe there was a time travel book that was based on Titanic not going down stops WW1 and saves the hero’s (the Time Traveler from book 1 i think) kid from getting killed in WW1.

wasn't that a game?
like a mini-2D game.

Ah here it is: Titanic, Adventure out of Time.

The player assumes the role of a former British spy who, during the London Blitz, is sent back in time to the Titanic and must complete a previously failed mission to prevent World War I, the Russian Revolution, and World War II. The gameplay involves exploring the ship and solving puzzles. There are multiple outcomes and endings to the game depending on the player's interactions with characters and use of items.

....