Conspiracy theories, no matter how far-fetched they may seem, are fun to look into. The evidence to support even the craziest of the conspiracy theories require you to be a little more open-minded. I love researching conspiracy theories about anything from the Titanic to aliens to the men in black. Recently, I have stumbled across some conspiracies about the Titanic that have me intrigued.
According to this first theory, the ship that sank was actually the Olympic instead of the Titanic. It’s said that the Olympic had been in two collisions and the damage was so severe that they were too expensive for the owner to fix. It’s said that they switched the ships to get insurance money. Evidence of this theory includes the portholes, list to port, rumors among the crew, last minute cancellations, Californian, the wreck, lack of media scrutiny. The portholes evidence says that the Titanic had fourteen portholes, but the Olympic had sixteen portholes. In the photos of the Titanic on the day that it left the dock for its maiden voyage, it had sixteen like the Olympic. Next, list to port means the degree to which a vessel heels (leans or tilts) to either port or starboard. The Olympic had a two-degree list to port, and the Titanic had no lists. According to a surviving second-class passenger, Lawrence Beesley, the Titanic had a list to port. Next, we must address the rumors among the crew. At the time, there was a nationwide strike on coal. Thousands of people employed as firemen, boilers, stokers, and greasers were short on work and couldn't find jobs. Even though this was happening, there weren't a lot of people who wanted to work as crew members on the Titanic. Next, the last minute cancellations included some of the most prestigious and richest early twentieth century names including JP Morgan, Henry Clay Frick, and George Washington Vanderbilt. The SS Californian, which was owned by JP Morgan, was blamed for the loss of life on the Titanic. It wasn't carrying any passengers and was stopped in the Atlantic with only 3000 wool blankets and jumpers. It’s said that the SS Californian was supposed to save the passengers of the Titanic but was in the wrong area and there was a ship in between them so that they didn't know the Titanic was sinking. Last, the propeller of the Titanic was said to be fitted to the Olympic after its recent condition and the propeller on the Titanic was the same one said to be on the Olympic according to its stamp and ID number.
Another conspiracy theory is that the Titanic was carrying the remains of an Egyptian pharaoh mummy. The remains are said to have been cursed and were stored on the bridge to avoid damage to the mummy. It’s said that the remain’s curse sunk the ship. The only evidence to support this is that a historian has stated that the remains were on board.
The third conspiracy that I’m going to discuss is that a journalist had foreseen the tragedy. This really is more of a paranormal story. In 1886, a British writer, William T. Stead, wrote a story titled: “How the Atlantic Mail Steamer Went Down.” This described so close to the Titanic incident that it is extremely eerie. It’s plot said that a mail steamer collided with another vessel and the shortage of lifeboats results in a huge loss of life. Stead died in the Titanic incident. Not long after the incident, a psychic channeled his spirit.
I don’t know if I really believe these theories, but the evidence does seem pretty convincing especially for the switch theory. Although, these may seem far-fetched or unconvincing, they are fun to look into. If you would like any other weird theories, I recommend looking into the Denver airport theory, the Mandela Effect, Area 51, or fake moon landings.
