Welcome to the Empress of Ireland pages of LostLiners.com

Rob Betz has put together a fine tribute to this Canadian Pacific liner for all to enjoy. When a ship buff some years ago spoke of a transatlantic liner that foundered two years after Titanic, I wanted to read about her. "Empress of Ireland," I would say and get blank stares in return. There were so many questions: Who was she? Who were her owners? Where was she built? Why was her Captain always mentioned in nautical summaries for capturing Crippen? How did she sink? What was the Salvation Army connection? No one had put together in one volume the answers to these questions.

My curiosity resulted in travel to Glasgow to visit the former Fairfield yard at Govan where the Empress was born. Except for the name above the main gate, the buildings were as they appeared in 1905-1906. Her berth was filled in by pavement but one could still see the remains of the slipway that launched the Empress on the River Clyde. A rusty pile of rivets in situ at the river's edge was an exciting discovery and cherished memory. A short walk around the fitting-out basin anchored by the same bollards which held the Empress brought the whole scene to life. Eighty-five years earlier, smokestacks belched to the Edwardian cacophony of industrial pounding, cutting, and fastening punctuated by occasional whistles on the Clyde. To not feel it, to not be so moved---one must lack a soul.

Hooked? I was getting there. I went to the City of Glasgow archive where the Fairfield records are kept. Here was a treasure in documentation. I found the bill of materials for the Empress, ship's blueprints, even the minutes from Board of Director's meetings. There was a period photo of ships in their Fairfield construction berths. A strange wooden ramp could be seen in the photo along the bank of the River Clyde. This structure appeared to block ships from sliding down the ways. How could this be? After pouring through the minutes of Board meetings, the answer. The Town of Govan had an age-old right-of-way along the bank of the River. The mysterious wooden structure was a covered walkway to protect pedestrians from hot rivets that fell from time-to-time during hull construction. In Board minutes, one of the Directors complained about how the walkway had to be temporarily disassembled each time a ship was launched. This fascinating morsel of historical detail had me hooked. I decided to research the Empress of Ireland further. My three-year hunt resulted in a book and that as they say is history.

I hope you find the story of the Empress of Ireland as compelling as I do. If not, perhaps some other ship. There are thousands of untold stories from the liners. Each voyage, the passengers and crew therein, the near misses, and unusual happenings are ripe for discovery.

Bon Voyage,
David Zeni, Author
Forgotten Empress