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Halifax, Nova Scotia
Halifax-
Shore Excursion Review: Halifax-
Halifax, Nova Scotia
August 26, 2004
By Lisa Plotnick
Many people know the story of Titanic, the White Star liner that sank on her maiden voyage in 1912, taking more than 1,500 lives. Far fewer know the story of the recovery of passengers and their effects, coordinated out of the port city of Halifax, Nova Scotia.
The purpose of the Halifax-
Full disclosure: I took this tour several years ago. However, in perusing the shore excursion pages of various cruise lines’ Web sites today, the tour is described exactly how it was when I booked it. One advantage of a current tour, of course, is that continuing research into Titanic is providing new information, certainly enhancing the terrific tour I experienced.
Our excursion began with a one-
One quick note—our museum tickets were good for admittance for the rest of the day, so a morning tour is best for those who want to spend more than the allotted one hour.
After reboarding the bus, we were driven past several key areas associated with the recovery operation. This included several sites to which victims’ bodies were delivered, such as the location of the former Mayflower Curling Club, which had been transformed into a temporary morgue. We also passed several churches where Halifax residents held services for those who had perished. Seeing these sites added a personal dimension to the tragedy.
In total, recovery ships from Halifax found 328 bodies. Each was given a number corresponding to the order of recovery—yet, due to a communications glitch, numbers 324 and 325 were not assigned. We also learned that of the 209 were brought back to the city, 59 were claimed by their families. (The rest were buried at sea due to their condition.) The remaining 150 were buried in three cemeteries in Halifax. And, a visit to one of these cemeteries was the most emotional part of the excursion.
Most of the victims, 121 to be precise, are buried in Fairview Lawn Cemetery, a non-
The other two cemeteries are Baron de Hirsch (a Jewish cemetery in which 10 passengers were buried) and Mount Olivet (a Catholic cemetery, 19 passengers). We passed both of these on the bus. This was perhaps the only disappointment with the tour, although I knew in advance we would not be stopping here.
Closing Thoughts
As sad as this tour was, I do recommend it for those who want to learn more about
Titanic. As I wrote earlier, I already had a strong knowledge of the history of the
ship and her passengers, including the important role of the people of Halifax. Even
so, having a professional guide made this excursion more meaningful to me, and enabled
me to get accurate answers to my questions. And, despite the preparations I had made
by reviewing many of my reference materials before the trip, nothing compares to
the emotion of actually being there. The Halifax-