Sunday, April 15, 2012

Women's Titanic Memorial in DC


Did you know that there is a memorial to the victims of the RMS Titanic disaster in Washington, DC? Well, neither did I until I took my Cherry Blossom cruise along Washington Channel Harbor and the Potomac River last month.

Located in the Waterfront area near the border wall of Fort McNair, the Women's Titanic Memorial was erected to honor the men who perished in the disaster who gave up their lifeboat seats to save women and children. Since today is the 100th anniversary of the disaster, it is fitting to share a photo of the Women's Titanic Memorial in this post.

The granite statue was funded by donations from women around the country, primarily raised through individual one dollar donations from more than 25,000 donors. In 1912, the memorial was placed along the Potomac River where the Kennedy Center now sits today. When construction began on the Center, this statue was moved to its current location on the Washington Channel Harbor.

One more element to note, doesn't the man's open arm position in the statue remind you of a famous movie moment? Apparently, Titantic director James Cameron replicated the statue's position in Leo DiCaprio's famous "king of the world" scene in the movie about the disaster. Further proof that sometimes art inspires art.

1 comment:

  1. Wow--makes me like that scene even more, now that I know it was kind of an homage to the memorial!

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