RMS Titanic
EASTHAM – The Cape Cod National Seashore will host two events commemorating wireless communication and the role it played to rescue survivors from the sinking of the Titanic.
Wireless messages sent from the Marconi station in Wellfleet on April 14, 1912 to the Titanic were also received by the ship Carpathia. The Carpathia rescued 740 people after its operator relayed those messages to the Titanic, which responded that it was sinking.
National Seashore Education Specialist Barbara Dougan said the Wellfleet tower’s role in the rescue was a fluke.
“It was simply that we were making those calls, they were overheard by the Carpathia operator and then he calls the Titanic to remind them about those messages,” Dougan said.
On Saturday, a Titanic Memorial Event will honor the 1,500 people lost. The Titanic/Marconi Memorial Association of Cape Cod, WIMGY, will host a global wireless radio event that honors those lost and to tell stories of ship-to-shore wireless communication. The event is from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the Nauset Coast Guard Station at Coast Guard Beach in Eastham.
International Marconi Day is the following week on April 21 and an event will honor Guglielmo Marconi for his contributions to wireless technology. The Marconi Cape Cod Radio Club, KM1CC, will communicate with radio operators around the globe in voice and Morse code. The event is from 9:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. at the Nauset Coast Guard Station.
The station in Wellfleet is one of the original trans-Atlantic stations built by Marconi.
“We play a significant role in the history of long distance communication right here on Cape Cod,” Dougan said.
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