Empress of Ireland

The Tragedy of the Empress of Ireland 1914

May 29, 1914

This year, 2004, was the 90th Anniversary of the sinking of the “Empress of Ireland”  This event of May 29, 1914 was something indelibly in the mind of Arthur Delamont, as he survived this sinking with his family His brother Leonard Samuel Delamont perished.

This was a huge disaster, which has been overtaken in public accounts by the Titanic and the Lusitania.

Passengers and Crew of the Empress of Ireland
1 Class Passengers	36 saved, 51 lost, total 87
2nd Class Passengers	48 saved, 205 lost, total 253
3rd Class Passengers	133 saved, 584 lost total 717
CREW	245 saved, 175 lost, total 420
GRAND TOTAL	462 saved, 1015 lost, total 1477

The Delamont Family was among the 3rd Class Passengers. One was lost.

Here is account of the journey:

On her first trip of the summer of 1914 the Empress of Ireland sailed away from her berth in Quebec Harbor bound across the North Atlantic to Liverpool, England. The Empress of Ireland never reached its port. Only hours into her voyage, she collided with the Norwegian collier, Storstad and sank in the gulf of the St. Lawrence River. Reunions never happened, families were torn apart. Over a thousand lives were lost in a tragedy that rivaled that of the Titanic.

There is a detailed passenger list found on this web-site: Empress of Ireland Passengers

In this list is this stark reminder of the tragedy:

3rd Class

Delamont, John – To Toronto
Delamont, Mrs. Seraphin Cooper – To Toronto
Delamont, Miss Lizzie – To Toronto
Delamont, Leonard Samuel – Lost
Delamont, Arthur William – To Toronto

Updated: February 2016