Titanic the Human Story in Sydney

Running until mid-August 2025 at Pier 2 in the Walsh Bay Art Precinct, Sydney, Titanic the Human Story focuses on the human aspect of the Titanic sinking disaster.

The exhibits take you through the development of the ocean liner industry in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. It shows how the rich and powerful built the ships to move immigrants, primarily from Europe to the Americas. Of course, the rich and powerful also used the liners, but travelled in luxury.

Although few artefacts from Titanic were on display, there were many from her sister-ship Olympic. These included the second-class dining room entrance door, second-class chinaware, first-class smoking-room mirror and a bed.

Included in the ticket price is an audio headset presentation which makes the displays more interesting.

The Exhibits

The first exhibit, lifejacket from an unknown survivor reminds you of the disaster and the lives lost.

Building the Unsinkable Titanic

Promoted as unsinkable, because of its safety innovations, one section takes you through the building of the ship. A replica of one of the watertight doors, looks impressive and must have been to the passengers and crew. Unfortunately of course, the design did not allow for the holing of multiple sections and the water overtopping the doors as the ship became bow-heavy.

Reconstructions of the Titanic’s Cabins

Reconstructions of the first, second and third-class cabins illustrate how different conditions were between classes. Not only the cabins, but the quality of blankets and table settings varied significantly, from silver service to working class.

Marconi Wireless Room

A reconstruction of the Marconi wireless room shows where operators sent out distress calls until relieved by the captain. Of the two operators, one survived.

The Passengers and Crew

The walls of the exhibition are covered with the pictures and stories of the crew and passengers. Some of the ones that struck us are below.

Violet Jessop

A nurse, Violet Jessop not only survived the sinking of Titanic but was aboard the Brittanic (operating as a hospital ship) as a war nurse when it was sunk during World War One by a German U-Boat (she survived). Amazingly Violet had previously been aboard the Titanic’s other sister ship (the first built) RMS Olympic when it was involved in a collision.

The Black Gang

These men worked on the lowest of Titanic’s decks, keeping the boilers fed and working to power the ship. Most elected to stay until the end to ensure the boilers did not explode. Of the nearly 300 stokers, greasers and coal trimmers only 40 survived.

The Laroche Family

Like many families on the Titanic, the Laroches were seeking a better life. A qualified engineer, Joseph suffered discrimination, so was moving to his native Haiti. His pregnant French wife, Juliette and their two daughters survived, later returning to France, but unfortunately Joseph drowned.

The Lifeboats

Even though there were only sufficient spaces for half of Titanic’s passengers and crew aboard the lifeboats, they were only filled to 60%. The diagram below shows how poorly the lifeboats were used.

Models of the Titanic

A detailed model of Titanic shows not only the layout of the ship, but how the passengers were accommodated. An additional model of the wreck demonstrates how the ship looks today, broken in two parts, decaying and surrounded by a large debris field.

Crew and Passenger Lists

The final display lists all the passengers and crew by section and class, along with survived and who did not. Those above the space survived, those below drowned.

This was a fantastic exhibition and we enjoyed our visit, especially learning about the passengers and crew.