Lifeboats of the RMS Titanic returned to the White Star Line at New York Harbor, as they were the only items of value salvaged from the shipwreck, but subsequently vanished from history over time. "Titanic" had 20 lifeboats of three different types: The main lifeboats and cutters were built by Harland and Wolff at Queen's Island, Belfast at the same time that "Titanic" and her sister ship were constructed. They were designed for maximum seaworthiness, with a double-ended design (effectively having two bows). This reduced the risk that they would be flooded by a following sea (i.e. having waves breaking over the stern). If a
Sinking of the RMS Titanic and shipyard workers wept in the streets. The ship had been a symbol of Belfast's industrial achievements, and there was not only a sense of grief but also one of guilt, as those who had built "Titanic" came to feel they had been responsible in some way for her loss. In the aftermath of the sinking, public inquiries were set up in Britain and the United States. The US inquiry began on 19 April under the chairmanship of Senator William Alden Smith, and the British inquiry commenced in London under Lord Mersey on 2 May 1912. They reached broadly similar