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| SS Ile de France leaving New York 1956 |
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| SS Liberte previously SS Europa |
The Stockholm sustained severe damage but was able to return to New York.
Many people were rescued by the Ile de France, which was not far away and responded to the distress calls.
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| Andrea Doria and Ile de France |
However, 51 people died: 43 on the Andrea Doria in the collision and another 3 who died later, and 5 crew members on the Stockholm.
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| Andrea Doria at dawn, July 26, 1956 |
My dad and I were obsessed with this tragedy. We bought every newspaper we could find. It was all over the French TV news, of course. It was the first time that there was actual video of something like this. The cameras kept rolling as the Andrea Doria slipped below the waves. Of course, this was before the internet and with what few facts we had, we tried to recreate what might have happened. We drew diagrams. We took each ship's perspective and fought it out. My mother gave up trying to clear up all our documentation off our dining room table and just pushed it all aside so we could eat dinner. We read this magazine over and over until it fell apart.
The sinking of the Andrea Doria always struck a chord with me. I love ships and this accident had a personal connection because of the Ile de France. There were a few celebrities on board, like actress Ruth Roman, who was just finishing a trip to Europe with her 3-year-old son; and Cary Grant's wife Betsy Drake, who lost $250,000 worth of jewelry which was in the safe.
Also, there were some incredible stories, like the girl who was asleep in her bed on the Andrea Doria and woke up on the reinforced, icebreaker prow of the Stockholm. I hated the Stockholm because she didn't have the elegance and beauty of the Andrea Doria. For years I followed the story, all the way to the conclusion of the lawsuits.
Not many people have accessed the wreck. She was originally under about 180 feet of frigid ocean, but now has sunk to about 240 feet. Apparently she is disintegrating and collapsing upon herself, sinking into the bottom of the ocean floor.
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| Side scan sonar of the Andrea Doria on the ocean floor. |
The day after the ship sank, Life Magazine hired some professional divers to photograph the wreck. In the ensuing years, professional divers have retrieved a great many artifacts, like china and silver, etc., as well as the stern bell and one of the helms.
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| One of the lifeboats at 145 feet on July 27, 1956. |
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| Cutting an entry hole in the foyer doors in 1973 |
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| The Andrea Doria's aft bell in 1985 |
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| The Andrea Doria's aft helm in 1987 |
Many books have been written about the Andrea Doria, one called "Desperate Hours" that I also haven't read. This is an except:
De Beaudean (captain of the Ile) stopped the Ile 400 years away, her bulk serving as a windbreak to keep the open water between the ships calm. Then the captain issued an order that stirred the spirits of hundreds who had been stranded for 2-1/2 hours, watching helplessly as their beautiful ship tilted and tilted, closer and closer to the end. It was an order that produced an image to be marked indelibly on the consciousness of all who glimpsed it for the rest of their lives. "Light up our name, the funnels, the decks. Light up everything quickly". Switches clicked and the block letters ILE DE FRANCE aligned between the two red and black funnels blazed through a North Atlantic night that only moments earlier had shed an impenetrable and deadly fog.I have read many accounts of what it was like to suddenly see that name appear in lights in the darkness, a symbol of hope.
There have been a great many documentaries and TV shows about this accident. Every time I watch one, it seems new all over again. It's almost as though I was there.
This is interesting
Andrea Doria at fault?
So is this.
Survivors Remember Andrea Doria
Good description of the Andrea Doria
Andrea Doria
The ultimate Andrea Doria' website
AndreaDoria.org
Who was at fault? There were many contributing factors including the Andrea Doria's design, errors in judgement, etc., and there was a great deal of criticism of the crew. However, over the years, the Stockholm has not been held blameless. There was also a mutual lawsuit.
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| Lawsuit Settled |