April 14, 1912: The Titanic Sinks

April 14, 1912: The cruise ship RMS Titanic sinks in the North Atlantic Ocean, leading to more than 1,500 deaths. There were 710 survivors. At the time, it was the worst maritime disaster in human history.

There have since been bigger ones. But the reason the Titanic -- the RMS stood for "Royal Mail Ship" -- has stayed in the public memory is that it was the largest ship of any kind ever built, on its maiden voyage, from Southampton on the English Channel coast to New York City, and that it was said to be "unsinkable." Also, it was a case where the rich suffered along with the nonrich, showing them that they weren't better than the rest of us.

An Englishwoman named Millvina Dean was the last survivor of the sinking of the RMS Titanic, living until May 31, 2009, at the age of 97. She was an infant survivor, with no memory of the event.

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April 14, 1912 was a Sunday. There was, as yet, no National Football League, and no professional basketball league of any name. The National Hockey League hadn't yet been founded. There was a National Hockey Association in Eastern Canada, and a Pacific Coast Coast Hockey Association with teams in Western Canada and America's Pacific Northwest, but their seasons were already over, with the Quebec Bulldogs as Stanley Cup winners.

But the Major League Baseball season had just gotten underway, and 4 games were played. None of the 3 teams then in New York City were involved:

* The Detroit Tigers beat the Cleveland Naps, 1-0 at League Park in Cleveland. The home team was named after their manager and 2nd baseman, Napoleon "Nap" Lajoie. After he left the team following the 1914 season, they were renamed the Cleveland Indians.

* The Cincinnati Reds beat the Pittsburgh Pirates, 11-7 at Redland Field in Cincinnati. This ballpark had hosted its 1st game only 3 days earlier. Its name would be changed to Crosley Field in 1934, and the Reds left it in 1970. On April 20, 6 days after the Titanic sank, Fenway Park would open in Boston, and Navin Field would open in Detroit. Fenway has been seriously altered a few times, but is still in use. Navin Field would be expanded and renamed Briggs Stadium in 1938, renamed Tiger Stadium in 1961, and closed in 1999.

* The St. Louis Browns beat the Chicago White Sox, 4-1 at Comiskey Park in Chicago.

* And the St. Louis Cardinals beat the Chicago Cubs, 5-4 at Robison Field in St. Louis.