Titanic Leaves Belfast 3

Titanic leaving Belfast, April 1912.

Gentle ripples and eddies in the water show Titanic’s slow, steady progress down Belfast Lough as she slips away from the city of her birth on 2 April 1912.  Once in the open waters of the Irish Sea, she worked up to speeds approaching 20 knots (about 23 miles per hour).

"When the tugs were left behind the compasses were adjusted, after which a satisfactory speed run took place, and the latest triumph of the shipbuilder’s art then left for Southampton, carrying with her the best wishes of the citizens of Belfast".

Belfast News-Letter, 3 April 1912