Titanic Gold Medal

Object Details

Flanagan, John

Description: Founded in 1904 by wealthy financier Andrew Carnegie in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, the Carnegie Hero Fund Commission (CHFC) exists to honor acts of individual civilian heroism in the United States and Canada. It is still active today; recipients include both the living, the dead, and persons directly affected by the loss of a heroic relative.; The emotional impact on the general public of the April 1912 loss of the ocean liner Titanic was astonishing, and the continually updated story lasted for months in the contemporary newspapers. In Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, the Commission felt inspired to honor all the heroes who had risked their lives in the rescue of the 700 passengers, so at their April 26, 1912 meeting they authorized a nine-oz. 22-k gold medal to be struck, mounted in an elaborate bronze base, inscribed and presented to the Smithsonian. The Smithsonian accepted the gift and displayed it before adding it to the National Numismatic Collection in the National Museum of American History.
Location: Currently not on view

ca 1912

Physical Description: bronze (overall; frame material); gold (overall: medal material); brass (overall; frame inscritption area material)
Measurements: overall: 15 in x 13 in x 3 1/2 in; 38.1 cm x 33.02 cm x 8.89 cm

place made: United States: Connecticut, Bridgeport; United States: Pennsylvania, Philadelphia

See more items in: Work and Industry: National Numismatic Collection; Coins, Currency and Medals; Transportation; Titanic

National Museum of American History

GUID (Link to Original Record): https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ng49ca746a9-171d-704b-e053-15f76fa0b4fa