If you were a member of the crew on board the Titanic and you wished to get from one end of the ship to the other, then you would take Scotland Road. Crew Alleyway, as it was also called, was a long corridor that spanned the entire length of the ship located on E Deck, on the port side. Scotland Road was named after a major thoroughfare in Liverpool, England which is still in use today, close to the Mersey River. Liverpool was also the headquarters of the White Star Line, and many crew members had a connection to the city.
Courtesy of TITANIC: PROJECT 401
The corridor started in the bow in the vicinity of the E Deck gangway doors and continued aft in a straight line until interrupted by the ship’s engines. In this area and approaching where the straight-line ends were stairs which went down to the third-class dining room. Continuing aft, it slightly detoured around the engines passing through a number of watertight doors before going as far as possible to the stern. Starting from the forward end of the passageway at the bow, accommodations for Titanic’s senior seamen, some third-class cabins and stairs to the third-class open space on the deck above could be found. Members of the crew had their sleeping quarters on the port side of the passageway. At the forward end, the carpenter and joiner were berthed.
Traveling aft, apart from the first-class cooks, most of the sleeping quarters were occupied by the ship’s stewards and waiters. As well, the engineer’s mess was located opposite the engines. Going aft would lead to a set of stairs at the side which led to third-class cabins. While stairs at the end led up to further accommodation, along with toilets and washing facilities on D Deck. If passengers continued up the stairs, they would have found the third-class general room, smoking room and outside deck space.
Due to its design, Scotland Road play a crucial role during the sinking, as it allowed the water easy access to flood every compartment that was accessible through the corridor. Numerous staircases allowed the water to penetrate F Deck, where it breached the compartments containing the Swimming Bath, Turkish Bath, Third Class Galley (kitchen) and the Third Class Dining Room. From there, the water would enter the boiler rooms. The bulkheads could not sustain the amount of water that was entering the ship at a progressive and fast rate, which ultimately sealed her fate. As the vessel continued to flood, the ship developed a list to port by 1:20 –1:30 a.m. Within ten to twenty minutes later, the list was affecting the launching of the lifeboats. The heavy port list allowed the water to flow even more freely along Scotland Road, accelerating the final stages of the sinking.
Scotland Road was shown briefly in James Cameron’s 1997 blockbuster, Titanic. The fictional characters Jack and Rose broke through a door to escape a flooding corridor. Scotland Road also made an appearance in the made-for-television movie S.O.S. Titanic (1979), although it was smaller. Recently, the corridor has been recreated in the virtual reality PC game project Titanic: Honor & Glory. — Jason Tiller