Merida Shipwreck - Steamship Historical Society

SOCIAL STUDIES / MATH – Use primary sources to calculate value of passenger’s personal items lost at sea. Discuss socials studies topics like what can these possessions tell us about classes of passengers on the ship.

SS *Merida*. Photo courtesy of the Library of Congress.

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Learning Objective

Calculate the value of the passengers’ personal items lost at sea.

Vocabulary

value
inflation
cost
buying power

Questions

Do you think $100 today will have the same buying power in ten years? Twenty? Why or why not?

Sentence Stems

The value of $100 in 1911 to today is _____.

Materials Needed

Share the paperwork for the lawsuit that detail passenger information and personal property loss, found at this link. This is a primary source.

Lesson Opening

Have students read or listen to this article about the shipwreck. Discuss what they learned. What information is important?

In a time crunch, share this with the students: On May 12, 1911 off the coast of Virginia, the Merida shipwreck occurred. The ship, scheduled to sail from Vera Cruz, Mexico to New York, collided with the Steamship Farragut. Capt. Robertson and his officers saw the lights of a steamer coming toward them through the fog. Sirens sounded, but within minutes the crash came. The collision tore a large hole in the Merida’s starboard side. The Merida soon took a sharp list at an angle of about 40 degrees and water began entering the engine room. Two hours after the collision, all 326 passengers and crew were safe, including the ship mascots, five cats that only understood Spanish. Today, the wreckage lies about 55 miles from Cape Charles, in 210 feet of water, and buried in about 20 feet of sand. The wreck site has lured many treasure hunters over the decades. Many still believe the treasure onboard the Merida, estimated at several million dollars, lies buried with the ship.

“When I got on deck it was pitch dark, and people were pouring out of the main saloon. It seems to me that there were nothing but women all around, and they were all screaming at the top of their voices. Then the men began to come, and they were yelling too. Then we all heard a loud crash below (engine room), and two dozen fireman – Cubans and Mexicans – came running forward on deck. A fight occurred, and several passengers were pushed down. Capt. Robertson, officers, stewards and waiters gradually got everyone calm and quiet. Soon candles and lanterns were lit in the dark hallways to help guide the passengers to their life boats.” – On board passenger

Two hours after the collision, all 326 passengers and crew were safe, including the ship mascots, five cats that only understood Spanish.Today the wreckage lies about 55 miles from Cape Charles, in 210 feet of water, and buried in about 20 feet of sand. The wreck site has lured many treasurer hunters over the decades. Many still believe the treasure onboard the Merida, estimated at several million dollars, lies buried with the ship.

Lesson Body

Read and discuss the documents from the lawsuit. Ask students what they would carry on a ship with them. Do all of those items have monetary value? Do you think this was a lot of money for the passengers to lose?

Students can work in pairs or individually to find the total monetary value lost for the Rodriguez family. Then calculate what that total would be if this happened today? If $100 in 1911 is equal to $3,133.80 in 2022. Once students finish, have them compare their findings with others. Complete this for Miss Lela Jones and Felix Seijo.

Below you will find primary sources for a law suit that detail passenger information and personal property loss from the SSHSA Archives.

Questions for Further Thought – Math

Determine the total value of property loss.
What would the property loss for each claim value today if $100 in 1911 equals $2613.30 in 2016?

Questions for Further Thought – Social Studies

What do the items lost tell you about the class of passengers?
Are there similarities in items carried onboard?

Click here for more primary sources from the Merida shipwreck.

Lesson Closing

Provide this website link and ask students to find the value of the items lost for the year they were born. The year their parents or teacher was born.