AS THE nation’s greatest passenger port the people of Southampton were used to seeing the comings and goings of many liners as they criss-crossed the oceans of the world.

However, in 1912, there was more than the usual amount of interest in a new ship, due to dock for the first time in Southampton after her journey from the builder’s yard in Belfast. Titanic had been hailed as the largest, most luxurious ship of her time, and, to add an extra twist of interest, there was the suggestion the White Star liner was “practically unsinkable’’.

In the days leading up to the initial appearance of Titanic, together with her impressive four funnels, in Southampton Water, interest in this “wonder ship’’ intensified, and on March 27, the Daily Echo proudly wrote: “The coming of Titanic has a special significance.

It sets the seal once again upon the future of Southampton as nothing, humanly speaking, can arrest the progress of the port.

“Titanic is a spur to our public men not only to keep the port, their sacred trust, up to present needs, but a little ahead of them.”

Titanic approached a town high in confidence.

The vessel epitomised everything great in British shipbuilding, and was an enormous feather in the cap of the docks.

Seafaring, together with the import and export of goods, had been the backbone of Southampton since medieval times when merchants arrived from all over the Mediterranean anxious to trade exotic supplies, such as wine, for British wool.

It was the arrival of the railway in 1840 which firmly established Southampton’s reputation as a centre for maritime activity, international trade, and commercial success.

In the years that followed, Southampton grew in importance as the number of shipping lines using the port increased, as cargo sheds and warehouses sprung up along the quaysides.

Outside the dock gates a surge of investment saw the development of hotels, ships’ chandlers, a tram system, which took workers from the suburbs to work in the docks, and brought them back home again at the end of the day. Pubs and beer houses sprung up across Southampton not only to slake the thirst of the dock workers, but also to cater for the growing numbers of foreign crews.

In 1861, three houses in Canute Road, just outside the Old Docks, now better known as the Eastern Docks, were used as Southampton’s first home for sailors.

By 1909, so many seamen were in Southampton that there was an urgent need for bigger premises, which were found in nearby Oxford Street.

Research by Southampton City Council historians showed, at the time of the move, the number of men accommodated, on average, leapt from 5,000 to 26,753 by 1911.

Entertainment could be found at theatres, such as the Hippodrome, Palace, New Grand, and the Royal Pier Pavilion while two “cinematographic theatres’’, the New Southampton Picture Palace, and the Alexandra Picture Theatre, were showing some of the first silent films.

Southampton was taking on a new shape.

Its population had risen to 120,000, swollen by an influx of families from rural areas looking for work, while local companies were quick to supply ships’ stores, outfitters offered a wide choice of shipping uniforms, and wine and beer merchants were busy meeting the demands of the shipping lines.

The departmental store, Edwin Jones, now Debenhams, provided some of Titanic’s tablecloths while the docks’ branch of newsagents, WH Smith, made sure the White Star Line’s vessels had the most up-to-date editions of magazines and newspapers. As final preparations were made for Titanic’s departure there were hectic scenes, as crew members walked up the gangways and cars bringing first class passengers passed through the dock gates.

Find out more about Titanic

You can find out more about Titanic and the disaster's impact on Southampton with the Daily Echo.

Throughout the coming weeks, we will be showcasing unique content in our Titanic mini-site.

In the meantime, you can discover key sites across the city relating to the tragedy, the latest news relating to the ship or even find out some of the key facts behind the vessel, her demise and the people who perished and survived, including a list of all the crew members and the locations of their homes in Southampton.