Hi there!

This is a tough question to answer because it involves the broader topic of Titanic in popular culture- which is relatively massive and complex. I think the best way to begin to scratch the surface of this is to sort of hit big moments and contextualize them, which I'll try to do! A caveat- it's almost impossible to answer this without diving into personal opinion. I'll try really hard to stick to facts as much as I can but I will have to give a personal take here and there, which you are free to take or leave :)

When did the fascination with the sinking of the Titanic begin in western popular culture?

Your initial question is already too late :) Titanic was a culture icon from the announcement of her construction. In the early 20th century, ship building was big news as various companies rivaled, and outdid each other, in the quest to build bigger, better, and faster liners as quickly as they could. The world depended on ships, especially the transatlantic trade, to function. Not only did they carry mail and cargo, but they transported the wealthy, the middle class, and the surging immigrant population. Attracting these groups who suddenly had a relatively speedy way to see the world meant that news of newer and shinier ships was always making headlines.

Here's the New York Times from 1909-

Olympic and Titanic, Carrying 5,000 People---12,000 Tons Heavier, 50 Feet Longer Than Any Ship Afloat

VISITORS to the commercial capital of Ireland by way of the Victoria Channel through Belfast Lough for the first time cannot fail to notice and in noticing must be sublimely impressed by the huge, towering shipbuilding gantries 225 feet high and 1,000 feet long which loom up a mighty structure to the eyes of the voyager as the ship which carries him to the shores of Ireland enters the fairway between Carrickfurgus [sic] on the Antrim side of Greypoint Battery, County Down. Long before he can trace the outline of the great central city of the Irish shipbuilding and linen industries these colossal landmarks are distinctly defined against the southern horizon.

It is underneath these huge structures the mighty White Star liners Olympic and Titanic, the most enormous vessels ever built, are being welded into shape, and already through the intricate steel latticework the outline of the former vessel is every day becoming more manifest to the observer.

That same article goes on to give incorrect measurements, underplaying both their sizes while overplaying their capacity limits and construction features. It’s not shoddy reporting, the public was so hungry and eager to hear more information about these two new liners that reporters grabbed any information they could even while Titanic was nothing more than keel blocks.

Remember of course, that the attention was on Olympic- the first, who received massive fame and publicity from her construction to her sailing. However, like every other ship, public hype quickly rotated to the next big thing and in this case, it was her own sister.

If Titanic had not have sunk, she would have been the forgotten middle child to her more famous sister. She wasn’t the first of the fleet, nor was she going to be the biggest (the third sister Britannic would overtake her in 1914), and the Olympic Class was only going to be the hot ticket for a year, as the German liner SS Imperator was already under construction for a 1913 sailing and would be bigger, longer, wider, taller, and heavier than all three Olympic Class Liners.

So fame was intense but fleeting. At the time of her sailing, Titanic did end up capturing the public’s fascination. She was bigger than Olympic and since Olympic was the guinea pig, she was more luxurious, faster (although they didn’t know this at the time), and offering several amenities not featured on Olympic- a Parisian style cafe restaurant, deluxe millionaire suites with private decks, etc. Titanic was the biggest, most luxurious ship afloat - the largest moving object ever constructed with the appointments of a 5 star hotel. Her celebrity would be brief, but it was earned.

And then she sank.

Part 2 continues below!