In a stunning display of historical value, a handwritten letter from Titanic passenger Colonel Archibald Gracie was sold for a remarkable £300,000 ($400,000) at an auction held by Henry Aldridge and Son in Wiltshire, UK, on Sunday. This sale price far exceeded the estimated value of £60,000, marking it as the highest price ever paid for a correspondence written onboard the ill-fated ship.
Dated 10 April 1912, just five days before the RMS Titanic sank after colliding with an iceberg, the letter features Gracie's reflections on the ship, noting his intention to "await my journey's end" before forming a final judgment. As a first-class passenger, he wrote the letter from cabin C51, eventually posted during a stop in Queenstown, Ireland, on April 11, 1912, with a London postmark dated April 12.
The auctioneer remarked on the unique nature of the letter, which captured the attention of bidders worldwide. Colonel Gracie's survival story is legendary; he recounted his harrowing experience in the well-known book, "The Truth About The Titanic," detailing how he managed to escape to an overturned lifeboat amidst freezing waters. Many aboard faced dire survival challenges, with over half the men on the lifeboat succumbing to exhaustion or cold.
Although Gracie survived the tragic sinking, the event took a severe toll on his health. He fell into a coma roughly eight months later on December 2, 1912, and sadly passed away from diabetes complications just two days later. The sale of his letter marks a significant moment in maritime history, reflecting both the personal story within the Titanic disaster and the enduring intrigue surrounding it.
