Gracie was among approximately 2,200 individuals aboard the Titanic, bound for New York City, of whom over 1,500 perished in the disaster. The first-class passenger composed his letter from cabin C51 while the ship was anchored in Queenstown, Ireland. Auctioneers praised the letter for attracting the highest price ever for Titanic correspondence. Gracie later chronicled his survival story in the book "The Truth About The Titanic," detailing his harrowing escape by finding refuge on an overturned lifeboat amid freezing waters. Although he survived the notorious sinking, his health deteriorated due to hypothermia and injuries; he fell into a coma later that year, eventually passing away from diabetes complications.
Record-Breaking Titanic Survivor's Letter Fetches £300,000 at Auction
Record-Breaking Titanic Survivor's Letter Fetches £300,000 at Auction
A handwritten note penned by a Titanic passenger shortly before its tragic sinking has broken auction records in the UK.
A letter from Colonel Archibald Gracie, written on April 10, 1912, fetched an extraordinary £300,000 ($400,000) at a recent auction in Wiltshire. This amount surpasses the projected £60,000, making it the most valuable correspondence from aboard the Titanic. Gracie's message, regarded as "prophetic," reflects his contemplative nature as he expressed, “I will await my journey’s end” regarding the ship. He wrote this letter before boarding the ill-fated liner that would meet its end just five days later after hitting an iceberg in the North Atlantic.
