Titanic passenger wrote 'prophetic' letter 3 days before the ship sank: 'It is a fine ship but...'

Titanic, often referred to as “the Ship of Dreams,” was one of a kind when it was all set to sail. Its magnificence and beauty were enough to leave people awestruck. Divided into classes, the ship carried thousands of passengers from all socioeconomic backgrounds. Unfortunately, during its maiden journey from Southampton, England, to New York City, USA, on April 14, 1912, it sank in the North Atlantic Ocean, per the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. It had 2,240 passengers with crews, and over 1500 passengers lost their lives with the crew members. However, the stories and materialistic things that touched the ship became eternal. One such thing is a letter written by a Titanic passenger, Colonel Archibald Gracie, that Henry Aldridge & Son talks about on their website.

Colonel Gracie was one of the most respected passengers on the Titanic. He was traveling first class and mostly spending his days “chaperoning various unaccompanied women and reading books from the first-class library.” He wrote the letter on April 10, 1912, when the Titanic sailed for New York. Now, the letter has taken over the internet, not only because it is one of the only remains from the ship that sank, but also because of its “prophetic” nature. The letter that was penned three days before the sinking of the ship is said to have predicted the accident.

Moreover, the passenger's correspondence is dated April 10, 1912, and postmarked to Queenstown, Ireland, on April 11 and London on April 12. The letter was addressed to the ship’s seller’s grand-uncle, an acquaintance of the Colonel. “It is a fine ship, but I shall await my journey's end before I pass judgment on her,” he continued in the letter, “The Oceanic is like an old friend and while she does not possess the elaborate style and varied amusement of this big ship, still her seaworthy qualities and yacht-like appearance make me miss her,” the letter further read.

On that unfortunate night, Colonel went to bed early, as he intended to wake up early the next morning to play squash. However, he woke up to "a sudden jolt" as the ship struck an iceberg. Later, people started to be in lifeboats in order to protect themselves. After many succumbed to death on the ship, Colonel returned to New York City and later began writing about the things that he had been through.

After his return, Colonel’s health deteriorated due to the hypothermia and physical injuries that he sustained in the accident. He fell into a coma on December 2, 1912, and passed away two days after that due to some complications caused by diabetes. His book “The Truth about the Titanic” came out the following year, which spoke all about the dreadful nightmare-like experiences he had on the Titanic. 

Auctioneer Andrew Aldridge expressed, “This letter is one of the finest of its type known. Not only is it written by one of the most important first-class passengers on the Titanic, Colonel Archibald Gracie. The letter itself contains the most prophetic line: ‘It is a fine ship, but I shall await my journey's end before I pass judgment on her.’ Five days later, the Titanic was at the bottom of the North Atlantic.” The letter was recently sold at an auction for almost $400,000, exceeding everyone’s expectations, per CNN.