Rare Titanic letter written days before disaster provides ‘priceless snapshot’ into life onboard
A letter written by Titanic passenger Henry Price Hodges on April 10, days before the ship sank, is set to be auctioned with an estimated value of up to £35,000. The correspondence describes the fine weather, onboard activities, and expresses gratitude to a friend in Southampton. Hodges, a second‑class passenger traveling to Boston, died in the disaster and his body was later recovered.
- ▪The letter, addressed to Hector Young of the Newtown Conservative Association, was postmarked from Queenstown and provides a detailed snapshot of life aboard the Titanic before the tragedy.
- ▪Hodges traveled in second class with ticket number 250643, which cost £13, and was heading to Boston to visit relatives.
- ▪The document will be sold at Henry Aldridge and Son auction house, with estimates suggesting it could fetch as much as £35,000.
- ▪Hodges perished when the Titanic sank on April 15, 1912, and his remains were recovered and interred in Halifax, Nova Scotia.
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NewsUKHome NewsRare Titanic letter written days before disaster provides ‘priceless snapshot’ into life onboardThe letter penned by Henry Price Hodges is expected to fetch up to £35,000 at auctionRod Minchin Tuesday 21 July 2026 07:39 BSTBookmarkCommentsGo to commentsBookmark popoverRemoved from bookmarksClose popover{"translations":{"comments":"Go to comments","share":"Share","copyLink":"Copy link","bookmark":"Bookmark","removeBookmark":"Remove bookmark"},"showComments":true,"showBookmark":true,"articleId":"b3018557","articleMeta":{"url":"https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/titanic-letter-southampton-ship-auction-b3018557.html","title":"Rare Titanic letter provides ‘priceless snapshot’ into life onboard"}}Titanic: First-ever full-sized 3D scan reveals shipwreck as it is…
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