Postcard Thought to be Earliest Discussing Sinking of Titanic up for Auction

A postcard, believed to be the earliest mention of the Titanic disaster, is going under the hammerwith Charles Miller Ltd on Tuesday 25 April and is expected to fetch £2,000-3,000.

The card, which was written only 36 hours after the Titanic sank, is being sold by an English collector. Written in Southampton at 5pm, and posted at 7pm on 16th April 1912 to an address in Bedford, the correspondent references the lack of information relating to the Titanic disaster, with the only thing being certain is that she had “gone to the bottom”. The vendor, who has greatly enjoyed owning the postcard, and who would now like others to share the same pleasure, says: “The sinking of the Titanic was such a significant and tragic event, and I am hoping that the postcard will be bought by a museum, or by someone, who will display it to the
general public, so that it can be generally appreciated, rather than housed in a private collection, where few people will see it.”

Maritime Specialist Charles Miller says, “It is fascinating to see this correspondence, which was sent so soon after the Titanic slipped beneath the waves. It is likely that the sender was involved in shipping, as it is intriguing to read that White Star Line was heavily reliant on the newspapers for their information as to what had occurred.”