Hilda Hellström's Letter to Her Brother

A lot has happened since we were together the last time. I never thought that I would live to see the Titanic go under. It was an awful sight, but how I was saved I will never understand. I was so calm the whole time and never thought that it would sink. We were in the lifeboat six hours, so I have not been feeling very well. I expect that I'm thin and pale compared to when I was home. But I never thought I would get to America in such a poor state. But I'm glad that I was saved. We can't leave the home here [the Swedish Immigrant Home in New York] until we have received clothes and money so that we can manage. I lost everything I owned, so I don't have more than what I'm wearing and it's not that much.

Yesterday, there were photographers here who took our pictures and today we have seen ourselves in all the papers. And there were people here who talked with us about our voyage, so now it's rather nice. But on board the steamer Carpathia it wasn't that good. The first day they received us kindly, but then they packed us in like hogs.

But one was glad to be there. We have been outside and looked around in the city, and, believe me, they stared at us and everyone feels sorry for us who were on the Titanic. I hardly know what else to write. It's difficult to concentrate enough to write although there is so much to write about.

Curator's note: This text was sourced from Lilly Setterdahl's book, Not My Time to Die - Titanic and the Swedes on Board, translated from the Swedish text provided by Margaretha Hedblom of Malung, Sweden found in the digital collection of newspapers articles in the National Library of Sweden.