NEVER LET GO

Never-Before-Seen Titanic Letter Hints at a Real-Life ‘Rose and Jack’

Ernest Tomlin wrote about his “Rose” only a few days before he died on the Titanic.

A never-before-seen letter penned by a lovestruck passenger on the Titanic reveals that a romance between a real-life Jack Dawson and his Rose may have actually existed. A letter recovered from the body of Ernest Tomlin showed that the 21-year-old who boarded the doomed ship in Southampton, England was heartbroken over his failed courtship of a woman named Rose. The letter dated April 10, 1912 reads, “Dearest Mother and all... Do not tell anybody, but I showed up to have a good cry 24 hours ago, which would give me back my Rose, but crying will not do that, will it?” Tomlin shares some similarities with Jack Dawson, the heartthrob Titanic victim played by Leonardo DiCaprio in James Cameron’s classic film depiction of the incident. Both were third-class passengers and gambling enthusiasts pining for a woman named Rose—though Cameron has asserted that his characters were purely fictional. Tomlin was one of the 1,500 passengers who died after the Titanic sank in the Atlantic on April 15, 1912, and his letter and diary were recovered from his body by his family. The letter and diary are set to auction on November 22 at a combined asking price of $66,000.