Titanic couples: John and Nelle Snyder

Titanic couples: John and Nelle Snyder by ric gustafson


John Pillsbury Snyder came from an old Minneapolis family. His grandfather was Govenor of Minnesota from 1876 to 1882. His great uncle founded the Pillsbury flour company. In December 1911, he opened a garage and truck dealership in Minneapolis. A month later, he married Nelle Snyder who came from a wealthy Minneapolis family. They left for a three month honeymoon.
They traveled to Rome, Florence, Venice and London. Because of the coal workers strike, they were transferred to the Titanic for the voyage home.
Their stateroom on B Deck was close to the room of the Cardeza family and near the suite of Helen and Dickinson Bishop. On the evening of Sunday April 14, they were in bed when the ship collided with an iceberg. A steward woke them up and told them to dress and come up to the Boat Deck. John insisted that Nelle wear her warm fur coat. On the Boat Deck, a crewman literally threw Nelle into Lifeboat 7. John somehow got on board and the boat lowered to the freezing dark water. John helped with the rowing and they watched as the mighty ship broke into two and sank into the dark night. Later, Lifeboat 5 came alongside and the boats joined together. Early in the morning, they were rescued by the liner Carpathia.
After they were rescued, they moved into a house in Minneapolis and John became Vice President of Millers and Traders State Bank. They had three children, a girl and two boys and later grandchildren.


research help: ' Titanic Love Stories' by Gill Paul


Peace and God's blessings. Love Ric