Artist rendition of the sinking of the Norge.
“He was jolted awake by a violent shudder as the hull tore open beneath the waterline. Water rushed in fast, and panic spread even faster.”
Young Norwegian Survives Shipwreck
Johan Emil Pettersen was only 19 years old when he boarded the SS Norge in June of 1904, leaving behind the rocky shores of Bergen, Norway, with dreams of a better life in America. Like hundreds of other hopeful souls, he was packed into the lower steerage of the steamship—an area meant more for livestock than people—clutching a small satchel and big dreams. The crossing started quietly enough, but on the morning of June 28th, Johan’s journey took a deadly turn when the ship struck a reef near Rockall in the North Atlantic.
He was jolted awake by a violent shudder as the hull tore open beneath the waterline. Water rushed in fast, and panic spread even faster. Johan scrambled up toward the deck, barefoot and terrified, helping two children reach higher ground—children he would never see again. As the ship began to list, passengers fought for lifeboats in a frenzy of screams and prayers. Johan spotted one being lowered and, in a desperate leap of faith, threw himself from the railing and into the overcrowded boat.
For the next eight days, Johan and about 18 others drifted through the cold Atlantic with no food and just one barrel of water. They took turns sucking moisture from a damp rag. One man lost his mind and jumped into the sea; another died quietly and was slid overboard with solemn respect. Johan, starving and sunburned, clung to life until a British fishing trawler finally appeared on the horizon and pulled them to safety. He would later say he crossed the ocean “on a coffin.”
“Every birthday I count is not mine—I borrowed them from the sea.”
Johan eventually made it to New York, but he never forgot what the sea had taken. Years later, in a letter to his son, he wrote: “Every birthday I count is not mine—I borrowed them from the sea.” His words remain a powerful reminder of the hopes, heartbreak, and hard-won survival that shaped so many immigrant stories, including his own.