Ida Straus

Victim of the sinking of the Titanic (1849–1912)

This article includes a list of general references, but it lacks sufficient corresponding inline citations. Please help to improve this article by introducing more precise citations. (June 2020) (Learn how and when to remove this message)

|

Ida Straus

Straus with her husband Isidor

Born|

Rosalie Ida Blun

(1849-02-06)February 6, 1849

Worms, Grand Duchy of Hesse

Died| April 15, 1912(1912-04-15) (aged 63)

North Atlantic Ocean

Cause of death| Sinking of the Titanic
Spouse|

Isidor Straus

(m. 1871)​

Children| 7, including Jesse
Relatives|

* King Princess (great-great-grandchild)
* Stockton Rush (great-great-grandson in law)

Rosalie Ida Straus (née Blün; February 6, 1849 – April 15, 1912) was a German-American homemaker and wife of Isidor Straus, U.S. Congressman and co-owner of the Macy's department store. She and her husband died during the sinking of the Titanic.[1]

## Early life and relations

[edit]

Wedding Photo of the Strauses, in 1871

Rosalie Ida Blun was born in 1849 in Worms to Nathan Blün (1815–1879) and his wife Wilhelmine "Mindel" (née Freudenberg; 1814–1868). She was the fifth of seven children, including Amanda (1839–1907), Elias Nathan (1842–1878), Louis (1843–1927), Augusta Carolina (1845–1905), Moritz (1850–1858) and Abraham Blun (1852–1881). She emigrated to the United States with her family in 1850.

In 1871, Ida Blun married Isidor Straus (1845–1912), a German-Jewish American businessman. The couple was considered especially close by their friends and family. When Isidor traveled as part of his duties as a U.S. Representative for New York, or as co-owner of Macy's, they exchanged letters daily. She and Isidor had seven children:

* Jesse Isidor Straus (1872–1936) who married Irma Nathan (1877–1970), and served as U.S. Ambassador to France, 1933–1936
* Clarence Elias Straus (1874–1876) who died in infancy
* Percy Selden Straus (1876–1944) who married Edith Abraham (1882–1957)
* Sara Straus (1878–1960) who married Alfred Fabian Hess (1875–1933)
* Minnie Straus (1880–1940) who married Richard Weil (1876–1917)
* Herbert Nathan Straus (1881–1933) who married Therese Kuhnt (1884–1977)
* Vivian Straus (1886–1974) first married Herbert Adolph Scheftel (1875–1914) and second, in 1917, married George A. Dixon Jr. (1891–1956)

Among her great-great-granddaughters are singer Mikaela Mullaney Straus, known by her stage name King Princess,[2] and Wendy Rush (née Weil), the widow of Stockton Rush who founded the deep-sea tourism company OceanGate and lost his life on a  dive in a submersible in 2023 to the wreck of the Titanic.[3]

## Death and legacy

[edit]

Isidor and Ida Straus statues being blessed by an angel, "Victims of the Ship Titanic", Yiddish penny song

The Titanic's Disaster: or, The Watery Grave, published in 1912

Ida spent the winter of 1911/1912 in Europe with her husband Isidor. They originally planned to return home on a different ship, but switched to the Titanic due to a coal strike in England that caused the coal from other ships to be diverted to the Titanic.

On the night of the sinking, Isidor and Ida were seen standing near Lifeboat No. 8 in the company of Ida's maid, Ellen Bird. Although the officer in charge was willing to allow Isidor to board the lifeboat with the women, Isidor Straus refused to do so while women and children still remained on the ship. He urged Ida to board, but she refused, saying, "We have lived together for many years. Where you go, I go." This incident was witnessed by numerous witnesses both in the lifeboat and on deck. The Strauses were last seen standing arm in arm on the deck.

The story of Ida's bravery and loyalty became much celebrated. Rabbis spoke to their congregations about her sacrifice; articles in Yiddish\- and German-language newspapers extolled her courage; a popular song featuring the story, "The Titanic's Disaster", became popular among Jewish Americans.

Isidor's body was recovered but Ida's was not. A cenotaph at the Straus Mausoleum at Woodlawn Cemetery in the Bronx is dedicated to Isidor and Ida together. Its inscription reads: "Many waters cannot quench love – neither can the floods drown it."[4] (Song of Solomon 8:7) The work was designed by James Gamble Rogers, with sculpture by Lee Lawrie.[5]

## In popular culture

[edit]

Ida Straus was portrayed by Helen Van Tuyl in the 1953 film Titanic. Helen Misener played her in the 1958 film A Night to Remember. She was portrayed by Nancy Nevinson in the 1979 TV movie S.O.S. Titanic. Janie Woods-Morris played her in the 1996 miniseries Titanic. She was portrayed by Elsa Raven in the 1997 film Titanic, which inaccurately depicts the Strauses dying together in their C deck stateroom. Alma Cuervo played her in the 1997 Broadway musical Titanic.

### Portrayals

[edit]

* Helen Van Tuyl (1953) Titanic
* Helen Misener (1958) A Night to Remember (British film)
* Nancy Nevinson (1979) S.O.S. Titanic; TV Movie
* Elsa Raven (1997) Titanic
* Alma Cuervo (1997) Titanic

## Memorials

[edit]

106th Street memorial, Straus Park, Manhattan

In addition to the cenotaph at Woodlawn Cemetery, there are three other memorials to Isidor and Ida Straus in their adopted home of New York City:

* The 34th Street main entrance to Macy's Department Store in Manhattan features two brass plaques — one commemorating the deaths of Ida and Isidor Straus, the other honoring employees who died in World War I.
* The Isidor and Ida Straus Memorial is located in Straus Park at the intersection of Broadway and West End Avenue at W. 106th Street (Duke Ellington Boulevard) in Manhattan.
* New York City public school P.S. 198 is the Isidor & Ida Straus School.

## References

[edit]

1. ^ "NOTED MEN ON THE LOST TITANIC; Col. Jacob Astor, with His Wife; Isidor Straus and Wife, and Benj. Guggenheim Aboard". The New York Times. April 16, 1912. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved March 26, 2022.
2. ^ Newstead, Al (October 19, 2018). "King Princess on reappropriating White Stripes and her "extra as hell" family history". triple j. Retrieved September 4, 2019.
3. ^ Patil, Anushka (June 21, 2023). "Submersible Pilot's Spouse Is Descended From a Famous Titanic Couple". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved June 22, 2023.
4. ^ "Many Waters Cannot Quench Love"
5. ^ Harm, Gregory Paul, Lee Lawrie's Prairie Deco: History in Stone at the Nebraska State Capitol, Concierge Marketing, Omaha, NE, 2018 p. 56

## External links

[edit]

* Straus Memorial on Titanic-Titanic.com
* [1]
* Straus article at JewishEncyclopedia.com
* Judaic Treasures of the Library of Congress – includes information on The Titanic's Disaster sheet music
* Straus Historical Society
* Titanic: Triumph and Tragedy, by John P. Eaton and Charles A. Haas, W.W. Newton & Company, 2nd edition 1995 ISBN 0-393-03697-9

* v
* t
* e

Titanic

* First class facilities
* Second and Third class facilities
* Grand Staircase
* Animals aboard

Sinking|

* Iceberg that sank the Titanic
* Changes in safety practices
* Lifeboats
* Lifeboat No. 1
* British inquiry
* United States inquiry
* Wreck of the Titanic
* Legends and myths
* Conspiracy theories

Deck officers|

* Edward J. Smith (Captain)
* Henry Tingle Wilde (Chief Officer)
* William McMaster Murdoch (First Officer)
* Charles H. Lightoller (Second Officer)
* Herbert Pitman (Third Officer)
* Joseph G. Boxhall (Fourth Officer)
* Harold G. Lowe (Fifth Officer)
* James Paul Moody (Sixth Officer)
* Joseph Bell (Machine Room Manager)

Crew members|

* Frederick Barrett
* Harold Bride
* William Denton Cox
* Sid Daniels
* Frank Oliver Evans
* Frederick Fleet
* Luigi Gatti
* Robert Hichens
* Violet Jessop
* Archie Jewell
* Charles Joughin
* Reginald Lee
* Evelyn Marsden
* William Mintram
* Jack Phillips
* Frank Winnold Prentice
* Arthur John Priest
* George Symons

Musicians|

* Wallace Hartley
* John Wesley Woodward

Passengers|

| Fatalities|

* Allison family
* Thomas Andrews
* John Jacob Astor IV
* David John Bowen
* Archibald Butt
* Thomas Byles
* Roderick Chisholm
* Walter Donald Douglas
* Annie Funk
* Jacques Futrelle
* Sidney Leslie Goodwin
* Benjamin Guggenheim
* John Harper
* Henry B. Harris
* Wallace Hartley
* Charles Melville Hays
* Ann Elizabeth Isham
* Edward Austin Kent
* Joseph Philippe Lemercier Laroche
* Francis Davis Millet
* Harry Markland Molson
* Clarence Moore
* Eino Viljami Panula
* Emily Ryerson
* W. T. Stead
* Ida Straus
* Isidor Straus
* John B. Thayer
* Frank M. Warren Sr.
* George D. Wick
* George Dunton Widener
* Harry Elkins Widener
* Duane Williams
* George Henry Wright

|

Survivors|

* Rhoda Abbott
* Trevor Allison
* Lillian Asplund
* Madeleine Astor
* Ruth Becker
* Lawrence Beesley
* Karl Behr
* Dickinson Bishop
* Mauritz Håkan Björnström-Steffansson
* Elsie Bowerman
* Francis Browne
* Margaret "Molly" Brown
* Helen Churchill Candee
* Charlotte Drake Cardeza
* Lucile Carter
* Gladys Cherry
* Millvina Dean
* Sir Cosmo Duff-Gordon
* Lucy, Lady Duff-Gordon
* Dorothy Gibson
* Archibald Gracie IV
* Frank John William Goldsmith
* Edith Haisman
* Henry S. Harper
* Eva Hart
* Margaret Bechstein Hays
* Masabumi Hosono
* J. Bruce Ismay
* Eleanor Ileen Johnson
* Louise Kink
* Louise Laroche
* Margaret Mannion
* Michel Marcel Navratil
* Alfred Nourney
* Arthur Godfrey Peuchen
* Jane Quick
* Winnifred Quick
* Edith Rosenbaum
* Noël Leslie, Countess of Rothes
* Emily Ryerson
* Agnes Sandström
* Beatrice Sandström
* Frederic Kimber Seward
* Eloise Hughes Smith
* Jack Thayer
* Marian Thayer
* Barbara West
* Ella Holmes White
* R. Norris Williams
* Marie Grice Young

Monuments
and memorials|

| Australia|

* Bandstand (Ballarat)

|

United Kingdom|

* Engine Room Heroes (Liverpool)
* Engineers (Southampton)
* Musicians (Southampton)
* Titanic (Belfast)
* Orchestra (Liverpool)

United States|

* Straus Park (New York City)
* Titanic (New York City)
* Titanic (Washington, D.C.)
* Butt–Millet Memorial Fountain (Washington, D.C.)

Popular culture
(cultural legacy)|

| Books|

* The Wreck of the Titan: Or, Futility (1898)
* A Night to Remember (book)
* Polar the Titanic Bear

|

Films|

* Saved from the Titanic (1912)
* In Nacht und Eis (1912)
* La hantise (1912)
* Atlantic (1929)
* Atlantik (1929)
* Titanic (1943)
* Titanic (1953)
* A Night to Remember (1958)
* The Unsinkable Molly Brown (1964)
* Raise the Titanic (1980)
* Secrets of the Titanic (1986)
* Titanica (1992)
* Titanic (1997)
* The Chambermaid on the Titanic (1997)
* The Legend of the Titanic (1999)
* Titanic: The Legend Goes On (2000)
* The Boy Who Saw the Iceberg (2000)
* Ghosts of the Abyss (2003)
* Tentacolino (2004)
* Titanic II (2010)
* The Six (2021)
* Titanic 666 (2022)
* Unsinkable (2024)

Television|

* "A Night to Remember" (1956)
* S.O.S. Titanic (1979)
* Titanic: The Complete Story (1994)
* Titanic (1996 miniseries)
* No Greater Love (1996)
* "A Flight to Remember" (Futurama) (1999)
* Titanic (2012 miniseries)
* Titanic: Blood and Steel (2012)
* Saving the Titanic (2012)
* Titanic: The Aftermath (2012)

Theater|

* The Berg (1929)
* The Unsinkable Molly Brown (1960 musical)
* Titanic (1974)
* Titanic (1997 musical)

Music|

* "The Titanic (It Was Sad When That Great Ship Went Down)" (folk song)
* The Sinking of the Titanic (music composition)
* Titanic (soundtrack album)
* Back to Titanic (soundtrack album)
* "My Heart Will Go On" (song)
* "Nearer, My God, to Thee" (song)
* Titanique (musical parody)
* "Dance Band on the Titanic" (song)
* "Titanic" (song)
* Titanic Requiem (music composition)
* "Tempest" (song)
* Titanic Rising (album)

Video games|

* Search for the Titanic (1989)
* Titanic: Adventure Out of Time (1996)
* Titanic: Honor and Glory (TBA)

Museums
and exhibitions|

* SeaCity Museum (Southampton)
* Titanic Museum (Branson, Missouri)
* Titanic Museum (Pigeon Forge, Tennessee)
* Maritime Museum of the Atlantic (Halifax)
* Titanic Belfast

Places|

* Titanic (Canada)
* Titanic Canyon
* Titanic Quarter, Belfast
* Cape Race, Newfoundland
* Fairview Lawn Cemetery
* Mount Olivet Cemetery (Halifax, Nova Scotia)
* Arrol Gantry
* Titanic, Oklahoma

Related|

| Ships|

* RMS Baltic
* RMS Olympic
* HMHS Britannic
* SS Mount Temple
* RMS Carpathia
* SS Californian
* CS Mackay-Bennett
* SS Birma
* SS Frankfurt
* Replica Titanic
* Titanic II
* Romandisea Titanic

|

Law|

* RMS Titanic Maritime Memorial Act
* Agreement Concerning the Shipwrecked Vessel RMS Titanic

Others|

* White Star Line
* David Blair
* Harold Cottam
* Herbert Haddock
* Stanley Lord
* Arthur Rostron
* Titanic Historical Society
* Titanic International Society
* Encyclopedia Titanica
* Halomonas titanicae
* Women and children first
* Robert Ballard
* La Circassienne au Bain
* Titan submersible
* implosion

* Category

Authority control databases

International|

* VIAF
* WorldCat

National|

* Germany

*[m.]: married
*[v]: View this template
*[t]: Discuss this template
*[e]: Edit this template