John Jacob Astor IV

Also known as John Jacob "Jack" Astor IV, John J. Astor IV, John Jacob Astor

American businessman, real estate builder, investor, inventor, writer, lieutenant colonel (1864–1912)

OverviewAI-generated

John Jacob Astor IV was an American entrepreneur, inventor, writer, and science fiction writer. He was a member of the Republican Party and served as a colonel during the Spanish–American War. His notable work includes the book *Journey in Other Worlds*.

Born in Rhinebeck, New York, in 1864, he was the son of William Backhouse Astor, Jr., and Caroline Webster Schermerhorn Astor. He attended Harvard University and St. Paul's School. Astor was married to Ava Lowle Willing and Madeleine Astor, with whom he had children Vincent Astor, Ava Alice Muriel Astor, and John Jacob Astor VI.

He died in 1912 from drowning in the North Atlantic Ocean. His body was buried at Trinity Church Cemetery.

Synthesized by Vinony from 29 facts across 3 sources: Wikidata, Open Library, TMDb. Generated from structured data (not the Wikipedia text) and checked against those facts — may still contain errors.

Person · Open Library

Works: 1

Top works

Journey in Other Worlds

via Open Library + Wikidata

Film & TV

Rhinebeck, New York, U.S

John Jacob Astor IV (July 13, 1864 – April 15, 1912) was an American business magnate, real estate developer, investor, writer, and lieutenant colonel in the Spanish–American War. Astor was also a member of the Astor family and Livingston family. He was among the most prominent American passengers aboard RMS Titanic and perished along with 1,510 others when the ship sank on her maiden voyage.…

Known for

The Astors: High Society — Self (archive footage)1996
Search for the Titanic — Self (archive footage)1981

via TMDB

Key facts

Born: ( 1864-07-13 ) July 13, 1864, Rhinebeck, New York , U.S.
Died: April 15, 1912 (1912-04-15) (aged 47), North Atlantic Ocean
Cause of death: Sinking of the Titanic
Burial place: Trinity Church Cemetery , New York City, U.S.
Education: St Paul's School Harvard University
Occupation: Business magnate
Spouses: Ava Lowle Willing ( married</span>"}]]}'>m. February 17, 1891</span>"}]]}'>1891 ; divorced</span>"}]]}'>div. 1910 ) Madeleine Talmage Force ( married</span>"}]]}'>m. 1911 )
Children: William Vincent Astor Ava Alice Muriel Astor John Jacob Astor VI
Parent s: William Backhouse Astor Jr. , Caroline Webster "Lina" Schermerhorn
Relatives: Astor family Livingston family
Allegiance: United States
Branch: New York State National Guard , United States Army
Service years: 1894–1896 ( Guard ) 1898 ( U.S. Volunteers )
Rank: Colonel , Brevet Colonel
Unit: Staff of Governor Levi P. Morton , Fifth Army Corps
Conflicts: Spanish–American War Siege of Santiago
Awards: Spanish Campaign Medal

via Wikipedia infobox

Wikidata facts

Instance of: human
Given name: John
Family name: Astor
Gender: male
Citizenship: United States
Place of birth: Rhinebeck
Place of death: North Atlantic Ocean
Spouse: Madeleine Astor
Child: John Jacob Astor VI
Father: William Backhouse Astor, Jr.
Mother: Caroline Webster Schermerhorn Astor
Occupation: racing automobile driver
Educated at: St. Paul's School
Political party: Republican Party (United States)
Languages spoken: English language
Family: Astor family
Sport: auto racing
Conflict: Spanish–American War
Military rank: colonel
Image: John Jacob Astor IVb.jpg

Show 10 more facts

Commons category: John Jacob Astor IV
date of birth: 1864-01-01
date of death: 1912-01-01
Commons Creator page: John Jacob Astor IV
Commons gallery: John Jacob Astor IV
place of burial: Trinity Church Cemetery
name in native language: John Jacob Astor IV
manner of death: accidental death
cause of death: drowning
described by source: New International Encyclopedia

Sources (3)

via Wikidata · CC0

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Encyclopedic overview

John Jacob Astor IV (July 13, 1864 – April 15, 1912) was an American business magnate, real estate developer, and investor who was a member of the Astor family and also the Livingston family. A writer, as well as a lieutenant colonel in the Spanish–American War, he was among the most prominent American passengers aboard RMS Titanic and perished along with 1,495 others when the ship sank on her maiden voyage. Astor was the richest passenger aboard the RMS Titanic and was thought to be among the richest people in the world at that time, with a net worth of roughly $87 million (equivalent to $2.9 billion in 2025) when he died.

Early life, education, and family

Excerpted from Wikipedia’s “John Jacob Astor IV” article, available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence.