Is The Astor Family Still Wealthy? The Astor family is still wealthy with a fortune of around $14.5 million passed down by billionaire John Jacob Astor.
A non-family member Charlene Marshall inherited the amount in 2015. The HBO historical drama The Gilded Age sheds light on the eccentric lifestyle of the New York elites during the late 1800s. The Astor family is one of the influential families featured in the show that premiered on January 24, 2022.
The Astors were a prominent family in New York that flourished during the late 1800s. John Jacob Astor was the first known member of the Astor family; he was born in Germany in 1763.
John moved to New York in search of a better life in the 1780s. He started taking an interest in the fur trade during one of his overseas voyages. Astor later set up a shop in New York primarily operated to sell fur products.
By the start of the 1800s, John was earning over $250 thousand per year (worth nearly $6 million in 2023).
Following the success of their fur business, the Astors expanded their business in real estate. They bought several properties and acres of land.
John’s fortune was inherited by his son William Backhouse Astor. William succeeded in doubling the family wealth; the Astors were worth nearly $50 million at the time of William’s passing in 1875.
Unfortunately, the hard-earned family fortune plummeted as it was passed down from generation to generation. Instead of being used as a form of investment to further increase their wealth, the money was used to fund personal glory and donated to social causes. As of 2023, the remaining fortunes have been inherited by a non-Astor family member.
The Gilded Age’s popularity has brought the Astor family back to public attention. The show cast includes Ben Ahlers, Debra Monk, Melanie Bloom, Taylor Richardson, and more.
The Astor Family Wealth in 2023
The Astor family is still wealthy and has a net worth of millions as of 2023. The family fortune was last valued at $14.5 million in 2015.
However, the wealth is not held by a member of the Astor family. Charlene Marshall inherited the fortune after her husband Anthony Marshall passed away at the age of 90 in 2014. Charlene is the daughter-in-law of deceased American socialite Brooke Astor.
Brooke was the wife of American businessman and Astor family member Vincent Astor. As Vincent didn’t have any biological offspring, his wealth was inherited by his wife Brooke.
Additionally, the Astor family still has a 420-acre property in Rokeby, Hudson Valley, New York. The mansion was constructed in 1815 and has remained with the Astors for over two decades.
As of today, the property is occupied by the Aldrich family, Astor’s 10th-generation heirs. But, despite living in the massive mansion, the Aldrich family is suffering from a serious financial crisis. The property has also not been renovated for a long time due to monetary problems.
What Happened To Their Fortune And Net Worth In 2023?
The Astor family net worth was mostly given up as donations by Brooke Astor. Following her husband Vincent Astor’s death in 1959, Brooke started giving huge amounts of money to charity.
Brooke’s contribution was notable in the establishment of The New York Public Library and the Metropolitan Museum of Art. In fact, she believed that money was useless unless it was used for the well-being of society.
In her final years, Brooks’ finances were managed by her son Anthony Marshall. However, unlike his mother, Anthony spent most of the money on personal use.
He took an annual salary of $1 million and transferred many of his mother’s properties to his name. It’s believed that Brooke still had $192 million worth of properties at the time of her death in 2007. From the remaining fortune, $30 million was used to establish the Brooke Astor Fund for New York City Education, whereas around $1 million was donated to Central Park and Prospect Park.
Similarly, $14.5 million was inherited by Anthony, which was inherited by his wife Charlene Marshall following his death in 2014.
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Astor Family Members In The Gilded Age
Astor family members featured in The Gilded Age are Caroline, Helen, and Carrie Astor. The HBO show follows the Astor family and other New York elites in the 1880s.
Caroline Schermerhorn Astor, also known as Mrs. Astor, is a recurring character of The Gilded Age. She was the wife of William Backhouse Astor Jr, an American businessman, yachtsman, and racehorse owner. Caroline’s husband William was the son of William Backhouse Astor Sr and the grandson of John Jacob Astor.
Caroline and William Jr became parents to five children named Jack, Carrie, Emily, Charlotte, and Helen. Among their five kids, Helen and Caroline are also part of the HBO show.
In The Gilded Age, Caroline is estranged from her husband but remains a valued member of the high society due to her lineage and her husband’s fortune. She leads the Four Hundred, a high-class NY society. Meanwhile, her daughters Carrie and Helen also serve as supporting characters in the HBO series.
The character of Caroline Schermerhorn Astor is played by American actress Donna Murphy. She is well known for her performance in movies like Spider-Man 2, The Bourne Legacy, Tangled, Star Trek: Insurrection, and more.
Donna appeared in five episodes of The Gilded Age season. She is set to return as a series regular in season 2.
Similarly, Carrie Astor’s role was portrayed by Canadian actress Amy Forsyth. Amy has been in movies and TV shows like Hell Fest, Channel Zero, CODA, A Christmas Horror Story, and Defiance.
Amy’s character Carrie appeared in six episodes of The Gilded Age’s first season. It remains unclear if she will reprise her role in season two.
Moreover, actress Carolyn Holding appears as Helen Astor in an episode of the HBO series season one. The actress is best known for her works in FBI, High Maintenance, The Blacklist, Bull, and Center Holds.
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John Jacob Astor Descendants
John Jacob Astor descendants settled in the US and the UK from Germany. As of 2023, William Astor is the only known prominent member of the Astor family.
John Jacob was born in Walldorf in 1763 to Johann Jacob Astor and Maria Magdalena vom Berg. He moved to London, England, at the age of 16 and started working at his uncle’s flute and piano manufacturing company called Astor and Broadwood.
John eventually moved to the US after the American Revolutionary War ended in 1783. He initially settled in Baltimore where he fell in love with Sarah Cox Todd, the daughter of his landlady.
The two married in 1785 and went on to have eight kids: Magdalen Astor, Sarah Todd Astor, John Jacob Astor Jr, William Backhouse Astor Sr, Dorothea Astor, Henry Astor II, Eliza Astor, and one unnamed son. Only five of their children survived till adulthood.
John Jacob Astor Grandchildren
John had 16 grandchildren from his three children Magdalen Astor, William Astor Sr, and Dorothea Astor. The rest of his five kids passed away before becoming a parent.
John’s eldest child Magdalen was married twice; her first husband was Adrian Benjamin Bentzon, whereas her second husband was John Bristed. Magdalen had two children from her first marriage and one son from her second marriage, named John Jacob Bentzon, Sarah Bentzon, and Astor Bristed, respectively.
Likewise, John Jacob has seven grandchildren from his fourth child William Backhouse Astor Sr. William was married to Margaret Armstrong from 1818 to 1872.
From their marriage, William and Margaret had seven children: three sons named John Jacob Astor III, William Backhouse Astor Jr, and Henry Astor III, and four daughters named Emily Astor, Mary Alida Astor, Laura Eugenia Astor, and Sarah Todd Astor.
John Jacob Astor also had six grandkids from his fifth child and third daughter Dorothea Astor. Dorothea had six children with her husband Walter Langdon, named Cecilian Langdon, Louisa Langdon, Mary Alicia Langdon, Sarah Astor Langdon, Eliza Langdon, and Walter Langdon Jr.
John Jacob Astor Family Today
John Jacob Astor surviving family members are Mary Jacqueline Astor and William Backhouse Astor. Mary and William are the children of John Jacob Astor VI.
Williams was born as the son of John Jacob Astor VI and Ellen Tuck French in 1935. On the other hand, Mary was born in 1949. She has been in a relationship with John Nicholas Drexel since 1984. The couple has a son named Nicholas Astor Drexel.
However, as of 2023, the whereabouts of both William and Mary are not disclosed.
Besides his direct lineage, John Jacob Astor also has a descendant named Alexandra Aldrich. Alexandra is believed to have descended from the female line of the Astor family. She currently occupies the Rokeby estate in Barrytown, New York.
In her famous 2013 memoir, Alexandra mentioned that, although she is a descendant of John Jacob Astor, she is not a descendant of his money. Although Alexandra has inherited 420 acres of land and even a manor, she doesn’t have enough cash to even renovate the property.
Similarly, English businessman and politician William Waldorf Astor III, also known as 4th Viscount Astor, is also a descendant of the Astor family. However, he is not a direct descendant of John Jacob Astor.