Brooke Astor Brooke Astor Roberta Brooke Astor (née Russell; March 30, 1902 – August 13, 2007) was an American philanthropist, socialite, and writer who was the chairwoman of the Vincent Astor Foundation, which had been established by her third husband, Vincent Astor, son of John Jacob Astor IV and great-great grandson of America's first multi-millionaire, John Jacob Astor. Brooke Astor was the author of two novels and two volumes of personal memoirs. Brooke was born in Portsmouth, New Hampshire, the only child of John Henry Russell, Jr. (1872–1947), the 16th Commandant of the Marine Corps, and his wife, Mabel Cecile Hornby Howard
John Jacob Astor IV on him was a gold pocket watch which his son Vincent claimed and wore the rest of his life. Astor was buried in Trinity Church Cemetery in Manhattan, New York City. Four months after "Titanic" sank, Madeleine Astor gave birth to his second son, John Jacob "Jakey" Astor VI. Astor left $69 million of his $85 million estate (equivalent to approximately $1.75 billion in 2017 dollars) to Vincent. This value included his estate in Rhinebeck and his yacht, the "Noma". To Madeleine Force Astor, he left $100,000 as an outright bequest as well as a $5 million trust fund from