My second book about the RMS Titanic and her passengers and crew along with some movie talk. Same rules apply, no drama, trolls, and disrespecting the people on this ship
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November 3rd, 1886 - January 16th, 1963
She is a Scorpio.
Julia Florence Cavendish was born as Julia Florence Siegel in Chicago, Illinois to Henry Siegel (March 17th, 1852), a prominent businessman of German birth, and Julia Rosenbaum (born 1862) who had married in Chicago on December 8th, 1885. Her mother died when Julia was only a month old, passing away in the morning of December 3rd, 1886 at the age of 24. Her father, the son of Jewish farmers, came from modest beginnings and had arrived in the USA from his native Baden, Germany at the age of 14, later becoming a U.S citizen. Diminutive in height-his 1884 passport describe him as standing at 4'11-but passionately ambitious, he began his career as a humble store merchandiser in Washington and then worked as travelling salesman.
Later working in the manufacturer of womenswear with his brothers, after 10 years withdrew his holdings, totally $75,000 and a partner organized the firm Siegel & Cooper in Illinois where he opened his first department store in Chicago, Siegel & Cooper Store, with aspirations of becoming "The Department Store King" of the USA. Many stores followed 3 department stores in New York and the Henry Siegel Co in Boston, among others, earning him the moniker "The Merchant Prince". With his stores thriving, Siegel branched out in finance, offering his thousands of customers the opportunity to take care of their money matters in the store they shopped in; his self-named bank proved equally lucrative. Siegel's fortunes soared and one newspaper declared that he was a "Napoleon of Finance" for several years. He soon had homes at Park Lane in London, a country home at Mamaroneck, New York and a handsome residence at East 82nd Street, New York.
In April of 1898 Henry remarried Marie Wilde, née Vaughan (born 1863), a young Kentucky-born widow with 2 daughters, Georgina and Dorothy, who were of similar age to Julia. Marie had come to New York following the death of her husband where she worked by writing fashion articles for newspapers and magazines before she ended up working in one of Siegel's New York department stores where they met. Not much is known about Julia's early years but what is known that she was privately educated in Europe. She not only moved in social circles in the USA but also in Britain, alongside Dorothy and Georgina. Georgina was a well-regarded beauty and in 1906 married an Italian nobleman, becoming Countess Carlo Dentice di Frasso.
Julia was also an attractive and popular young woman and on a trip to Britain in the summer of 1906 with her stepmother and Dorothy, she proved a great social favorite within the London circles. Whilst there she caught the attention of the wealthy and aristocrat Tyrell William Cavendish of Crakemarsh Hall, Staffordshire and a cousin of the Duke of Devonshire. Tyrell was so taken with Julia that he later crossed the ocean to persuade her father to let him have Julia's hand in marriage. Her father was protective of his young daughter who was barely 20 years old and who hadn't yet formally introduced to society and at first he was averse to her marrying anyone, let alone someone who wasn't from the USA. Possibly with the persuasion of his wife Marie, who probably thought it quite the coup to have 2 titles daughters, Henry finally relented and a marriage date was set upon quite promptly for December of 1906.
