| Liba Bella Jacobs Third Class Passenger Lost |
|
| [No Picture Provided] | |
| Born | Liba Bella Chirug c. 1848 Russian Empire (present-day Lithuania) |
| Died | 7 May 1915 (age 67) At sea |
| Age on Lusitania | 67 |
| Body | 33 |
| Occupation | Midwife |
| Citizenship | British |
| Residence | London, England |
| Other names | – Bella Sshnidt (first marriage) Bella Comras (second marriage) |
| Spouse(s) | Known: – Orchik Sshnidt (? – ?) – Shupsl Comras (? – ?) – Mark Schmidt (? – ?) – Abraham Jacobs (1904 – 1915, her death) |
Liba Jacobs, 67, was returning to London aboard Lusitania after visiting her son Joseph Klass and her recently born granddaughter. Liba was lost in the disaster.
Liba was born Liba Bella Chirug to a Jewish family. Her father was doctor from a line of doctors who reputedly could be traced back to a Surgeon in the Napoleonic Army.
Liba was first wed to Orchik Sshnidt (perhaps Snitzler) in Abel, Lithuania, then a part of the Russian Empire. She subsequently married Shupsl Comras, Mark Schmidt (Smith), and Abraham Jacobs. The number of times Liba was married is not well-known. Her son Joseph David Klass (aka Joseph Harris) was not born from any of these marriages. She also had a son her marriage with Mark Schmidt, also named Mark Smith, who lived at 41 Bridge Road Southampton.
Abraham Jacobs, a widower himself, took Liba as his third wife in the Whitechapel Registry Office 5 months after the death of his previous wife, Deborah Glassman, contary to the normal custom and his own usual strict observance to code of Shulchan Orach. Liba and Abraham lived in London at 134 Brick Lane. Liba was one of the first midwives to practice legally under the Midwives Registration Act of 1904.
In late 1914, Liba visited Chicago because her son Joseph Klass recently had a new daughter. The Chicago Tribune gave her address at the time as 1303 South Central Park Avenue. She would return home aboard Lusitania 6 months later at the spur of the moment, without notifying her family in Britain.
From The Chicago Tribune, 9 May 1915, page 3: “J D Klass of 1263 Central Park Chicago was seeking, at the Cunard Line office, news of his 67 year old mother Liba Jacobs who lived in London.”
The identified remains of Liba Jacobs were buried in Queenstown. Because she had not notified her family of her return, Liba was not buried in the Jewish cemetery at Cork. Liba’s property was divided, by mutual arrangement, between her husband Abraham in London and her son Mark.
Links of interest
Contributors:
Aubrey Jacobs (relative of Liba Jacobs)
Linda Rose Mar
Michael Poirier
References:
“List of Chicago Passengers on board the Lusitania.” Chicago Tribune. Saturday, 8 May 1915, page 2.
Jacobs, Aubrey. “A Family Legend Investigated.” London Jewish Genealogy Pages. Online. <http://www.jacobus.org.uk/lusitania%20story%5B1%5D.doc>.
Leona Gertrude Klass was born after Liba had left to return ,