- Karl Behr
Karl Howell Behr (
May 30 ,1885 -October 15 ,1949 ) was an Americantennis player andbanker . He was also a survivor of the sinking of the RMS "Titanic".Personal life
Karl Howell Behr was born the son of Herman and Grace (née Howell) Behr of New York City. He was the brother of
Max H. Behr , the well-known golfer. Behr was educated atLawrenceville School and attendedYale University and was admitted to thebar association in 1910.Behr was also a well known lawn tennis star, playing on the United States Davis Cup team in 1907. Behr, with Beals C. Wright, was also runner up in the men's doubles at the
1907 Wimbledon Championships , losing toNorman Brookes andTony Wilding in three sets, 4:6, 4:6 and 2:6. [ [http://www.daviscup.com/teams/player.asp?Player=10003106 Davis Cup - Players] ]In 1912, Behr booked first class passage on board the RMS "Titanic". His main reason for traveling was due to his pursuit of fellow first class passenger Helen Newsom, who was a friend of Behr's sister. Newsom's mother, in an attempt to discourage the relationship, tried to separate the pair by taking her daughter on a
Grand Tour of Europe, but Behr followed them under the guise of a business trip. Behr occupied cabin C-148 during the voyage.Sometime after the ship hit the iceberg, Behr met up with Helen, her mother and stepfather, Richard and Sallie Beckwith; and another couple, Edwin and Gertrude Kimball, on the boat deck. Under the watch of
Third Officer Herbert Pitman , the group gathered around Boat 5. Gertrude Kimball, askedJ. Bruce Ismay if all of their group could enter the boat. Ismay replied, "Of course, madam, every one of you." [ [http://www.encyclopedia-titanica.org/biography/23/ Mr Karl Howell Behr] ] As a result, Karl Behr and his friends were rescued in Boat 5, the second boat to leave the ship. After the rescue, several newspapers reported that Behr had proposed to Miss Newsom in the lifeboat. [ [http://www.encyclopedia-titanica.org/biography/23/ Miss Helen Monypeny Newsom] ]While aboard the rescue ship, RMS "Carpathia", Behr and several other passengers, including
Molly Brown , organized and formed a committee to honour the bravery of the "Carpathia"'s captain,Arthur Rostron , and the ship's crew. They later presented an inscribed silver cup to Rostron, and medals to each of the ship's 320 crew.Later life
Despite her mother's objections, Behr married Helen Newsom in March 1913 at the Church of the Transfiguration in
New York City . The couple had four children together: Karl H. Behr Jr. (1914–1998), Peter Behr (1915–1997), James Behr (1920–1976), and Sally Behr (1928–1995) After her husband's death, Helen remarried one of his best friends and former tennis partners, Dean Mathey.Behr continued his tennis career after the sinking, and went on to win the
Davis Cup with fellow survivorR. Norris Williams . In 1915, Behr defeatedMaurice McLoughlin , considered the world's best tennis player, in straight sets, 8:6, 7:5 and 7:5. [cite news
author=
title=M'LOUGHLIN LOSES TO KARL H. BEHR; New York Tennis Player Startles Californian with Defeat in Three Straight Sets. MATCH BITTERLY FOUGHT All Three Sets Go to Deuce ;- Behr Breaks Through "Mac's" Serve at Critical Times.
date=
work=New York Times
url=http://query.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=9B04EEDC1138E633A25757C1A96E9C946496D6CF
accessdate=2008-08-14]Behr also gave up his career in law, instead turning to banking. He was vice-president of
Dillon, Read & Co. and sat on the board of the Fisk Rubber Company, theGoodyear Tire and Rubber Company , and the National Cash Register Company. At the time of his death, he was a director of the Interchemical Corporation, the Behr-Manning Corporation ofTroy, New York , and the Witherbee Sherman Corporation. His clubs included the Downtown, University and Yale, and the St. Nicholas Society.Karl Behr died of
natural causes at his home onOctober 15 ,1949 . He was buried at the Evergreen Cemetery inMorristown, New Jersey . He was posthumously honored by theInternational Tennis Hall of Fame in 1969.References
Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.