Titanic Victim Not Only Had No Children, but No Fortune
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It was disclosed recently that the Smart children, heirs of a wealthy lawyer who perished on the Titanic, were a myth, and yesterday it was developed that the supposedly wealthy lawyer, John Montgomery Smart, who also was rated as a capitalist, had not only had no children, but no fortune. His estate was valued at $9,890 in an application made by Gilbert F. Gregory for letters of temporary administration. Surrogate Fowler granted them.
Shortly after the Titanic disaster a rumor was circulated in this country and Europe that his two children, a son, George, aged 20, and a daughter, Annie, aged 18 years, had been lost sight of. They were sought far and wide to share a great estate.
The first exposure of the myth was in the filing of Smart's will, exclusively reported in THE TIMES. The will made no mention of children, and close friends of Mr. Smart insisted that he was a bachelor.
Mr. Smart was President of the American Cold Storage and Shipping Company and of a railway lubricant company. His stock in the former was worth only $6,090, according to the petition. His stock in the lubricating company, the petition stated, was worthless. He had $3,000 in banks at the time of his death and his holdings in the International Cold Storage and Ice Company were valued at $600.
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