Mr Sydney Samuel Jacobsohn was born in Cape Town, South Africa on 23 October 1869.

He was the son of a Jewish-German father, Moritz Jacobsohn (b. 1838), a general merchant, and an Anglo-Australian mother, Juliet Solomon (b. 1839). His parents had married around 1865 and would go on to have a total of eight children, seven surviving infancy. Sydney's known siblings were: Rosa Leah (b. 1865), Oscar (b. 1866), Joseph Henry (b. 1868), Florence Annie (b. 1874), Lillian Esther Margarethe (b. 1879) and Lewis Bertie (b. 1880).

Sydney had trained as a lawyer and had been part of a Cape Town legal practice called Walker and Jacobsohn based at 16 Wale Street with branches throughout South Africa.

Sydney, his parents and several siblings later moved to England, settling in London. He was married in London on 28 August 1910 to Amy Frances Cohen Christy and the two honeymooned in Torquay. There Sydney drew up his will and had it witnessed by a Mr and Mrs Wright. The couple settled in London at 7 Pembridge Square and they appeared on the 1911 census as visitors at the Hotel Inverness, Inverness Terrace, 11 Gumleigh Road, Ealing. Sydney was described as a colonial lawyer. The couple went on to have a child, a daughter, who died at birth.

Sydney and his wife boarded the Titanic at Southampton on 10 April 1912 as second class passengers (ticket number 243847 which cost £27) and they were journeying to Montréal, Québec. Travelling with them was Amy's sister Rachel Juli and their widowed mother Alice Frances Christy.

Whilst the three ladies survived, Jacobsohn died in the sinking and his body, if recovered, was never identified.  His wife sent the following telegram:

55 No 13/13, 18 Apr., pretix S, words 16, charges 1.14.0 1/2; sent to MSC by H.C. 6.5 a.m.
Jacobsohn 34 Anson Road Cricklewood London
Dont be alarmed Sydney may be on another boat
Jacobsohn

On her return to London Amy Jacobsohn commenced legal proceedings (July 1912) to ensure Sydney's estate passed to her. Her lawyers managed to trace Mr and Mrs Wright who gave evidence that they had read the will (rather unusual) and that everything (£4017, 1s, 7d) had been left to Amy. Sydney's brother who lived in Anson Road, Cricklewood waived all claims which he might have had to the estate. Accordingly it passed to Amy with the judge commenting that if the will was recovered in the future it must be produced in court. The estate was settled on 7 October 1912.