The Strauss family probably came from Bingen and migrated to Frankfurt in 1530. In its early Frankfurt days the family lived in the Strauss from which it took its family name. In the 17th and 18th centuries the family lived mainly in the Schwarze Tür . Individual members of the family gained prominence in the Judengasse and were elected to the community leadership. The Strauss family was primarily active in the cloth trade and the (second-hand) clothes trade.