Durham, N. N. "Spokane and the Inland Empire: History of the City of Spokane and Spokane County Washington." Vol. 2. S. J. Clarke Publishing Co., 1912. SYDNEY S. BEGGS Sydney S. Beggs, engaged in the express and transfer business in Colville, has been a resident of Stevens county for twenty-one years, during a large portion of which time he has been more or less prominently identified with political activities. He was born in Hastings county, province of Ontario, Canada, May 8, 1858, a son of Andrew L. and Mary Ann (Gregory) Beggs. His father, who was a minister of the Methodist Episcopal church, was actively engaged in the preaching of the gospel until his death in 1897. The mother passed away in 1871. Although he is a native of Canada, Sydney S. Beggs' ancestors on his mother's side came from the United States, his grandfather having been born in New York in the year 1800; on his father's side he is of Scotch descent. The grandfather was a lumber merchant in New York but received the most of his stock from Canada, the timber being cut in the woods there and shipped to Montreal arid Quebec to be sawed. The early boyhood of Sydney S. Beggs was spent in his native country where he began his education, this being completed in the schools of Nebraska, which he attended until he was thirteen years of age. The energies of the youth were then turned to farming, in which occupation he was associated with his father until he was eighteen and from that time until he was thirty he engaged in farming for himself in Nebraska. He moved to Washington territory in 1888 and first located in the vicinity of Brents, now called Creston, and there worked in a sawmill for three years; then went to Rathdrum, Idaho, for a year, following the same occupation. At the end of that period he came to Stevens county and filed on a homestead of one hundred and sixty acres. He spent the succeeding six years there, during which time he worked in the sawmills and harvest fields, devoting such time as he could spare in clearing and improving his land. Disposing of his holding in 1902 he bought one hundred and sixty acres of land near Colville. that he cultivated until 1909. He met with good success in his agricultural pursuits during that time and added to his holdings another quarter section. In 1909 he withdrew from farming and coming to Colville has ever since resided here and has been engaged in the express and transfer business since July, 1910. On the 8th of May, 1880, Mr. Beggs was united in marriage to Miss Edna T. Beedy, the event occurring at Wilbur, Nebraska. Mrs. Beggs is a daughter of Frederick E. Beedy and the niece of one of Minneapolis' first mill owners. She had four brothers, all of whom were in the Civil war and four sisters. Five children have been born unto Mr. and Mrs. Beggs: Grace S., who married W. P. Townsend; Garland C, who chose for his wife Elva Twitchell ; Mozelle and Stewart, who are deceased; and Leo F ; all of the living children residing in Stevens county. In his political views, Mr. Beggs is a democrat and has always taken an active interest in county governmental affairs. He first served as county treasurer, being elected in 1896 and was reelected in 1898, and in 1906 he was elected county commissioner, filling this office for four years. While serving in the latter capacity he was a delegate to the commissioner convention in Tacoma in 1908; Olympia in 1909; and Yakima in 1910. In the latter year, in February, he was also a delegate to the State Good Roads Convention at Aberdeen, Washington, and in November of the same year was a delegate to the annual convention of the Good Roads Convention in Walla Walla. In addition to his various other public services, Mr. Beggs served two terms as field deputy county assessor, and has been state and congressional committee man for Stevens county at the democratic conventions since 1908. He is a member of the county central committee at the present and has occupied that position a number of times, acting as chairman on three or four occasions. He is an active member of the Independent Order of Foresters and the Odd Fellows fraternity, having filled all of the chairs in the latter organization. At the present time he is chairman of the building committee of the new Odd Fellows temple, now under construction in this city. He has always been one of the popular members of his lodge and in 1902 was representative to the Grand Lodge at Bellingham, Washington. Mr. Beggs has always taken an earnest interest in all organizations for the promotion of the county's development and is now serving as one of the board of directors of the Stevens County Producers' Association. He has always taken an active part in the Colville Commercial Club and while not a member is affiliated with them and assists in boosting all public projects. He is one of the public-spirited, enterprising citizens of Colville whose personal interests are at all times identical with those of the community at large, in the promotion of which he seems tireless. ******************* Submitted to the Washington Biographies Project in June 2017 by Diane Wright. Submitter has no additional information about the person(s) or family mentioned above.