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"Spokane and The Spokane Country - Pictorial and Biographical - Deluxe Supplement." Vol. II. The S.J. Clarke Publishing Company, 1912. (No author listed.) pgs. 198-200.
GEORGE C. BECK, owner of the San Marco apartments, among the most beautiful and modern of Spokane's apartment buildings, was born at Little York, Pennsylvania, May 20, 1843, and was one of a family of two sons and five daughters, whose parents, George and Margaret (Cook) Beck, were natives of Worms, Germany. The father was a member of a prominent German family and died at the age of fifty-seven years. Mrs. Beck's father was a leading wine merchant and vineyardist of Germany. She survived her husband for some time,
passing away in 1890. Their children were: Conrad, now a resident of
Cleveland, Ohio; Mrs. Mary Worley, of Pasadena, California; Mrs. Elizabeth
Combs, also living in Cleveland; Mrs. Louisa Straus, who is connected with the Evangelical Association paper of Cleveland; Mrs. Margaret Spring, whose
husband is bishop of the Methodist church of Cleveland and editor of the
Evangelical Association paper of that city; and Mrs. Catherine Gardner, the
wife of a retired Chicago millionaire.
The other member of the family is George C. Beck, whose name introduces this review. The removal of the family from Little York, Pennsylvania, to Cleveland, Ohio, enabled him to pursue his education in the public schools of that city, which he attended until he enlisted for the Civil war as a member of the Chicago Board of Trade Battery. He served with the Army of the Cumberland and was mustered out at the close of hostilities. He afterward engaged in the pork packing business, which he followed in Cleveland and in Indianapolis until he retired from that pursuit in 1902.
Removing westward to Spokane, Mr. Beck here erected the beautiful San Marco apartments, a three-story structure and basement, containing forty apartments. It is an ideal location at the junction of Sprague and Riverside avenues, with a frontage of four hundred feet on two streets. This is one of
the finest of the high-class apart-ments of Spokane and scarcely has an equal in the city. It is built of white pressed brick, in Renaissance style of
architecture, with a foun-dation of sandstone brought from the vicinity of
Portland. It is heated with a hot water plant and oil burners will probably be
used for heating the water. Mr. Beck intends to keep the San Marco thoroughly
modern in its equipments and appointments and thoroughly satisfactory in its service. Aside from this be is interested in the Ware Brothers Company and owns land in Canada to the extent of six thousand acres.
Mr. Beck was married in 1865, in Cleveland, Ohio, to Miss Amelia Berger, a daughter of Frederick Berger, of Tallmadge, Ohio, who was a burgomaster in Germany and a fine musician, connected with one of the prominent families of his native land. In 1909 Mr. Beck was called upon to mourn the loss of his wife, who died on the 14th of July of that year. They were the parents of three daughters: Bessie, now the wife of George Roberts, an electrician of Omaha, Nebraska; Mayme, the wife of Archibald F. Rigg, an architect of Spokane; and Edith, the wife of Dr. Charles F. Rigg, a physician of this city.
Mr. Beck is a member of the Spokane Club and the Spokane Athletic Club and he also belongs to the Chamber of Commerce. While he has resided here for only a comparatively brief period, he has become thoroughly identified with the northwest and its interests and is an enthusiastic supporter of Spokane, doing everything in his power to further its welfare and promote its upbuilding. His life has always been a busy and useful one and he has ever worked toward high ideals and utilized practical methods in the attainment of substantial results.
Submitted by: Nancy Pratt Melton
* * * * Notice: These biographies were transcribed for the Washington Biographies Project. Unless otherwise stated, no further information is available on the individuals featured in the biographies.