Philip Tudor Becher
(1856-1940)
Philip Tudor Becher, the 5th child of Septimus Harding Becher and Augusta Emily, nee Prinsep, was born 16th December 1856 at Meerut, India. He was named after Mr Tudor Tucker, a friend of his mother's with whom she kept in close correspondence. His Godfather was William Becher and his Godmother Mary Becher, the wife of James Young Becher.
His mother recalled in her Reminiscences that as a baby he was very poorly during his first year and here is a dramatic description in the book about the circumstances of their escape from the troubles at the time of the Indian Mutiny.
In 1858 Philip and his mother sailed for England via Mauritius and the Cape on the SS Southampton via Mauritius and the Cape arriving at Gravesend on Sunday 6th June. His early education was at Oaklands House School, Woolavington, Midhurst, Sussex along with his elder brother and sister and he was there aged 4 years old in 1861 and one of the youngest pupils there. In 1869 he was with his sister Elizabeth and his Mother in Dresden, Germany. In 1870, aged fourteen, he went to the Naval Academy at Dartmouth, England and later attended the Royal Naval Academy at Portsmouth, England and spent four years at Dresden University where he became fluent in French and German.
Being frustrated with the rather stifling life at home at the White Lodge in Barnes in 1875 he decided to leave home and, without parental approval, set off for London in search of adventure. He stayed in a cheap hotel while he looked for work and, soon enough, he landed a job as a Junior Foreign Correspondent for the Hudson's Bay Company then in Fenchurch Street where he stayed for a year. Despite his family's disapproval he commuted daily from home at the White Lodge to the City and his father gave him an allowance to supplement his meagre salary.
On 26th October 1876, still only twenty years old, and having been beguiled by newspaper advertisements extolling the Central Californian Colony at Fresno as a sort of Utopia, he boarded the SS Anglia and set off for New York and then by train via Niagara Falls to San Francisco and onwards to Bakersfield, California. He spent six years there and at Chico as a Rancher though not in the aforementioned Colony which was the opposite of any utopia.
By 1880 he had become engaged to Ruth Crockett Bryson who had befriended him the previous year when he worked on the neighbouring ranch to the one she lived on. They married on 14th February 1880 in the farmhouse of the Bryson ranch in Chico, California She was born in 1860 at Chico the daughter of Edward James Bryson and Susan Lawrence.
A few months after the birth of their first child, Ethel Ivy, they decided to sell up and move to San Francisco where he soon found a temporary job selling rubber stamps on a salary of $10 per week with 40% commission. In the Spring of 1882, his mother-in-law came to visit and persuaded his wife to return to Chico with their daughter. Philip rented a room and kept on working but became so lonely after a couple of months that he left the job and returned to Chico and soon secured a job with the Sierra Flume and Lumber Co. as a book-keeper.
In September 1882 his brother Harry Macdonald Becher came to Chico to visit him. On his way to San Francisco Harry had made friends with Thomas Blake Glover, the British Consul in Nagasaki. The Consul had a brother who he was taking to Washington territory to buy a farm and it was Harry who suggested to Philip that he could put his farming knowledge to good use as this brother had no farming know-how. At this time the New Northern Railroad was just entering Spokane opening up all sorts of new opportunities. When Thomas and his brother had completed the purchase of their farm they sent for Philip enclosing $200 for moving expenses and a job offer to manage the farm for 40% of net profits. So Philip left his job, Ruth and Baby Ethel moved to her mother's farmhouse at Chico and Philip set off alone for a new life in Spokane where he arrived on 14th October 1882 and was met at the station by his brother Harry. The incredible and exciting story about how he set up in Spokane, how he brought his wife and child from Chico to join him, and his pioneering life in the Golden Land can be found in a transcription of his incredible journal which has been edited by Philip's great great granddaughter, Kayla Hudson and is available here.
He “homesteaded” on a claim some 16 miles north of Spokane which became known afterwards as Becher's Prairie and he is credited with having settled a record number of people in and around Spokane and the “Inland Empire” between 1889 and 1900.
On 21st January 1891 he arrived at Liverpool from New York aboard the SS Bothnia to see his parents who were then living at 10 Queensborough Terrace, Paddington, London and he happened to be staying there on the day of the Census on 5th April. A day or two later he embarked on the SS Majestic bound for New York arriving there on 13th April along with Frank G. Ballantyne, 20, and Charlie H. Roberts, aged 30, who, amongst others, had answered an advertisement he had placed The Times seeking “Gentleman Sons” who were keen to learn ranching and farming in the State of Washington. There were five in total all eager for adventure and each had paid Philip to teach them how to farm on his ranch in Spokane.
On 26th October 1895 Ruth died of pneumonia at home at the ranch. She was buried at Greenwood Memorial Terrace Cemetery, Spokane - her grave there pictured left.
Adjusting to their new situation the family moved to Spokane into an 8-room house at 907 East Bridgeport Avenue, Lidgewood Park.
Philip married, secondly, Annie Belle Junken, née McCullen, on 3rd June 1896 whom he had known for a few years already through taking his children to Sunday School. She was born 10th April 1858 at Lanarc, Ontario the daughter of Walter L. McCullen and Elizabeth McNeil.
In 1907 he travelled to New York to board the Kaiser Wilhelm de Grosse which was due to sail to Plymouth, England on 30th October. By this time his parents were living at 45 Silverdale Road, Eastbourne and after spending much of November with them he set off once again but this time by the boat train from Victoria station heading for Paris and he wrote this amusing account of the trip:
THE SPOKESMAN REVIEW, SUNDAY 29th DECEMBER 1907
Spokane Real Estate man abroad writes of his impressions.
TOURS ALL GREAT CITY
Has an interesting time in an automobile riding over the French capital.
By Phil T. Becher
PARIS DEC 3 – Thanksgiving Day we left Victoria station, London at 11a.m. by special train to Dover, on the south east coast of England, passing through some very pretty country in the hop lands of Kent. We travelled at great speed and made no stops, but got glimpses of some old and historical towns, but the only one I now remember was Canterbury, with its cathedral, one of the oldest in England. We just got one view of it as we rushed through the town.
This morning was bright when we left London, but on arriving at Dover it was very windy and overcast, true to the weather reports we had read at the Grosvenor hotel before departing. We crossed to Calais in the twin turbine steamer, Empress, a great improvement on the old boats, as she was quite roomy and up to date, and even with the two long trains densely packed with passengers we were not uncomfortably crowded.
Clearing the harbour we found the sea quite choppy, and i thought at first we were going to have a rough time, but when we got straightened around to our right course, with the wind dead against us, we went along pretty steadily and at a very good speed. Some of the passengers who persisted in getting up in the bow got drenched several times, and about one third of the passengers were holding their heads over basins, but I kept my wife and sister on deck, protected from the wind, and they got along without any sign of squeamishness.
ARRIVING AT CALAIS
Just before we touched at Calais, while going into the harbour, the clouds parted and we were greeted with a burst of sunshine, which cheered everybody up. The afternoon sunshine on the white government buildings of the town and for miles beyond over the level farming country was certainly a lovely introduction for our visit to France. As soon as we were made fast the French porters literally swarmed over the sides of the Empress to convey the small hand baggage ashore and to the custom house. We had no trouble whatever with the customs. They simply asked us if we had anything liable to duty and if answered in the negative chalked it off, and on you went. I never even opened mine.
Where we lost time and had a very amusing experience, however, was in the jam and crush trying to get to an inspector. The house or room is large enough, but the entire space is occupied by about six officials, who stand inside an immense oval, surrounded by a counter, outside of which porters and passengers push and shove to get their baggage examined first.
We had fortunately reserved our seats from Calais to Paris and therefore had no trouble getting our good-natured porter to find our train and get us comfortably settled. We just had twenty minutes before the train left, so took our lunch at the station – our first experience in ordering from a French menu.
FAST FRENCH TRAINS
I think the French corridor cars are far preferable to the English. They are much larger, roomier and more comfortable. We started from Calais about 20 minutes late, but when once started we certainly did fly. I think I never rode on a faster train in any country, and the roadbed being so good, you do not feel any discomfort from rocking. It is a pretty country from Calais to Paris – a rich farming country, intersected with beautiful woods and old towns. We arrived at Paris at 7.30 p.m. We had to hunt up our trunks, which had been checked through to Paris from London, and therefore were subject to inspection by customs.
A very noticeable fact when you arrive is the absence of railway porters at the Gare du Nord, or possibly no so much the absence of them, but none of them are looking for work, and you simply have to entreat them to help you with your luggage. This looks so strange after coming from England, where the stations swarm with very willing porters. I finally got one of the officials to help me out – got my ladies in a four-wheeler with the hand luggage and with the assistance of the aforesaid official and a “pour-boire” found our trunks, got them through the customs without opening them, loaded them on the four-wheeler in which the ladies had been patiently waiting and drove to the Hotel Louis le Grand, where we now are.
I am sorry to say that we did not arrive at the hotel in time for dinner, as a Thanksgiving dinner had been served in honour of several American guests. I think this is the first Thanksgiving I haven't tasted turkey for 20 years. I found, however, calling at the New York Herald office next morning, that the Americans of Paris had celebrated the day in great style.
IN LOVE WITH PARIS
I am very favourably impressed with Paris – in fact, I love it, it is so beautifully clean and everyone seems so proud of it and helps to boost it along. They are polite in the extreme, although their customs differ from ours, and the English, as I will tell you later on. I went to the Credit Layonnaise (sic), the largest bank in Paris, to draw some money on my letter of credit, and was met with the greatest courtesy. To begin with, it is an immense building, equipped with drawing room, reading and smoking rooms – rather unusual in banks in other countries. I was ushered by a very polite official in livery to the manager's office on the second floor, where one of his extremely polite clerks asked me the nature of my business. I handed him my letter of credit, whereupon he gave me a small ticket with a number on it and bowed me into the drawing room and requested me to be kind enough to be seated. In about five minutes another liveried official came in (there were several of us waiting) and called out “Monsieur Bicher”. I motioned to him and he requested me to sign a receipt and handed me over my money.
AUTO RIDE IN PARIS
After lunching at the hotel my sister and I started out to get tickets for some theatre for the same evening. We found theatres, or rather the seats, extremely high – good seats – and we finally settled on a play called “Son Père”. It was not very good. Then the idea struck us that the proper way to see Paris and see it quick, was to do it in an auto, f not too expensive. We waited until a good looking machine came in sight and hailed it. My sister does all the bargaining as she can talk French much more fluently than I can, but we understood the good looking “chauffeur” to say 10 francs and a “pour boire”. This we thought ridiculously cheap, so hired him on the spot from 1.30 to 5.30 p.m. We certainly had a lovely drive, first going to the Bastille, taking in all the larger churches. We stopped at Notre Dame and went inside. It was rather dark and mass was going on all over the church, an immensely high building, and the dome looking up from the interior of the building is grand. Through the Louvre past the Palais Royal, across the Seine to the Luxembourg, through the Quartier Latin again and across the river through the Champs Elysees, past some large building all decorated with flags and bunting and covered with strings of electric lights, now being used for the automobile show.
PRETTIEST PARK SEEN
I think the part I really enjoyed the most was the drive through the Bois de Boulogne. It is certainly the prettiest park I have seen anywhere and most beautifully kept, even at this time of year of falling leaves. The walks are very good and broad. We passed lakes where boats are kept for hire, artificial waterfalls, true to nature, the race course, where the Grand Prix is now held annually, and, the most beautiful of all, wild, thick, woods of pine and oak, close to the border of the city.
Rambling along these woods, which are quite large, you might imagine yourselves in the wilds of the Sierra Nevadas, yet only 20 minutes from the busy city. It was a splendid trip and we constantly praised our good-looking chauffeur, who speeded past the common herd in great style, and we resolved to give him a handsome “pour-boire” – but alas! When he put us off at our hotel he told us the fare was 74 francs, 64 francs taximeter and 10 francs pour-boire – well, we have not used a taximeter since – but have confined our trips to cab taximeters, omnibuses, or “on pied”.
The next day, Saturday, we went through the Louvre, with its famous picture gallery, and sculptures, etc, also to the Palais Luxembourg, and in the afternoon the ladies went shopping. Now, to give you some of my observations regarding Paris, I think the city is beautiful and the streets are far wider than London, but the police service nothing like as good. There are three policemen in London to one in Paris. Of all the reckless driving I have ever seen Paris “takes the cake”. It is a common saying in Paris that if you get run over you have to pay for getting in the way and impeding the traffic. The Parisian coacher or cabby is a character. When you have engaged him and he has politely got off his box to open the door for you, he will leisurely pull out his tobacco and cigarette paper, roll a cigarette, light it and climb up on the box again. I notice that the largest department stores, such as the Printemps or Bon Marche, they have no cash system like we have in America. You purchase what you want in a department, and if it is only a shoelace, the clerk has to go with you to the cashier's counter, where the article is marked in a book and you pay. Then the same clerk goes with you to the wrapping counter and the article is wrapped up, necessitating endless waiting, shoving and waste of the salesman's time and yours too. In every theatre that I was in, except the Grand Opera, the ladies keep their hats on during the entire play, also the gentlemen keep their hats on and only take them off while the curtain is up.
In fact, in neither in London or Paris have I found any theatre where there is a place under your seat for your hat, or coat rack in front of you, such as we have; but being mostly old buildings they are not up to date. The most ridiculous thing of all is that in a good many theatres in Paris there is no orchestra whatever. While everybody is walking about, either in the theatre or in the bar between acts, an electric bell rings outside as a first warning, then you hear three heavy knocks with a club on the stage and people take their seats; then one loud knock and up goes the curtain. The busiest time in Paris is from 10p.m. to 3 a.m. There are more people on the streets – and the amount of guides that accost you offering to show you the sights during these hours, is marvellous.
On Sunday we went to morning service in the English church and in the afternoon on top of a tram to Versailles, a very good trip and a good way to see the street life of Paris decked in Sunday costumes.
Between 1896 and 1909 he set up a real estate company with a partner and one of the many major realty transactions he undertook in Spokane was the acquisition of the right of way for the Spokane International Railway when it was built into Spokane. In 1909 the firm merged with another real estate company to form the Spokane Valley Irrigated Lands Company and at the outset gained control of some 20,000 acres of irrigated land which were described as 'the choicest ends of the valley.'
In 1937 The Spokesman Review published an 80th birthday tribute to Philip:
BECHER CELEBRATES EIGHTIETH ANNIVERSARY HARD AT WORK
From India’s ‘Coral Strand’ to one of the virgin prairies of Spokane county, with ‘stopovers’ in England, Germany and Switzerland was the general ‘route’ of Phil T. Becher, Spokane’s pioneer ‘home-finder’ who today is celebrating his 80th birthday.
Mr Becher arrived at his real estate and insurance office in the Lindelle Building shortly before 10am and had too busy a day ahead of him to give much time or thought to his natal day.
‘Business as usual’ he said over the telephone. ‘Don’t know of anything special planned for the day. Expect to keep busy. Sorry, but will have to get to work.’ So that ended a very short and matter-of-fact interview.
BORN IN INDIA
As one schoolboy wrote of another ‘famous’ man, Mr Becher was born ‘at a very early age’ in Meerut in East India, the son of General Septimus Becher, one-time officer in her Majesty’s Bengal Staff Regiment.
To secure the traditional ‘home’ education, young Becher was sent to England and attended Rugby. To top this off he went to Germany, and the Polytechnic College, Dresden, added its polish and Geneva, Switzerland, famous for its learning, rounded out his college career.
FOUND GOLDEN LAND
Being proficient in German and French, Mr Becher returned to England and for a time was more opportunity he came to San Francisco in 1876. The quest for a ‘golden’ land was reached when the young Britisher arrived in Spokane as of November, 1882.
Mr Becher is credited with having settled a record number of people on lands of Spokane and the Inland Empire during the period 1889 to 1900. Soon after his arrival in Spokane he had homesteaded on a claim 16 miles north of Spokane known for many years afterwards as Becher’s prairie.
He was elected president of the Realtor Associates Inc. in 1926 and was re-elected in 1933. The pioneer realtor is still active in civic and business affairs. (Spokane Daily Chronicle 16th December 1937)
He died after a two-week illness on 27th December 1940 at St Luke's Hospital, Spokane. His second wife died 12th April 1948 at her then home at West 1728 9th Street, Spokane.
Philip Tudor Becher's obituary:
The Spokesman Review, December 28th, 1940.
Widely Known Resident of Spokane Since 1882 Succumbs Suddenly
Spokane will pay its final respects to one of its pioneer builders Monday when funeral services will be held at the Cathedral of St John the Evangelist for Phil T. Becher, 83, who died yesterday in a hospital after a brief illness.
Dean Charles E. McAllister will officiate at the 11.30 am services and incineration will follow at the Smith Funeral home. The body will lie in state at the cathedral from 8am until the funeral rites.
Death of the pioneer realtor was attributed to a cerebral hemorrhage. He was active until about two weeks ago.
Born in England [incorrect, as he was born in India] into an aristocratic family with a long tradition for service to the British empire. Mr Becher received his early education at Rugby. He attended naval academy at Portsmouth and spent four years in the German university at Heidelberg.
It was his desire for a life of action, in contrast to the English routine, which included being driven about by a coachman and being waited upon by family servants, which caused Mr Becher to cast his eyes toward the United States.
Came to Spokane in 1882
He came to Spokane in 1882, attracted to what was then Spokane Falls by praise for the district voiced by a brother, Harry Becher, a mining engineer.
Prior to coming here he had spent six years in California, whence he had been drawn from England by visions of a sun-kissed Utopia. Although he was in a position to make the trip from England to America in comfort, Mr Becher chose the "hard way" both for the long voyage and after he arrived in the new land.
During the years he spent in California Mr Becher was married. He made the trip to Spokane from California alone, Mrs Becher arriving the following year.
Built Home on Peone
His first venture here came when he acquired 320 acres on Peone prairie and with the aid of a neighbour built a home for himself and Mrs Becher.
Among Mr Becher's major realty transactions in Spokane was the acquisition of the right of way for the Spokane International Railway when it was built into Spokane. He was associated with the late D.M. Thompson in that venture. They also acquired the land in the Spokane valley, which D.C. Corbin put under irrigation.
Mr Becher was active in many civic enterprises and helped organise the Spokane Realty Board.
Surviving are the widow, two daughters, Mrs Ethel Forbes of Portland and Mrs Elizabeth Kitson of Fort Lewis; two sons, Percy C. Becher of Portland and Harry P. Becher of Beverley Hills, Calif.; a brother and sister in England, six grandchildren and four great grandchildren.
There were six children by his first wife Ruth:
1. Ethel Ivy Becher was born 30th March 1881 at the family farmhouse in Chico, California and moved with her parents to Spokane the following year. She was educated at St Luke's Hospital School and later became a trained nurse and worked at the hospital for several years and was also a Telephone Operator at the time of the 1900 US Census. She married, firstly, William Henry Watson, a Travelling Salesman, on 21st March 1903 at Spokane. He was born 28th August 1879 at Oil City, Venango, PA the son of John Henry Watson and Nancy Jane Russell. They divorced prior to 1912 and he died in 1917.
She married, secondly, on 9th October 1912 at Spokane Francis 'Frank' Richard Forbes, who worked in the Traffic Department of the Portland Railway. He was born 1879 at New Brunswick, Canada the son of David Forbes and Elizabeth Hornibrook. He moved at an early age to Wisconsin and came to Portland in 1914, at which time he entered the services of the Spokane, Portland & Seattle railway in the traffic department. He was widely known in transportation circles, having served his company in various positions at Spokane, San Francisco and Portland. He died 24th October 1943 at Clatsop, Oregon. She died 2nd August 1961 at 135 Sixth Avenue, Seaside, Clatsop County, Oregon and was buried at River View Cemetery, Portland.
There were no children, however Ethel and husband Frank legally adopted her niece, Phyllis Annabelle, the daughter of Margaret Annabelle Whealan (née Becher) and Arthur Wilbur Whealan. Phyllis Annabelle Forbes (Whealan) was born 22nd March 1915 at Spokane. She married Robert Hallett Gillette on 7th August 1937 at Multnomah, Oregon and at the time he was a Clerk working for a Wholesale Petroleum Company. He was born 16th March 1914 in Montana the son of Charles E. Gillette and Vera Hallett. He died on 26th February 1991 at Santa Clara, California and she died on 9th November 2001 at Campbell, Santa Clara. They were both buried at the Golden Gate National Cemetery, San Bruno, California.
There were no children, however Ethel and her husband Frank legally adopted her niece, Phyllis Annabelle, the daughter of Margaret Annabelle Whealan (née Becher and Arthur Wilbur Whealan.
Phyllis Annabelle Forbes (Whealan) was born 22nd March 1915 at Spokane. She married Robert Hallett Gillette on 7th August 1937 at Multnomah, Oregon. He was born 16th March 1914 in Montana the son of Charles E. Gillette and Vera Hallett. At the time he was a Clerk working for a Wholesale Petroleum Company. On 22nd May 1945 he enlisted in the Army at Fort Lewis, Washington for the duration of the war and gave his occupation as Cashier/Bookkeeper and stated that he had had four years of college.
2. Percy Cecil Becher was born 4th November 1884 at Spokane, Washington and went to a local school. According to US Censuses he worked variously as a Salesman and Baker and for a Garage.
He married 1st: Pansy Geneva I’Laug (in some records the surname is anglicised to Lang) on 10th July 1906 in Spokane, Washington. She was born 29th September 1886 in Chicago, Illinois, the daughter of George Bernard I’Laug, a policeman, and Paula Hadine Bye both of whom were Norwegian and were born there. Percy and Pansy are recorded in the 1910 US Census though his surname is misspelt ‘Becker’. Not long after that Census they separated though there is no record of a divorce. She went on to marry twice more, first, to Clarence Vincent Huck, a Labor Agent of Spokane, in 1912 at Kootenai, Idaho. She won a divorce from him in 1921 she went on to marry John D. Van Buren, a used car salesman born about 1887 in New York and they appear together in the US 1940 Census in Los Angeles. Pansy died 18th February 1962 and was buried at Inglewood Cemetery, Los Angeles.
Percy and Pansy had one daughter: Ruth Pauline Becher who was born 3rd August 1907 at Spokane. She married Jack Elmer Silvan on 5th October 1926 in Los Angeles. He was born 1907 in Washington the son of Joel E. Silvan and Elizabeth (Lizzie) Jaskari who were both born in Finland. At the time of marriage Jack worked in an Auto-Body Factory and had had a spell in the US Navy. By the 1940 US Census he was a Barber and they lived at Oakland, Almeda, California. Ruth died 13th January 1989 at Sonora, Tuolumne, California and he died 13th June 1993 at Contra Costa, California. There were two children.
Percy married 2nd: Violet Sempriona Deborde, née Coons, in 1918 the widow of John Franklin Deborde. She was born 14th June 1881 in Colorado the daughter of William Carlayne Coons and Martha Crary. She died 26th April 1960 at Multnomah, Oregon.
He married 3rd: Lena M. Dryling on 5th July 1939 at Clark, Skamia county, Washington. She was born about 1905 in Austria, her parentage is unknown. At the time of this marriage he worked on the Maintenance for a Bakery. He registered for the WW2 Draft in 1942 and was then of 2474 Overton, Portland and gave his Next of Kin as Mrs F. R. Junken and was then working for Rowe Brothers Garage in Overton. Percy died 14th November 1960 then of 2710 SE 16th Avenue, Oregon City, Multnomah County. After his death Lena married Jay Bishop Wisdom and died in 1977. She and Percy were buried at the Garden of Meditation, Sunset Hills Memorial Park, Portland, Oregon.
Percy Cecil Becher died 14th November 1960 then of 2710 SE 16th Avenue, Oregon City, Multnomah County. His third wife married Jay Bishop Wisdom after his death and died in 1977. Both she and Percy were buried at the Garden of Meditation, Sunset Hills Memorial Park, Portland, Oregon.
3. Harry Phillip Becher was born 23rd January 1887 at Spokane, Washington and went to a local school. By the 1910 US Census he was working in Real Estate while still living with his parents.
He married Winifred 'Winnie' Forrest McCrary on 31st June 1911 at Spokane. She was born 25th October 1888 the daughter of Melvin Baxter McCrary and Phoebe Jane Magee. By the 1920 US Census he was working in Steel Reinforcement for a Construction Company and living at Oakland, Alameda, California. By the 1940 Census he was a House Operator for the city living in Los Angeles with his wife and son and two daughters plus two lodgers. By 1961 he and his wife were living at La Puente, California. Harry died 31st July 1963 at Los Angeles and was buried at Rose Hills Memorial Park, Whittier, Ca. She died 15th November 1966 at La Puente, Ca.
There were five children:
1. Mildred 'Millie' Bernice Elizabeth Becher born 4th July 1912 at Spokane. She married John Francis Rose on 5th June 1938 at Los Angeles. He was born in 1914 the son of John Francis Rose and Helen Carson. She died 23rd October 1983 at Bakersfield, Kern, California. There were no children.
2. Margaret Winifred Becher born 20th June 1914 at Glendale, California. At the time of the 1940 US Census she was working as a Weaver for a textile company. She married David Joseph Kleindienst on 15th August 1940 at Los Angeles. He was born 30th December 1911 the son of Johann Kleindienst and Barbara Bommler. David died on 22nd July 1982 and Margaret died 18th October 2002 at Los Angeles. There were three children.
3. Melvin Philip Becher born 11th October 1915 at Oakland, California. He married 1st, Hazel Jeanette Elder 1st September 1940 at Los Angeles. For the US Census that year he described his occupation as Doorman. She was born in 1921 in Kansas the daughter of Guy Lester Elder and Nanettie Wilhelmina Kunjahan. They divorced before he enlisted at Whitefish, Montana with the US Army Air Corps as a Private First Class on 28th January 1946. He married 2nd, Verna Lucille Wooldridge, formerly Townsend, née Ladd. She was born 24th September 1914 Los Angeles the daughter of James Edwin Ladd and Mabel Emma Geer and died 24th August 2006 at San Pedro, Los Angeles. He died 29th April 1995 at Kingman, Mohave, Arizona. There was one child.
4. Harry Philip Becher born 8th April 1917 at Oakland, California. He married Frances Marian Schroder on 23rd June 1945 at Hollywood at the time he was a Pattern Maker. She was born 17th March 1913 at Chico, California the daughter of Charles Schroder and Helen Harrington. She died 14th April 1995 at Sacramento, California. He was remembered as: 'A retired general contractor and creative artisan who could make anything and solve any problem, avid fisherman and sports fan, transplanted years ago from Southern California to Fair Oaks and converted only partially to Northern California sports teams - especially the Sacramento Kings and Monarchs, but remained true to the L.A. Dodgers.' He died 28th June 2002 and was buried at Fair Oaks Cemetery, Sacramento, California. There were three children.
5. Virginia Ethel Becher was born 20th July 1928 in Los Angeles, California. She married Richard Fleming Hudson on 19th June 1950. He was born 30th October 1924 the son of Archibald Sylvester Hudson and Katherine Frances Pfeuffer. She died 26th December 2007 at Auberry, California and he died 5th November 2011 at Fresno, California. There were three children.
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3. Harry Philip Becher was born 8th April 1917 at Oakland, California. He married Frances Marian Schroder on 23rd June 1945 at Hollywood at the time he was a Pattern Maker. She was born 17th March 1913 at Chico, California the daughter of Charles Schroder and Helen Harrington. She died 14th April 1995 at Sacramento, California. 'A retired general contractor and creative artisan who could make anything and solve any problem, avid fisherman and sports fan, transplanted years ago from Southern California to Fair Oaks and converted only partially to Northern California sports teams - especially the Sacramento Kings and Monarchs, but remained true to the L.A. Dodgers.' He died 28th June 2002 and was buried at Fair Oaks Cemetery, Sacramento, California. There were three children.
4. Margaret Annabel Becher was born 2nd April 1890 in the old log house on the family farm in Spokane County. She married Arthur Wilbur Whealan on 22nd December 1911 at Spokane. He was born 18th January 1889 at Beaver City, Furness County, Nebraska the son of Wilbur Mc E. Whealan and Rhoda Jane Bundy. She died 15th September 1923 at Oakland, Alameda, California and was buried at Riverside Memorial Park, Spokane. After his wife died he married Lelah Ethel Guyon in 1925 and he died in 1960 in Portland, Oregon. They had one child: Phyllis Annabelle Whealan, born 22nd March 1915 a Spokane who was legally adopted by her aunt Ethel Ivy Forbes, née Becher. (see entry above).
4. Margaret Annabel Becher was born 2nd April 1890 in the old log house on the family farm in Spokane County. She married Arthur Wilbur Whealan on 22nd December 1911 at Spokane. He was born 18th January 1889 at Beaver City, Furness County, Nebraska the son of Wilbur Mc E. Whealan and Rhoda Jane Bundy. She died 15th September 1923 at Oakland, Alameda, California and was buried at Riverside Memorial Park, Spokane. After his wife died he married Lelah Ethel Guyon in 1925 and he died in 1960 in Portland, Oregon. They had one child: Phyllis Annabelle Whealan, born 22nd March 1915 a Spokane who was legally adopted by her aunt Ethel Ivy Forbes, née Becher. (see entry above).
5. Elizabeth 'Bessie' Ruth Becher was born 8th October 1892 at Spokane, Washington. She married Captain Alfred Percy Kitson on 29th May 1915 at Spokane. He was born 1st September 1889 in Pennsylvania the son of Alfred E. Kitson of England and Philadelphia and Susanna Woolston Gillam.
The Spokesman Review of 30th May 1915 reported on their wedding:
MISS BECHER BECOMES BRIDE
With the simple but impressive Episcopal ring service, Miss Elizabeth Becher became the bride of Alfred Percy Kitson, the ceremony taking place at the residence of bride’s parents, Mr and Mrs Phil T. Becher in the presence of more than 100 friends and relatives. The service was read at 8.30 by the Very Rev W.C. Hicks, Dean of All Saints Cathedral. An altar in the small parlour at the Becher home was improvised of a tank of palms and ferns brightened with white peony blossoms. The altar posts were of pedestal vases filled with white peonies. Defining the bridal pathway were satins ribbons held by little Olney Parr and Elizabeth Campbell. The bride’s only attendant was her sister, Mrs Arthur Whealan, Matron of Honor, and Arthur Bright was best man. For the entrance of the bridal party Mendelssohn's Wedding March was played by Miss Dorothy Roberts. The young people leave this morning for an extended trip in the east. They will visit Mr Kitson’s parents, Mr and Mrs A.E. Kitson, in Philadelphia, and spend some time in New York city, Atlantic City, N.J., and Washington, returning through the Canadian Rockies and spending a few days at Banff, Alberta.
In the photo above Elizabeth Ruth Becher is with her Marmalutes; her husband, far left, in his uniform. In the photos below, on the right, they are together in their car; in the photo below left, Alfred Percy Kitson is on the right of the trio with Dwight D. Eisenhower, far left, before he became President.
The Spokesman Review of 30th May 1915 reported on their wedding:
MISS BECHER BECOMES BRIDE
With the simple but impressive Episcopal ring service, Miss Elizabeth Becher became the bride of Alfred Percy Kitson, the ceremony taking place at the residence of bride’s parents, Mr and Mrs Phil T. Becher in the presence of more than 100 friends and relatives. The service was read at 8.30 by the Very Rev W.C. Hicks, Dean of All Saints Cathedral. An altar in the small parlour at the Becher home was improvised of a tank of palms and ferns brightened with white peony blossoms. The altar posts were of pedestal vases filled with white peonies. Defining the bridal pathway were satins ribbons held by little Olney Parr and Elizabeth Campbell. The bride’s only attendant was her sister, Mrs Arthur Whealan, Matron of Honor, and Arthur Bright was best man. For the entrance of the bridal party Mendelssohn's Wedding March was played by Miss Dorothy Roberts. The young people leave this morning for an extended trip in the east. They will visit Mr Kitson’s parents, Mr and Mrs A.E. Kitson, in Philadelphia, and spend some time in New York city, Atlantic City, N.J., and Washington, returning through the Canadian Rockies and spending a few days at Banff, Alberta.
In the photo above Elizabeth Ruth Becher is with her Marmalutes; her husband, far left, in his uniform. In the photos below, on the right, they are together in their car; in the photo below left, Alfred Percy Kitson is on the right of the trio with Dwight D. Eisenhower, far left, before he became President.
He gained further promotions up to Colonel and served with the 41st Field Artillery Battalion, U.S. Army at Fort Lewis, Washington.
In 1943 he was appointed Deputy Chief of Staff of 9th Service Command. In later years they lived at Monterey, California. On 18th May 1956 they sailed from Bremerhaven, Germany to NY aboard the General Alexander M. Patch arriving on 28th May. They gave their address at Los Aptos, Ca. In 1965 they went on a 42-day cruise of the South Pacific aboard the SS Mariposa. He died of pneumonia on 17th August 1976 at the V.A. Hospital, Santa Clara and was buried at Mission City Cemetery, Santa Clara. She died on 5th September 1978 at Los Gatos Community Hospital and was cremated at Cedar Lawn.
In 1943 he was appointed Deputy Chief of Staff of 9th Service Command. In later years they lived at Monterey, California. On 18th May 1956 they sailed from Bremerhaven, Germany to NY aboard the General Alexander M. Patch arriving on 28th May. They gave their address at Los Aptos, Ca. In 1965 they went on a 42-day cruise of the South Pacific aboard the SS Mariposa. He died of pneumonia on 17th August 1976 at the V.A. Hospital, Santa Clara and was buried at Mission City Cemetery, Santa Clara. She died on 5th September 1978 at Los Gatos Community Hospital and was cremated at Cedar Lawn.