George Bechtel

George Bechtel was born in Germany in 1840 but was immigrated to America with his parents at the age of six months. In 1851 he entered the grammar school of Columbia College. After he finished the course at the institution, he had joined his father in the brewery, in which George’s father had established in Stapleton in the year 1853.

Between 1860 to 1865, George Bechtel had become the superintendent of his father's’ business. During that time he had established the first icehouse in the East.

In the year 1865, he rented his father's property and later in 1870, he had purchased the entire interest and became the sole proprietor. The original building was too small and business grew tremendously.  

He had decided to tear down the building and in its place, he remodeled it into an elegant structure. In 1876, his beer had received the centennial exhibition medal, as well as receiving much more medals: the medal of Gambrinus Verein in 1877, the Paris exhibition in 1878, and in 1879, he was awarded the prize at the Sidney Fair in New South Wales.

During 1861, George sheltered large numbers of homeless people in the woods from violent riots based on skin color. He had sent nourishment daily till the riots ended.  

In 1879, George Bechtel had received a joint nomination of the republican and democratic parties for supervisor. He was also a delegate to the state convention first ever elected for the Richmond County. He was reelected three times as a delegate and two times as the vice-president. He was also appointed by the first congressional delegation, which comprised Queens, Suffolk, and Richmond counties.

Not only that he was a charter member of the Klopf Stock Lodge of Free Masons, which from there he transferred to the Tompkins Lodge of Richmond County., which still exists in the Stapleton neighborhood.

He owned many houses and stables on the island, which made him the largest taxpayer on Staten Island.