CHARLES P. BECKER, farmer and stock raiser of Carlin Precinct, made his first appearance in the world on February 27, 1857, and is at present engaged in agricultural pursuits on section 28. His parents, Gregory and Theresa (Daack) Becker, were natives of Germany, and their union was blest with eleven children, viz: Charles P., our subject; John; Rebecca, wife of John Piper; Fredericka, wife of J. E. Thomas; Joseph W.; Maggie, widow of Phillip Cloninger; Dina, Mary, Catherine, George and Henry. After reaching America they settled in Calhoun County, sometime in the '50s and found the country scarcely more than a wilderness around Carlin Precinct where they made their home. They numbered among the first German pioneers in Calhoun County, and like the majority of people who are starting in a new place, were forced to undergo numerous hardships, but success crowned their labor, and their pleasant manners won them many friends. The mother died August 28, 1879. The father is now past seventy years of age, but is strong and healthy for one of his years, and looks back with satisfaction upon a life well and profitably spent. He is a member of the Methodist Episcopal Church, and belongs to the Republican party.
Charles Becker passed his youth in Calhoun County, surrounded on every side by pioneer scenes and has watched the wilderness change into charming landscapes and the hardships of early days give place to the prosperity that characterizes Calhoun County now. Naturally his educational advantages were limited to the district school of Carlin and he received none of the intellectual training that is found at the present date in all schools. He owns one hundred and sixty acres of valuable land and is a self-made man in the true sense of that term, having acquired his property by means of his own exertions. His political sympathies are with the Republican party, of which he is a member; and he has at various times been elected to offices of public trust, serving at one time as School Director. The Becker family is one of the best and oldest German families in Calhoun County and is everywhere favorably known. Mr. Becker was married on November 21, 1882, to Miss Lottie Quille.
Extracted 23 Mar 2017 by Norma Hass from Portrait and Biographical Album of Pike and Calhoun Counties, Illinois, published in 1891, pages 671-672
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