R. A. Becker Obit St. Paul Pioneer Press, Feb 2, 1941, first section
R. A. Becker, Civil War Veteran, Dies
Rudolph A. Becker, 93-year-old Civil War veteran, past commander of the Minnesota department of the GAR, and a resident of St. Paul for many years, died Saturday morning in the Minnesota Soldiers’ Home. He had been in failing health for nearly a year.
Elected department commander for Minnesota at the state encampment in 1885 when the roster of Civil War veterans in the state numbered more than 7,000, Mr. Becker at the time of his death was one of 33 surviving Minnesota veterans.
Born in Germany
Active in the affairs of the veterans, he was one of those who started in the movement which resulted in the building of the Soldiers’ Home where he died. For nearly 50 years he operated a drug business in St.
Paul.
Born in Germany, Mr. Becker came to this country with his father, locating in Milwaukee, where on August 1, 1862, father and son enlisted in the Union army and were assigned to Company K, Twenty-sixth Wisconsin Volunteer Infantry. He was mustered out of service at Milwaukee June 13, 1865.
Funeral Monday
In the intervening years, he saw service with the Army of the Potomac at Fredericksburg, Chancellorsville, and Rappahannock, and later with the Western army at Lookout Mountain and Mission Ridge, and subsequently at Atlanta.
Mr. Beckker was the oldest past department commander in the G. A. R.
Military honors will be paid the veteran in funeral services to be held at 10 a. m. Monday in the Guthunz and Heger Funeral chapel, 677 East Seventh street. A firing squad will fire a salute at the grave in Forest cemetery.
Fred Turk” <theturks@usfamily.net>