George Huntington Peck, Jr. (October 15, 1856 – January 9, 1940) was an American

real estate Real estate is property consisting of land and the buildings on it, along with its natural resources such as crops, minerals or water; immovable property of this nature; an interest vested in this (also) an item of real property, (more general ...

broker A broker is a person or firm who arranges transactions between a buyer and a seller for a commission when the deal is executed. A broker who also acts as a seller or as a buyer becomes a principal party to the deal. Neither role should be confu ...

developer Developer may refer to: Computers * Software developer, a person or organization who develop programs/applications * Video game developer, a person or business involved in video game development, the process of designing and creating games * Web d ...

and

millionaire A millionaire is an individual whose net worth or wealth is equal to or exceeds one million units of currency. Depending on the currency, a certain level of prestige is associated with being a millionaire. In countries that use the short scal ...

. Born in

San Francisco San Francisco (; Spanish language, Spanish for "Francis of Assisi, Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the List of Ca ...

California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

, he began his career as a

railroad Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport that transfers passengers and goods on wheeled vehicles running on rails, which are incorporated in tracks. In contrast to road transport, where the vehicles run on a pre ...

conductorGnerre, Sam. "George Peck's Tale of Two Cities". ''Daily Breeze'', July 21, 2009
/ref> and is credited with driving the first

Southern Pacific The Southern Pacific (or Espee from the railroad initials- SP) was an American Class I railroad network that existed from 1865 to 1996 and operated largely in the Western United States. The system was operated by various companies under the ...

train In rail transport, a train (from Old French , from Latin , "to pull, to draw") is a series of connected vehicles that run along a railway track and Passenger train, transport people or Rail freight transport, freight. Trains are typically pul ...

into San Pedro. Convinced of the need for

harbor A harbor (American English), harbour (British English; see spelling differences), or haven is a sheltered body of water where ships, boats, and barges can be docked. The term ''harbor'' is often used interchangeably with ''port'', which is a ...

facilities, he later bought land along the seashoreIsaac, Jim & Tom Herrera. ''San Pedro''. Charleston, South Carolina: Arcadia Publishing, 2011
/ref> and, in 1890–despite little formal education–established the first bank in San Pedro. Peck eventually acquired virtually all of San Pedro and much of the north part of what became Manhattan Beach. He also subdivided and laid out the small town of El Porto, originally called "Peck's Beach", which was eventually annexed by Manhattan Beach and became part of its north end. He built Peck's Pier. Among his larger real estate transactions were the sale of properties for the

Standard Oil Standard Oil Company, Inc., was an American oil production, transportation, refining, and marketing company that operated from 1870 to 1911. At its height, Standard Oil was the largest petroleum company in the world, and its success made its co-f ...

(now

Chevron Chevron (often relating to V-shaped patterns) may refer to: Science and technology * Chevron (aerospace), sawtooth patterns on some jet engines * Chevron (anatomy), a bone * '' Eulithis testata'', a moth * Chevron (geology), a fold in rock ...

)

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at what became El Segundo and the

Army An army (from Old French ''armee'', itself derived from the Latin verb ''armāre'', meaning "to arm", and related to the Latin noun ''arma'', meaning "arms" or "weapons"), ground force or land force is a fighting force that fights primarily on ...

Fort MacArthur Fort MacArthur is a former United States Army installation in San Pedro, Los Angeles, California (now the port community of Los Angeles). A small section remains in military use by the United States Air Force as a housing and administrative annex ...

at San Pedro. George Peck died at age 83 in his home located at 1315 W. Adams Boulevard in

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

, (which is now the historic West Adams District), leaving an estate valued at $5,000,000. Much of his estate was left in trusts for his chronically ill children, with the remaining value defaulting to the city upon their deaths. He is interred in the Mausoleum of the Golden West, Sanctuary of Faith at

Inglewood Park Cemetery Inglewood Park Cemetery, 720 East Florence Avenue in Inglewood, California, was founded in 1905. A number of notable people, including entertainment and sports personalities, have been interred or entombed there. History The proposed est ...

Inglewood, California Inglewood is a city in southwestern Los Angeles County, California, in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. As of the 2020 U.S. Census, the city had a population of 107,762. It was incorporated on February 14, 1908. The city is in the South Bay ...

. Streets in San Pedro and Manhattan Beach bear his name.

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Peck, George 1856 births 1940 deaths American real estate businesspeople Businesspeople from San Francisco Businesspeople from Los Angeles Burials at Inglewood Park Cemetery People from Manhattan Beach, California People from West Adams, Los Angeles Conductor (rail)

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