George Berz | |
Office: | Coroner of Cook County |
Term Start: | 1896 |
Term End: | 1900 |
Predecessor: | James McHale |
Successor: | John E. Traeger |
Birth Date: | March 17, 1844 |
Birth Place: | German Confederation |
Death Date: | February 28, 1920 |
Death Place: | Chicago, Illinois, United States |
Party: | Republican |
Allegiance: | United States of America |
Branch: | Union Army |
Serviceyears: | 1861–1862 |
Rank: | Sergeant |
Unit: | 1st Kentucky Infantry Regiment |
Battles: | American Civil War |
George Berz (March 17, 1844 - February 28, 1920) was a German-American businessman and Republican politician in Chicago.
Berz was born in Germany in 1844 and immigrated with his family to Louisville, Kentucky when he was a child. He enlisted in the Union Army in the American Civil War and was wounded at the Battle of Shiloh in 1862. Following his discharge, he went to Chicago and thereafter operated a hotel on the West Side. A Republican, Berz was appointed Postmaster of the West Division post office by President Benjamin Harrison, an office he held until his appointment as Deputy Sheriff of Cook County. He was elected Coroner of Cook County in 1896 and held office until 1900.[1] He died in 1920 in Chicago.[2]