Nathan Eckstein
Encyclopedia
Nathan Eckstein was a German
-born American
businessman, associated in business and by marriage with the Schwabacher Brothers
firm and family. In 1926 he received the honor of being named "Seattle's Most Useful Citizen", an honor sponsored by the Seattle Post-Intelligencer
and chosen by service clubs and community organizations. At that time, Seattle's Jewish Transcript called him "the man who has brought the greatest amount of respect and prestige to the Jewish people of Seattle." Seattle's Nathan Eckstein Middle School
is named in his honor.
in 1873. After a gymnasium education in Munich
, he emigrated to New York
, where he spent a decade in the wholesale
grocery business beginning in 1888. He came to Seattle in 1898, where he went to work for Seattle wholesaler Schwabachers and Co.
and in 1902 married Mina Alice Schwabacher daughter of Abraham Schwabacher, one of the original Schwabacher Brothers.
Eckstein became vice president and later chief executive officer of Schwabachers, guiding the company through both World Wars and the Great Depression
. Besides being a member of numerous organizations ranging from the Rainier Club
to B'nai B'rith
to both the Shrine and Scottish Rite
Masons
, and a trustee of organizations such as Goodwill Industries
and the Seattle Symphony Orchestra, he served on a volunteer basis in numerous public capacities, including on the Seattle School Board (1913–1920), as chair of the Washington State Tax Commission (1921–1922), chair of the Seattle Community Fund (1924, 1925; this was the forerunner of the city's United Way), and as a member of a commission to revise the City Charter (1925). The last resulted in a proposed charter that was defeated by the city's voters. In 1931 there was talk of him running as a Republican for the U.S. Senate
, but he declined to do so.
Eckstein's years on the School Board were controversial. This was during a period of great confrontation between labor and capital in Seattle—the Seattle General Strike of 1919 was the first such action in the United States—and Schwabachers' support for the open shop
put Eckstein firmly on capital's side of the divide. The labor unions strongly opposed his candidacy. Eckstein, a naturalized
American citizen of German birth, stood with most businessmen in supporting U.S. entry into World War I
and even bowed to pressure to drop German language
courses from the Seattle Public Schools
curriculum.
Eckstein was a proudly believing Jew
, and served as president and trustee of Seattle's Temple De Hirsch, now Temple De Hirsch Sinai
. "The prejudice under which the Jew is suffering is not due to his religion," he said on one occasion. "The greatest criticism of the Jew is that he is irreligious. If every Jew belonged to a temple or synagogue there would not be one percent of the prejudice that exists today"
By the late 1930s, Eckstein, though still running Schwabachers', had a much-improved relationship with organized labor. In 1937 and 1938, he was part of a citizen's committee that successfully arbitrated in a jurisdictional dispute between the International Longshoremen's Association
(ILA) under Harry Bridges
and the Teamsters
under Dave Beck
over organizing inland warehouse workers.
Nathan and Mina Eckstein had two daughters, Johanna—a noted Seattle philanthropist and patron of the arts—and Babette.
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
-born American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
businessman, associated in business and by marriage with the Schwabacher Brothers
Schwabacher Brothers
The Schwabacher Brothers—Louis Schwabacher , Abraham Schwabacher , and Sigmund Schwabacher —were pioneering Bavarian-born Jewish merchants, important in the economic development of the Washington Territory and later Washington State...
firm and family. In 1926 he received the honor of being named "Seattle's Most Useful Citizen", an honor sponsored by the Seattle Post-Intelligencer
Seattle Post-Intelligencer
The Seattle Post-Intelligencer is an online newspaper and former print newspaper covering Seattle, Washington, United States, and the surrounding metropolitan area...
and chosen by service clubs and community organizations. At that time, Seattle's Jewish Transcript called him "the man who has brought the greatest amount of respect and prestige to the Jewish people of Seattle." Seattle's Nathan Eckstein Middle School
Nathan Eckstein Middle School
Nathan Eckstein Middle School is located in Seattle, Washington and is part of the Seattle Public Schools.-History:...
is named in his honor.
Life and career
Eckstein was born to Lazarus Eckstein and Johanna Haas in BavariaBavaria
Bavaria, formally the Free State of Bavaria is a state of Germany, located in the southeast of Germany. With an area of , it is the largest state by area, forming almost 20% of the total land area of Germany...
in 1873. After a gymnasium education in Munich
Munich
Munich The city's motto is "" . Before 2006, it was "Weltstadt mit Herz" . Its native name, , is derived from the Old High German Munichen, meaning "by the monks' place". The city's name derives from the monks of the Benedictine order who founded the city; hence the monk depicted on the city's coat...
, he emigrated to New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
, where he spent a decade in the wholesale
Wholesale
Wholesaling, jobbing, or distributing is defined as the sale of goods or merchandise to retailers, to industrial, commercial, institutional, or other professional business users, or to other wholesalers and related subordinated services...
grocery business beginning in 1888. He came to Seattle in 1898, where he went to work for Seattle wholesaler Schwabachers and Co.
Schwabacher Brothers
The Schwabacher Brothers—Louis Schwabacher , Abraham Schwabacher , and Sigmund Schwabacher —were pioneering Bavarian-born Jewish merchants, important in the economic development of the Washington Territory and later Washington State...
and in 1902 married Mina Alice Schwabacher daughter of Abraham Schwabacher, one of the original Schwabacher Brothers.
Eckstein became vice president and later chief executive officer of Schwabachers, guiding the company through both World Wars and the Great Depression
Great Depression
The Great Depression was a severe worldwide economic depression in the decade preceding World War II. The timing of the Great Depression varied across nations, but in most countries it started in about 1929 and lasted until the late 1930s or early 1940s...
. Besides being a member of numerous organizations ranging from the Rainier Club
Rainier Club
The Rainier Club is a private club in Seattle, Washington; Priscilla Long of HistoryLink.org calls it "Seattle's preeminent private club." Its clubhouse building, completed in 1904, is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. It was founded in 1888 in what was then the Washington Territory...
to B'nai B'rith
B'nai B'rith
B'nai B'rith International |Covenant]]" is the oldest continually operating Jewish service organization in the world. It was initially founded as the Independent Order of B'nai B'rith in New York City, on , 1843, by Henry Jones and 11 others....
to both the Shrine and Scottish Rite
Scottish Rite
The Ancient and Accepted Scottish Rite of Freemasonry , commonly known as simply the Scottish Rite, is one of several Rites of the worldwide fraternity known as Freemasonry...
Masons
Freemasonry
Freemasonry is a fraternal organisation that arose from obscure origins in the late 16th to early 17th century. Freemasonry now exists in various forms all over the world, with a membership estimated at around six million, including approximately 150,000 under the jurisdictions of the Grand Lodge...
, and a trustee of organizations such as Goodwill Industries
Goodwill Industries
Goodwill Industries International is a not-for-profit organization that provides job training, employment placement services and other community-based programs for people who have a disability, lack education or job experience, or face employment challenges...
and the Seattle Symphony Orchestra, he served on a volunteer basis in numerous public capacities, including on the Seattle School Board (1913–1920), as chair of the Washington State Tax Commission (1921–1922), chair of the Seattle Community Fund (1924, 1925; this was the forerunner of the city's United Way), and as a member of a commission to revise the City Charter (1925). The last resulted in a proposed charter that was defeated by the city's voters. In 1931 there was talk of him running as a Republican for the U.S. Senate
United States Senate
The United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of the United States, and together with the United States House of Representatives comprises the United States Congress. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution. Each...
, but he declined to do so.
Eckstein's years on the School Board were controversial. This was during a period of great confrontation between labor and capital in Seattle—the Seattle General Strike of 1919 was the first such action in the United States—and Schwabachers' support for the open shop
Open shop
An open shop is a place of employment at which one is not required to join or financially support a union as a condition of hiring or continued employment...
put Eckstein firmly on capital's side of the divide. The labor unions strongly opposed his candidacy. Eckstein, a naturalized
Naturalization
Naturalization is the acquisition of citizenship and nationality by somebody who was not a citizen of that country at the time of birth....
American citizen of German birth, stood with most businessmen in supporting U.S. entry into World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
and even bowed to pressure to drop German language
German language
German is a West Germanic language, related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. With an estimated 90 – 98 million native speakers, German is one of the world's major languages and is the most widely-spoken first language in the European Union....
courses from the Seattle Public Schools
Seattle Public Schools
Seattle Public Schools is the school district serving Seattle, Washington, USA. Its headquarters are in the John Stanford Center for Educational Excellence.-List of schools:...
curriculum.
Eckstein was a proudly believing Jew
Judaism
Judaism ) is the "religion, philosophy, and way of life" of the Jewish people...
, and served as president and trustee of Seattle's Temple De Hirsch, now Temple De Hirsch Sinai
Temple De Hirsch Sinai
Temple De Hirsch Sinai is a Reform Jewish congregation with campuses in Seattle and nearby Bellevue, Washington, USA. It was formed as a 1971 merger between the earlier Temple De Hirsch and Temple Sinai and is the largest Reform congregation in the Pacific Northwest.The old Temple De Hirsch...
. "The prejudice under which the Jew is suffering is not due to his religion," he said on one occasion. "The greatest criticism of the Jew is that he is irreligious. If every Jew belonged to a temple or synagogue there would not be one percent of the prejudice that exists today"
By the late 1930s, Eckstein, though still running Schwabachers', had a much-improved relationship with organized labor. In 1937 and 1938, he was part of a citizen's committee that successfully arbitrated in a jurisdictional dispute between the International Longshoremen's Association
International Longshoremen's Association
The International Longshoremen's Association is a labor union representing longshore workers along the East Coast of the United States and Canada, the Gulf Coast, the Great Lakes, Puerto Rico, and inland waterways...
(ILA) under Harry Bridges
Harry Bridges
Harry Bridges was an Australian-American union leader, in the International Longshore and Warehouse Union , a longshore and warehouse workers' union on the West Coast, Hawaii and Alaska which he helped form and led for over 40 years...
and the Teamsters
Teamsters
The International Brotherhood of Teamsters is a labor union in the United States and Canada. Formed in 1903 by the merger of several local and regional locals of teamsters, the union now represents a diverse membership of blue-collar and professional workers in both the public and private sectors....
under Dave Beck
Dave Beck
Dave Beck was an American labor leader, and president of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters from 1952 to 1957...
over organizing inland warehouse workers.
Nathan and Mina Eckstein had two daughters, Johanna—a noted Seattle philanthropist and patron of the arts—and Babette.
External links
- Preliminary Guide to the Nathan Eckstein Papers 1880-1943, University of Washington Libraries Special Collections.
- Photo of Eckstein marching in a 1915 Shriners' parade, University of Washington Libraries Digital Collections
- Photo of Mina and Nathan Eckstein circa 1930, University of Washington Libraries Digital Collections