George Helgesen Fitch was an American humorist who is best remembered
for his book "At Good Old Siwash" (1911), a collection of eleven
stories that first appeared in the Saturday Evening Post. Drawn from
his student days at Knox College in Galesburg, Illinois, Fitch told of
the exploits of the big Swede, Ole Skjarsen and the Eta Bita Pie
fraternity.
Fitch helped pay for his college education, starting at the age of
nine, from the money he saved while working at the same printing plant
that employed his father. Fitch was the oldest of two boys and a
daughter born to Elmer and Rachel Fitch. His father had also at one
time been a school teacher and later became a publisher.
After college Fitch worked on several newspapers in Illinois and Iowa.
In 1912 he was elected to the Illinois House of Representatives.
Fitch was also remembered for a story he wrote about one of his hobbies
"My Demon Motor Boat" (1912).
George Helgesen Fitch died at a hospital in Berkeley, California from
complications after a failed appendectomy. He and his wife had been
visiting his sister, who was a student at the University of California.
Besides his wife, Fitch left behind two young daughters. His remains
were laid to rest at a cemetery in Peoria, Illinois.
