Beltramo family: Jack of all trades

Work was very important and Nat could not afford to lose any time on the job, even on his wedding day. Fred’s birth in 1902 was followed by a daughter Minnie in 1905. On April 5, 1906 another daughter, Mary, was born. She was only 2 weeks old when the Great Earthquake struck the city. Cool in the face of crisis, Nat hitched up his horse to the beer wagon where he was working, went home and loaded up as many of their belongings as he could pile in the wagon, took his wife and children and began making his way through the fiery chaos. He decided to travel south to San Bruno where he had recently bought property and had hoped someday to build a house. Later that day they arrived at Visitation Valley. The Red Cross had set up facilities there for the earthquake victims that they knew families like the Beltramos would need. After a three-day rest, Nat packed up the wagon and headed again toward San Bruno.

When they arrived in San Bruno, they were lucky to find an unoccupied house on Easton Avenue to live in until a house could be built on the property he owned on Masson Avenue. The Peninsula was much less affected by the earthquake, but the event was a catalyst for a huge migration of settlers to the small communities like San Bruno, Burlingame, Millbrae, etc. Nat was a well-liked, smart, hard-working individual and he was able to find work at Holy Cross Cemetery almost immediately. Using the beer wagon as his transportation, he drove to Holy Cross to work, but felt he was wasting the return trip home in an empty wagon, so he picked up horse feed and hay. In San Bruno, he sold the extra things he bought and this led to his starting his own business. In addition to selling grain and hay, he began selling coal for stoves and moving furniture or whatever a customer would pay for.

Son Fred was a very talented, smart and inquisitive boy. He began taking piano lessons with the aim of becoming a concert pianist. His father had recognized this talent and encouraged him to pursue his love of music. Not only could Fred play the piano at a young age, he also could compose music. He was in demand for performing at family get-togethers and neighborhood events. He seemed to be welcome everywhere. Another interest he developed was taking pictures. Photography was in its infancy and not everyone had a camera, but Fred did. He took pictures of everything and everybody. His favorite place to take pictures, however, was from a large, three-story barn his father had built behind his house for his fuel and draying business. Fred would climb out onto the roof and snap pictures of San Bruno from every direction. These photos have given San Bruno a remarkable document of the early stages of a city. Some of these extraordinary photos are displayed now on the walls of San Bruno City Hall.

In addition to photography, Fred began flying two-seater bi-planes as soon as they became available. He would take a buddy with him on many flights in so he could fly the plane while Fred took pictures.

At age 17, Fred suffered the loss of his father during the flu epidemic. As he was the only boy in the family, he was obliged to quit school to run the family business. This meant his dream of becoming a concert pianist was dashed as he was needed now to work to take care of his mother and his three sisters Minnie, Mary and Teresa, born in 1910. By the end of the 1920s, the draying and coal business was no longer able to compete with natural gas for stoves, and the business was closed. After that, Fred took up a number of pursuits: Insurance salesman, policeman and finally postman. He excelled in every endeavor due to his energy and enthusiasm. All during his lifetime, he continued to take photos and keep a diary. The day-to day-diary he wrote records a multitude of events that a young man growing up on the Peninsula would experience. It is a great look into the past, and Fred’s son Tony has been reviewing and polishing these memoirs into a book form. Hopefully, some day, this record of Fred Beltramo’s remarkable life will be published. The book should be fascinating.

Fred married Una Stone in the 1930s and in addition to son Tony, a daughter, Pamela was born to them.

Fred continued to be interested in his family, photography and flying all of his adult life and he has left a great photographic and written legacy. I have had the pleasure of printing many of his photographs in the two books I published on San Bruno, one in 1989 San Bruno — People and Places, and the second published by Arcadia — Images of America-San Bruno (ISBM)-0-7385-2859-5. The Arcadia publication can be viewed and acquired by contacting Amazon.com and my other works can be borrowed from the San Bruno Public Library and the San Mateo County History Museum.