George Albert Bayless, Jr.
May 18, 1925 - October 2, 2017
Obituary
George Albert Bayless, Jr.
George Albert Bayless, Jr., born to Edna Elston and George Albert Bayless, Sr., in Seattle, passed away peacefully at his home in Eagle Crest, OR, on October 2nd at age 92.
George grew up in West Seattle where he attended Gatewood Grade School, West Seattle Junior High and graduated from West Seattle High School in 1943. He was a member of the Order of DeMolay and a Sea Scout, laying the foundation for his life-long love of all things maritime.
George joined the U.S. Navy in August 1943, serving as a Seabee on Adak and Okinawa during World War II. He received an honorable discharge in 1946 and enrolled at the University of Washington, where he graduated with a degree in Business Administration and an Army ROTC Commission in 1949.
George joined the family bindery business after graduation and purchased Bayless Bindery from his father in 1971. Bayless Bindery grew to 100 employees from its early days on Wall Street in Seattle to a 45,000-square-foot building in Renton. In 1995, he retired after 55 years in the industry.
George was a 45 year member of Rotary International and served as president of both the Seattle Club of Printing House Craftsmen and the Washington-Alaska Printing Industry Association. He was named Printer of the Year by both organizations and received the Ben Franklin Award from the Oregon-Washington Printing Industry. He also was a charter inductee into the IMMORTALS pantheon, sponsored by MARKETING Newspaper, the industry trade publication in which he was the first advertiser in 1986.
Pursuing his deep interest in maritime, George served on the boards of the Puget Sound Maritime Historical Society and the Northwest Seaport. He was chairman of restoration for the historic Foss Tug and lightship “Relief” vessels and was a life member of the U.S. Power Squadron and Seattle Navy League. He published the cruising navigation books, Marine Atlas Volume I and Volume II, for nearly 40 years as well a 500-page history of the Puget Sound ferry boat industry, dating back to the turn of the 20th century.
George is survived by his wife Ann, sons Mike (Chris) Bayless, Bob (Robyn) Bayless and Tip (Anne) Bayless, step-children Rob (Anna) Jelderks, Derek (Marian) Jelderks and Victoria Jelderks, and his grandchildren Casey, Corey, Sam, Riley and Kirsti, and Ann’s grandchildren Ryan, Anthony, Michael, Rachel, Thomas, Ingrid, Claire Marie and William.
A visitation for George will be held Sunday, October 15th from 12:00-3:00pm with Cryptside Services at 3:00pm all at Bonney-Watson Washington Memorial, 16445 International Blvd, SeaTac, Washington.