Surname: Beck Forename(s): Ellen b. 1858. d. 1924. Nationality: Irish.
Poet, short story writer, and school teacher. Pseudonyms: “Magdalen Rock,” “M. Rock.”
Roman Catholic. Lived in the village of Rock, near Dungannon, County Tyrone. Beck
taught in the village school from the age of 16 and apparently rarely left the village.
Friends with Irish poet Rose Kavanagh. Published poetry in Chambers’s Journal, poetry and prose in the Irish Monthly, as well as contributions to other London periodicals. Co-composed an operetta with
Joseph Seymour. Biographical information: “Authentic Sketches of Living Catholic Authors,”
Catholic World, vol. 65, September 1897, pp. 854-5; Colman 39. The Chambers’s Journal ledger entries for poems by “Magdalen Rock” and “M. Rock” refer to the author as
Miss Magdalen Beck of Rock, Dungannon, Ireland (NLS Dep 341/370, 371). (AC)