Wheaton College Alumni Magazine Winter 2014 | Page 37

meet one of wheaton’s earliest grads–and his Kindred
The remarkable family of George H. Beecher,
a member of the Wheaton College class of 1860, included
Harriet Beecher Stowe, author of Uncle Tom’s Cabin.
by Keith Call, Special Collections Assistant
“They were amusing, lovable, and outrageous,” wrote a biographer about the family
of Lyman Beecher (1775-1863), a Congregational revivalist, abolitionist, and president
of Lane Seminary. It was at their father’s knee that the 11 children in this Connecticut
household learned the principles of a moral universe. Such an upbringing would lead
several of them toward public service and renown, as each acquired a mature voice
with a platform from which to address societal malaise.
Henry Ward Beecher thundered against alcohol from his Brooklyn pulpit. Catharine
Beecher championed education for females, while her sister, Harriet Beecher Stowe,
torched the brittle tinder of anti-slavery sentiment with her 1852 novel, Uncle Tom’s
Cabin. So influential were her words that Abraham Lincoln, meeting her, allegedly
remarked, “So you’re the little lady who started this big war!”
Adventuring westernmost among the clan was Edward Beecher. Born in 1803, he
studied divinity at Yale and Andover. In 1830 he accepted the presidency of Illinois
College in Jacksonville, desiring to “educate and evangelize” the Mississippi Valley. Here
he fearlessly supported abolitionist Elijah P. Lovejoy, whose Alton press was threatened
by pro-South advocates, resulting in his 1837 martyrdom.

George H. Beecher, class of 1860

Returning to Boston in 1844, Edward Beecher soon relocated to Illinois as pastor of

Below. In 1837, well before he founded Wheaton
College, 26-year-old Jonathan Blanchard took
notes in his journal as he listened to Lyman
Beecher preach.

Galesburg First Congregational Church, associating with Jonathan Blanchard, Knox
College’s president since 1845. When conflict arose between Blanchard and George
Washington Gale, choleric founder of the city and the college, Edward defended
Blanchard, as did his son George H. Beecher, a Knox student who led a rebellion
against the opposition.

Photography: Courtesy of Wheaton College Archives
and Special Collections

Wary of tensions, Knox College fired Blanchard, whose departure allowed him to
assume leadership of the cash-strapped Illinois Institute, later called Wheaton College.
Instead of staying, George Beecher and two classmates moved north with President
Blanchard, graduating in the 1860 Wheaton College Commencement, where the
young reformer spoke on “The Theory of Popular Amusements.” Sadly, George’s life,
full of promise, was cut short when he drowned while boating with cousins.
Despite distance, relations between Jonathan Blanchard and Edward Beecher
remained strong. In fact, Edward was approached in 1868 to serve on the Wheaton
College Board of Trustees, but he declined, citing his age and position with the
Knox College administration. “Br. [Philo] Carpenter could do more for you than I,”
he suggested to Blanchard. “If he will accept there is no one better.” Edward soon
moved to New York to pastor Parkville Church. At 86 he suffered an accident that
almost necessitated the amputation of a limb. “Oh, that’s all right, doctor,” he replied.
“I always thought I’d rather like a wooden leg.” He died at 91 in 1895.
Undoubtedly the Beechers were persistent, valiant, and farseeing, tackling slavery—
among other ills—while maintaining a mostly consistent adherence to Christian
orthodoxy. They belong to history as heroes.

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