BEECHER. — Name of an illustrious family from Connecticut in the United States, descended from one of the founders of the New Haven colony. The most celebrated members of this family were, besides Lyman B., his children Henry Ward B., Harriett B. (Mrs. Stowe), and Edward B.
1. LYMAN B
Born in New Haven (Conn.) in 1775, he studied at Yale University. Immediately after completing his studies, in 1798 he became pastor of a Presbyterian church on Long Island, later passing over to the Congregationalists. In 1835 he was accused by his presbytery of teaching false, that is, non-Calvinist, doctrines, but was acquitted by the synod. He died in Brooklyn in 1863. He remained famous for his sermons, but above all for his children.2. HENRY WARD B
Born in 1813, he too was successively a Presbyterian and a Congregationalist. He was one of the most gifted orators in the United States. He was accused of adultery, and, although acquitted by the court, his reputation suffered greatly as a result. He worked tirelessly for useful but unpopular reforms, such as the abolition of slavery, temperance, etc. A few years before his death he denied the eternity of the punishments of the next life. He contributed writings to various journals; he was editor-in-chief of the Independent, and in 1870 founded The Christian Union. He died in 1887.3. HARRIETT STOWE B
Because of her great literary success, she was the most celebrated of Lyman’s daughters. Born in 1811, she married C. Stowe, under whose name she is generally known. In 1851 she wrote the novel Uncle Tom’s Cabin («Uncle Tom’s Cabin»), which achieved enormous circulation and contributed substantially to the Civil War (1861–65), from which resulted the abolition of slavery in the United States. She died in 1896.4. EDWARD B
Born in 1803, he was a Congregationalist theologian, editor of The Congregationalist and, for several years, editor of the Christian Union, founded by his brother Henry Ward. He professed a doctrine of his own, namely, that in this life man is in a progressive state and in transition between primitive life and a future life, which is to come after death. The struggle between good and evil does not end with this life; it will continue in the next, with the final victory of good and the suppression of evil. He died in Brooklyn in 1895.BIBL.: Ph. Schaff-J. J. Herzog, s. V. ENOCH. of Religious Knowledge, New York 1891; A. E. Dunning, Congregationalism in America, there 1864. Camillo Crivelli