William Henry Beecher was a dyspeptic minister who was called "The Unlucky" because misfortune attended all his ventures.

Beecher Family

William Beecher was born in New Haven, Connecticut, the eldest son of the Calvinist preacher Lyman Beecher

Lyman Beecher

Lyman Beecher was a Presbyterian minister, American Temperance Society co-founder and leader, and the father of 13 children, many of whom were noted leaders, including Harriet Beecher Stowe, Henry Ward Beecher, Charles Beecher, Edward Beecher, Isabella Beecher Hooker, Catharine Beecher, and Thomas...

 and Roxana Foote. He was the brother of Harriet Beecher Stowe

Harriet Beecher Stowe

Harriet Beecher Stowe was an American abolitionist and author. Her novel Uncle Tom's Cabin was a depiction of life for African-Americans under slavery; it reached millions as a novel and play, and became influential in the United States and United Kingdom...

, the 19th century abolitionist and writer most famous for her groundbreaking novel Uncle Tom's Cabin

Uncle Tom's Cabin

Uncle Tom's Cabin; or, Life Among the Lowly is an anti-slavery novel by American author Harriet Beecher Stowe. Published in 1852, the novel "helped lay the groundwork for the Civil War", according to Will Kaufman....

, Henry Ward Beecher

Henry Ward Beecher

Henry Ward Beecher was a prominent Congregationalist clergyman, social reformer, abolitionist, and speaker in the mid to late 19th century...

, pastor of the Plymouth Congregational church, and Charles Beecher

Charles Beecher

Charles Beecher was an American minister, composer of religious hymns, and prolific author.Beecher was born in Litchfield, Connecticut, the son of Lyman Beecher, an abolitionist Congregationalist preacher from Boston and Roxana Foote Beecher...

.

Immediate family

William Beecher married Katherine Edes on May 12, 1830 in New Haven Connecticut. Of his wedding he wrote:"Was married....No company, no cake, no cards-nothing pleasant about it." William and Katherine had 6 children: Agnes E. Beecher, Mary Ward Beecher, Lyman Beecher, Roxana Foote (Beecher) Prenzner, Robert E. Beecher, and Grace H. Beecher.

The Unlucky or "What shall we do with William?"

As a child William had a difficult time learning and was not a very good student. He apprenticed as a cabinet-maker and worked as a clerk in stores in Milford and Hartford, Connecticut, as well as New York. He studied theology at Andover but finished his studies under the directions of his father, before being licensed as a minister. He served as the minister of several churches, but each assignment was relatively short and typically ended with some type of discord over salary or a dislike from influential members of the congregation. William served at Middletown, Connecticut; Putnam, Ohio; Batavia, New York; Toledo and Euclid, Ohio; and North Brookfield, Massachusetts. He retired to Chicago, where he lived with his daughters until his death on June 23, 1889.