Rev. Lyman Beecher (1775-1863)

4TH MINISTER OF THE EAST HAMPTON CHURCH
1799-1810

Saints, Sinners, and Beechers
by Lyman Beecher Stowe, 1934
 a Biography summary report by Carol Schumacher as presented to Ramblers, November 2022

 The author of the 1934 biography, “Saints, Sinners, and Beechers'' was Lyman Beecher Stowe. He was the grandson of Harriet Beecher Stowe, most famous for writing Uncle Tom’s Cabin, and the great grandson of Lyman Beecher, one of East Hamptons' most historically significant residents. It is the section about his great grandfather that I will share with you, regarding Lyman Beecher’s time spent in East Hampton along with an introduction to Lyman Beecher’s early life. (His home here is now our Village Hall) 

The year was 1775, and Lyman Beecher had a precarious start.  Born prematurely to David and Esther Beecher in New Haven Connecticut at 7 months along. The midwife, worried about Esther, set him aside to die as he was “so puny and unpromising”.  After tending to his tubercular mother, the nurse was surprised to find him still breathing. She washed and dressed him, remarking later, “It’s a pity he ain’t goin’ to die with his ma,” when Esther passed away two days later. Even a neighbor was to have been heard saying, “He ain’t hardly worth raisin’, be he?”. The future for this new born would be a surprise to all who knew him from these early days. Lyman Beecher would go on to be known as,” the father of more brains than any other man in America,” according to one of his contemporaries, Theodore Parker.

 His uncle, Lot Benton, who adopted him as a son, gave him an early life of farming, fishing, and hunting. Lyman became a strong young man and he was set to inherit his childless uncle's farm.  Uncle Lot, noticing a lack of interest and more importantly, a lack of skill in farming suggested college insead to Lyman’s father, David Beecher. Realizing his options, and knowing that it was a good idea, Lyman went off to Yale Divinity School in 1793. 

 Lyman Beecher was ordained as a minister in 1799. In need of a Pastor, the Presbyterian Church of East Hampton (at the time located just down the road, where Guild Hall now resides) called on a very young minister, straight from the University. Loading up a small white trunk with all of his clothes and personal items, which he held on the pommel of his saddle on his horse and bridle.  Lyman boarded a sloop in New London Connecticut, heading for East Hampton, New York. Keeping the habit of precarious beginnings, during the voyage his horse fell overboard and almost drowned, but was safely recovered along with his belongings. Our small town didn’t have any idea what it was in for at the time.

 Upon arrival Lyman Beecher found the church was somewhat divided by the “Age of Enlightenment '' and influenced by deism. He blamed faculty members at the newly formed Clinton Academy for introducing “Infidelity and French rationalism” to the people of East Hampton, and his daily sermons were aimed right at the conscience of his parishioners, which proved to be highly effective. There was a group in town known as The Infidel Club, which is now surmised to be more of a drinking club than a theological discussion group, that was often targeted during these sermons.

 In 1804 while Beecher resided in East Hampton, a duel between Alexander Hamilton and Aaron Burr, resulting in the death of Hamilton, caught the attention of the nation.  Lyman Beecher wrote a sermon in response to this event, which gained popularity across the country; “The Remedy for Duelling”, it became widely published in 1806. He had said, ”There is no way to deal with these men…but to take punishment of their crimes into our own hands. Our conscience must be the judge, and we must ourselves convict, and find, and disgrace them at the polls.” The anti-dueling movement became a national crusade with Beecher as one of its main leaders. It was said that during Henry Clay's presidential campaign against Andrew Jackson, an alleged duelist, that 40,000 copies of Beecher’s sermon were distributed around the country. 

 In 1806 On New Year’s Day, having a strong interest in the history of East Hampton, Beecher delivered a sermon on the history of the church and the town. Acknowledging the outstanding collections of records of which East Hampton should be proud of Beecher said about the early settlers:

“They would have abhorred the infidel maxim, that religion and politics have no connection…They considered that the precepts of their religion as extending to the regulation of their civil as well as to the regulation of their moral conduct…” (an interesting thought given today is election day!)

 Due to finding it hard to make a living at $300.00 a year his first 4 years and only $400.00 a year for his next 7 years. His wife had opened a private school to supplement their income where Lyman Beecher was an instructor. In 1811 the family left East Hampton to serve Congregational Churches in Litchfield Connecticut and Boston Massachusetts, some say for more money.

Lyman Beecher had three children while living here with the first of three wives, having thirteen children in total. Several of Beecher’s children went on to lead remarkable lives as well. All seven sons became ministers, and three of his five daughters became famous for their leadership roles. 

Catherine 1800-1907 a leader in the women’s education movement.
William (1802-1889) a minister.
Edward (1803-1895) a minister, college president and anti-slavery writer.
Mary
Tommy A minister
George A minister
Harriet Beecher Stowe (1811-1896) published more than 30 books.
Henry Ward
Charles (1815-1900) Florida’s superintendent of public instruction.
Frederick
Isabella Beecher Hooker (1822-1907) a champion of legal rights for women, founding the National Women's Suffrage Association.
Thomas (1824-1900) an early advocate of adapting church to modern urban conditions.
James

Video: Life in a Small Town: Rev. Lyman Beecher's Reflections on East Hampton 1798-1810 by Richard Barons, East Hampton Historical Society Lecture Series 2021

Video: East Hampton Historical Society Chief Curator Richard Barons presents: A Mighty Mind, A Mighty Chair: Lyman Beecher’s Windsor Writing Chair Comes Home, June 20, 2020.

Lyman Beecher, Remedy For Dueling, 1809 This Beecher publication includes a scrap with his signature. This is a sermon Beecher delivered to the Presbytery of Long Island at their Session in Aquebogue on April 16, 1806. Included are resolutions and the address for the Anti-Dueling Association of New York. At the time, Beecher was the minister in East Hampton. East Hampton Libray Long Island Collection

Booklet - A Brief History of the First Presbyterian Church of East Hampton 1648 - 1998, The Presbyterian Church of East Hampton, 350th Anniversary, by Rev. John Ames
(35page pdf file)