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Henry Ward Beecher

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Religious Figure

The Resume

    (June 24, 1813-March 8, 1887)
    Born in Litchfield, Connecticut
    First minister of the Plymouth Congregational Church in Brooklyn (1847-87)
    Advocate for abolition, women's suffrage, temperance and the theory of evolution
    Brother of 'Uncle Tom's Cabin' author Harriet Beecher Stowe

Why he might be annoying:

    During the 'Bleeding Kansas' struggle between pro- and anti-slavery factions, he raised money for weapons, declaring 'there was more moral power in one [Sharps rifle] than in a hundred Bibles.'
    During a railroad strike, he told workers whose wages had been cut, 'If you are being reduced, go down boldly into poverty.'
    He used his fame to endorse everything from soap to lingerie.
    He denounced Victoria Woodhull for advocating free love, while carrying on his own adulterous affairs.
    He was involved in the biggest sex scandal of 19th century America when parishioner Theodore Tilton sued him for seducing his wife (1875).

Why he might not be annoying:

    His wife supported him throughout the trial (which ended with a hung jury).
    He held mock auctions that raised money to purchase the freedom of slaves.
    During the Civil War, his church raised and equipped a volunteer infantry regiment.
    Her toured England to undermine British support for the Confederacy.
    Abraham Lincoln said that no one else in history had 'so productive a mind.'

Credit: C. Fishel


Featured in the following Annoying Collections:

Year In Review:

    In 2023, Out of 1 Votes: 0% Annoying
    In 2022, Out of 6 Votes: 33.33% Annoying
    In 2021, Out of 13 Votes: 61.54% Annoying
    In 2020, Out of 3 Votes: 66.67% Annoying
    In 2019, Out of 15 Votes: 46.67% Annoying
    In 2018, Out of 22 Votes: 50.0% Annoying
    In 2017, Out of 10 Votes: 50.0% Annoying
    In 2016, Out of 4 Votes: 50.0% Annoying
    In 2015, Out of 17 Votes: 52.94% Annoying
    In 2014, Out of 50 Votes: 50.0% Annoying
    In 2013, Out of 13 Votes: 53.85% Annoying
    In 2012, Out of 8 Votes: 62.50% Annoying
    In 2011, Out of 6 Votes: 83.33% Annoying
    In 2010, Out of 23 Votes: 47.83% Annoying
    In 2009, Out of 12 Votes: 41.67% Annoying