William F. Beck (1904-1966) Papers

William F. Beck was born in Little Falls, Minnesota, on August 28, 1904. He was the son of Rev. Paul and Maria Butschke Beck. The first eight years of his formative education were spent in the parochial school system. His secondary and college educations were obtained at Concordia College, Saint Paul, Minnesota and were completed in 1924. He graduated from Concordia Seminary, Saint Louis, Missouri (1927); the institution from which he received the following degrees: B.A. (1945), B.D (1946), S.T.M (1954), and the Th.D. (1956).

He served two congregations in Illinois from 1930-43. He then undertook a position in Public Relations for the Lutheran Church Missouri Synod, a service which he performed from 1943-46. From 1946 until his death in 1966, he served in an editorial capacity for Concordia Publishing House. During this time he frequently served as an instructor at Concordia Seminary, Saint Louis, Missouri.

During the duration of his professional life, he was continually occupied in the preparation of a modern English edition of the Bible; this project was completed late in his life and thereafter. He also edited the C.P.H. series: Bible Story in Pictures. He authored the following books and tracts: Bible Truth, The Christ of the Gospels, A Dialog about the Jehovah’s Witnesses’ Bible, He Died and Rose for Me, The New Testament in the Language of Today, We Bring Christ, We Need a Good Bible, and The Crowds Around Calvary.

He married Euphemia Macleod in Iowa City, Iowa on July 23, 1933. This marriage produced two daughters: Rea Kleeman and Joy Rolf, and two sons: Reu and Mark Beck.

William Beck died on October 24, 1966, survived by his wife and children.