On Saturday, June 3rd, the Wabaunsee County Historical Society will hold its annual meeting at the Beecher Bible and Rifle Church in Wabaunsee, Kansas. The meeting’s location is part of a year-long commemoration of the 150th anniversary of the arrival of the Connecticut Kansas Colony. The native stone church is listed on the National Register of Historic Places and is one of the oldest in the state. Debby Applegate, author of the soon to be released book, “The Most Famous Man in America, The Biography of Henry Ward Beecher” will speak at 1 pm. The public is invited to attend a noon meal held in the fellowship hall of the church. The cost is $8. Reservations for the meal must be made by May 30th by calling 785-765-2200. Wabaunsee is located 3 miles west of the junction of K-99 and K-18. K-18 between Manhattan and Wabaunsee is closed for construction.

Abraham Lincoln called him “the most influential man in America”—who became the nineteenth century’s most famous preacher, until he was accused of seducing his best friend’s wife.  Beecher inserted himself into nearly every important drama of the era— among them the antislavery and women’s suffrage movements, the rise of the entertainment industry and tabloid press, and controversies ranging from Darwinian evolution to presidential politics. He was notorious for his irreverent humor and melodramatic gestures, such as auctioning slaves to freedom in his pulpit and providing rifles—nicknamed “Beecher’s Bibles”—to the antislavery freestate forces in Kansas.

Featuring the page-turning suspense of a novel and dramatic new historical evidence, Debby Applegate has written the definitive biography of this captivating, mercurial, and sometimes infuriating figure. The publication date for this book is June 27, 2006.

Learn more at www.themostfamousmaninamerica.com.