William Beckett Obituary in St. Lois Argus (March 13, 1954)

The Saint Louis Argus published this obituary of William H. J. Beckett, known as “Pops,” on Friday, March 13, 1954. Written by Arthur Kirk and titled “City Mourns Passing of Great athletic Leader ‘Pops’ Beckett: Was Idol Of Thousands Of Young Athletes,” the articles comes with a large illustrated portrait of Beckett. There are other articles on the page.William Henry Jackson Beckett (1882-1954) was the first student to receive a degree from Springfield College, then known as the International YMCA Training School. Although he originally wanted to become a social worker, Dr. McCurdy convinced him to pursue physical education. After graduating in 1906, he went on to earn his MA at the University of Pennsylvania. Beckett was an ardent civic and religious advocate. He worked for two years in the physical education department at Howard University, and then as a physical education director at YMCAs in Baltimore, Washington D.C., and St. Louis. During World War I, Beckett served as a lieute