University Of Delaware: In Memoriam: John J. Beer

Press release from the University of Delaware:

Article by UDaily staff

October 19, 2021

Retired history professor remembered for kindness, love of teaching, social justice activism

John J. Beer, 94, who taught history at the University of Delaware for 31 years until retiring in 1992, passed away on Oct. 2, 2021, in Kennett Square, Pennsylvania. He was well known for his scholarship, enthusiasm for teaching, kindness to students and colleagues, dedication to his Quaker faith and devotion to activism for peace and justice.

About Dr. Beer

As a child, Dr. Beer fled Germany with his Jewish family in the 1930s and came to the U.S. in 1937, settling on an egg farm in Vineland, New Jersey. After graduating from Vineland High School, he joined the U.S. Navy in 1945 and served on an aircraft carrier in the Pacific and then in Washington, D.C.

He studied chemistry at Earlham College, where he met Frances Nicholson, and they married in 1951. After receiving a master’s degree in chemistry at the University of Illinois, he went on to earn a doctorate in the history of science.

Dr. Beer taught at Oklahoma State University for three years before joining the UD faculty in 1961. When he retired in 1992, he was awarded emeritus status, with College of Arts and Sciences Dean Mary P. Richards citing his “major contributions” to the University, including his dedication to the teaching of western civilization and to making it “the kind of dynamic experience that excites students about history.”

A resident of Newark, Delaware, for 41 years, Dr. Beer was a founding member of Newark Friends Meeting. He served that meeting and other Quaker organizations in many roles, including ministering, teaching Sunday school, participating in work camps and mentoring students, especially during the Vietnam War years.

Dr. Beer has been a member of the History of Science Society, the American Historical Association and the Society of History and Technology.

He was preceded in death earlier this year by Fran, his wife of 69 years; by his parents, Lucy and Otto Beer; siblings Lise, Martin and Hilda; and young daughter Carolyn. He is survived by children Jennifer, Sandra, Michael (Latanja) and Matthew (Elizabeth) and grandchildren Carolyn, Seth, Avery, Kian Thomasbeer and Skye Thomasbeer.

His family suggested that donations in Dr. Beer’s memory can be given to Pacem in Terris or any other of the many organizations he supported.

The full obituary is available on the funeral home’s website, where condolences may be left online.

Tributes and remembrances

Following are some of the many thoughts shared by colleagues and students.

George Basalla, professor emeritus of history: "I will always remember John Beer as part of a team [UD Profs. Beer, Basalla and Eugene Ferguson] who worked smoothly together, over decades, fostering the growth of studies in the history of science and technology at the University. John was a prime contributor to that cause."

This press release was produced by the University of Delaware. The views expressed here are the author’s own.