Clark S. (Clark Smith) Beardslee

Born in Coventry, New York, in 1850, Clark S. Beardslee was an American Congregational minister, theologian, and teacher. He studied at Amherst College and Hartford Theological Seminary, later also spending time at the University of Berlin. Early in his career he taught Hebrew at Hartford Theological Seminary before serving pastorates in Iowa, Arizona, and Massachusetts.

Beardslee eventually returned to Hartford Theological Seminary, where he became a professor of Biblical homiletics. Alongside his teaching and ministry, he wrote books aimed at religious education and thoughtful Christian leadership, including Teacher-training with the Master Teacher.

He is especially remembered today for Abraham Lincoln's Cardinal Traits, a study that looks at Lincoln through the lens of ethics and character. That focus fits Beardslee’s broader style as a writer: serious but approachable, interested not just in ideas themselves but in how moral conviction shapes a life.