William Reed Newell
1868 – 1956

Born May 22, 1868, William Reed Newell attended Wooster (Ohio) College, graduating in 1891. After studies at Princeton and Oberlin Seminaries, he pastored the Bethesda Congregational Church in Chicago until 1895, when Moody invited him to become the Assistant Superintendent of Moody Bible Institute under R. A. Torrey.

In this position Newell demonstrated his extraordinary gift of Bible exposition. Great audiences in Chicago, St. Louis and Toronto flocked to hear his city-wide Bible classes, leading to the publication of his widely known commentaries, especially Romans, Verse By Verse; Hebrews, Verse By Verse; and The Book Of Revelation. During that period Newell wrote the beloved gospel hymn, “At Calvary.”

He was called into the presence of the One he gladly owned as his King on April 1, 1956. Few men have had a clearer grasp of the magnitude of God’s grace in Christ, or have been able to convey it with such lasting results.