Father Henry Charlton Beck (1902-1965) was a well-known Episcopal priest and author of numerous books about South Jersey. His first job was as a staff writer on the Camden Courier Post. It was while he was there that he decided to research and write about out-of-the-way, largely forgotten places in southern New Jersey. He found he had a natural talent for drawing interesting memories from the characters he interviewed, and published a whole series of books about the district. He was a committed member of the Grace Episcopal Church but had to wait for years until after the end of World War II before he was accepted for a longed-for deaconate. In 1948 he was ordained as a priest, working at first in parishes, and later writing for church papers and lecturing full-time under special assignment to the Bishop of New Jersey. He died from a heart attack in 1965 at the age of 62.

There is a long and interesting article about Beck by Don Harris that is also available on a much easier-to-read pdf file.

His travel books are readily available.

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