Benjamin Havelock Newcomb, 82, died on November 29, 2020 in Lubbock, TX. He was born on July 1, 1938 in Philadelphia, PA, the son of Lionel Benjamin Newcomb and Margaret Warner Goheen. He grew up in Pitman, NJ.
Ben earned a Bachelor of Arts from Haverford College (PA) in 1960, a Master of Arts from the University of Pennsylvania in 1961, and his Ph.D. from Penn in 1964. He was a Professor of American History at Texas Tech University in Lubbock from 1964 until his retirement in 2000. He served on the Faculty Senate at Texas Tech for many years and was its President for a few terms. He was also a member of multiple professional organizations and societies. Ben is the published author of two books - “Franklin and Galloway: A Political Partnership,” published in 1972, and “Political Partisanship in the American Middle Colonies, 1700-1776,” published in 1995.
Ben was a member of St. Christopher’s Episcopal Church in Lubbock, where he sang in the choir and served in various small groups. He also loved to return home and visit the Jersey Shore in Ocean City, where he taught his children, as well as numerous nieces and nephews how to jump waves and bodysurf. Ben loved spending time with his grandchildren, whom he made time for often. In his retirement, he also loved to read and research and was an avid lifelong Philadelphia Phillies fan.
Ben is survived by his son, Benjamin Everett Newcomb and his wife Lisa, and grandchildren Abby, Landon and Logan of Houston, and by his daughter Laura Margaret Jones and her husband Michael, and grandchildren Avery and Carlee of Lubbock.
