Obituary - Born in S. Africa in 1893; educated at Grey College, Bloemfontein; graduated first from the University of the Cape of Good Hope and secondly from St. John's College, Cambridge. From 1916-19 he served in France in the Royal Garrison Artillery and was awarded the MC. He married Doris ....., a very pretty VAD he met in France. She came from Worcestershire. They went to S. Africa. In 1924 they came to Kenya as V.A.B. (always known as 'Teddy' because of his likeness to Theodore Roosevelt). Had a job as Agricultural Chemist in the Dept. of Agriculture. He was largely responsible for the introduction of pyrethrum into Kenya in 1928, and later for the development of the industry undertaking much of the early research work on the cultivation, drying and processing of the crop. In WW2 he was responsible for the administration of the whole establishment of the Scott Agricultural Laboratories. He also carried out research on many new problems that arose in connection with the war effort. There were shortages of staff, materials and equipment. He was largely responsible for the establishment and subsequent development and control of a large dehydrated vegetable project, which contributed in no small measure to Kenya's war effort. In 1945 he was awarded the OBE. He resigned in 1947 from the Dept. of Agriculture to become Scientific Adviser to the Pyrethrum Board of Kenya. From then until his retirement in June 1955 he continued his work on pyrethrum, evolving a rapid spectrophotometric method of analysis which has enabled the industry to introduce a system whereby the monthly production of every grower is graded upon its pyrethrum content. He was a kindly man and listened carefully to many their troubles; ideas etc. He and Doris lost their first child, Christabel, before they came to Kenya. Their elder son, Verey Robert Sydney Beckley was born in 1924. Killed in 1953 in the service of the Kenya Regt. Their second daughter, Felicity Claire, died of septicaemia, in 1942 (she was born in 1925). Their third daughter, Janet Evelyn was born in 1929. Their last child is Peter Hugh, born in 1932 and now in S. Africa. He and his wife bore their tragedies with great courage and cheerfulness but our family always felt that Teddy never recovered from Verey's death. Three years later he and his wife went to Mombasa for a holiday, and on day one he had a heart attack as he went for a swim. He is buried in Mombasa. Source:- Mrs P. Tomalin

Dominion - Agricultural Department - Scott Agricultural Laboratory - Agricultural Chemist - 1930

Mombasa Mbaraki cemetery - Verey Beckley, died 10 Jun 1956 age 62, European Hospital, Myocardial de-emenation

Gazette - Voters List 1936 - Very Alfred Beckley, Agricultural Chemist, Sclaters Rd., Nbi and Dora W Beckley, Sclaters Rd., Nbi