W. B. Stevens

The Reverend William Buel Stevens (1862–1943) was an American holiness evangelist, itinerant tent preacher, and hymn writer whose deeply sorrowful yet enduringly hopeful life gave the world one of the most famous Southern gospel folk hymns in history. Affiliated with the late-19th-century Holiness movement, Stevens spent his ministry navigating severe personal tragedy, including the catastrophic loss of all his children.

Out of a desperate search for theological meaning amidst absolute grief, he penned a simple, profound lyric that struck a chord across the American heartland. Though his name was frequently left off the printing presses, his words became a standard anthem of comfort recorded by icons ranging from Johnny Cash to Elvis Presley.

Born into War, Raised in Grief

William Buel Stevens was born in 1862 in the rural Lawnridge community of Scotland County, Missouri. His infancy was immediately shadowed by the violence of the American Civil War. That same year, his father, Buel Stevens, was arrested alongside a group of roughly eighty "German Methodist" sympathizers and charged with mutiny. Made an example of by military authorities, the elder Stevens was sent to the notorious federal prison in Alton, Illinois, though he was successfully returned to active service after a grueling six-month appeals process.

As William reached his late teens, a pattern of sudden, tragic loss began to reshape his family. His 48-year-old uncle died suddenly of a heart condition; just a couple of years later, his 17-year-old cousin collapsed and died from the exact same condition. These early shocks exposed Stevens to the unpredictable fragility of life and primed his heart for a deeply empathetic, comfort-oriented ministry.

The Tent Revival and the Empty Cradle

As a young man, Stevens experienced a profound spiritual awakening. Embracing the doctrine of entire sanctification, he and his wife formally joined the Church of God Holiness, a conservative denomination born out of the Wesleyan holiness revival.

Driven by an urgent desire to preach, the couple became traveling tent evangelists, journeying across the rural Midwest to host multi-week revival campaigns. Their sacrificial labor left a permanent footprint on the region, directly establishing two vibrant, lasting church communities:

• One parish in Queen City, Missouri

• One parish in Moulton, Iowa

Yet, while they brought spiritual hope to thousands of rural families under the canvas of their revival tents, their private life was an unending crucible of mourning. All of their babies died before them. Several passed away as small infants or young children. Their son, Waldo, managed to survive into early adulthood, only to be snatched away at nineteen years of age. A daughter lived slightly longer but also predeceased her parents.

Stevens was left staring at a row of small headstones, tasked with preaching a good and loving God to others while his own arms and cradle remained completely empty.

The Masterpiece of Southern Folk Hymnody

In 1911, wrestling with the profound psychological weight of his empty home and the apparent injustice of seeing wicked men prosper while faithful servants suffered, Stevens sat down and poured his heartbreak into a poem:

"Tempted and tried, we’re oft made to wonder..."

(Universally known across the globe as "Farther Along")

The Theology of the Unseen "Why"

The hymn is a raw, conversational masterpiece that speaks directly to the universal human struggle with unanswerable grief. Rather than offering cheap, easy answers or rigid theological platitudes, Stevens openly validates the believer's confusion.

• The Problem of the Prosperity of the Wicked: The verses honestly note that "others are living at ease while doing wrong," contrasting their smooth paths with the rocky, sorrowful road walked by faithful Christians.

• The Refrain of Hope: The soaring chorus offers no immediate earthly solution. Instead, it anchors the soul in the promise of ultimate, future illumination—reassuring the singer that complete understanding is waiting just beyond the veil of this life.

Hymn Excerpt: The Timeless Chorus

Farther along we’ll know all about it,

Farther along we’ll understand why;

Cheer up, my brother, live in the sunshine,

We’ll understand it all by and by.

The Mystery of Authorship and the Global Airwaves

Because "Farther Along" was published in cheap, itinerant convention songbooks and quickly passed from mouth to mouth across the Appalachian and Southern folk traditions, Stevens’s name was frequently omitted, leading many hymnals to list the track as "Anonymous" or "Traditional." It was translated into Spanish as "Cuando tentado, yo he deseado," spreading its reach into Latin American congregations.

The song’s profound emotional resonance eventually caught the attention of mainstream American music culture. It became a foundational standard of the country, bluegrass, and southern gospel genres, recorded by a legendary pantheon of 20th-century artists:

                  ┌──────────────────────────────────────────┐
                  │    NOTABLE RECORDINGS OF "FARTHER ALONG" │
                  └────────────────────┬─────────────────────┘
                                       │
         ┌─────────────────────────────┼─────────────────────────────┐
         ▼                             ▼                             ▼
   JOHNNY CASH                   ELVIS PRESLEY                 THE TRIO (1987)
 Recorded a deeply somber,     Featured it as a cornerstone  Dolly Parton, Emmylou Harris,
 acoustic version honoring     of his Grammy-winning gospel  and Linda Ronstadt cut an iconic,
 his working-class roots.      repertoire.                   Grammy-winning bluegrass track.

William Buel Stevens continued to faithfully minister the gospel until his final days, passing away in 1943 at eighty-one years of age, just one year after the death of his beloved wife. He was buried alongside his children in the soil of the American Midwest.

Living an ordinary, hidden life marked by extraordinary personal devastation, Stevens’s enduring historical legacy is that he refused to let his sorrow curdle into bitterness. By translating his private tears into a universal vocabulary of patient endurance, his simple, rural poem continues to help millions of grieving hearts look past the tragedies of today and trust the "by and by" of tomorrow.