The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48:

Beadle \Bea"dle\, n. [OE. bedel, bidel, budel, OF. bedel, F.
   bedeau, fr. OHG. butil, putil, G. b["u]ttel, fr. OHG. biotan,
   G. bieten, to bid, confused with AS. bydel, the same word as
   OHG. butil. See. Bid, v.]
   1. A messenger or crier of a court; a servitor; one who cites
      or bids persons to appear and answer; -- called also an
      apparitor or summoner.
      [1913 Webster]

   2. An officer in a university, who precedes public
      processions of officers and students. [Eng.]
      [1913 Webster]

   Note: In this sense the archaic spellings bedel (Oxford) and
         bedell (Cambridge) are preserved.
         [1913 Webster]

   3. An inferior parish officer in England having a variety of
      duties, as the preservation of order in church service,
      the chastisement of petty offenders, etc.
      [1913 Webster]

WordNet (r) 3.0 (2006):

beadle
    n 1: a minor parish official who serves a ceremonial function
    2: United States biologist who discovered how hereditary
       characteristics are transmitted by genes (1903-1989) [syn:
       Beadle, George Beadle, George Wells Beadle]

Moby Thesaurus II by Grady Ward, 1.0:

81 Moby Thesaurus words for "beadle":
   Bible clerk, Bible reader, G-man, MP, acolyte, almoner, anagnost,
   bailiff, beagle, bedral, bound bailiff, capitular, capitulary,
   captain, catchpole, chief of police, choir chaplain, churchwarden,
   clerk, commissioner, constable, deacon, deaconess, deputy,
   deputy sheriff, detective, elder, elderman, fed, federal, flic,
   gendarme, government man, inspector, lay elder, lay reader, lector,
   lecturer, lictor, lieutenant, mace-bearer, marshal,
   mounted policeman, narc, officer, parish clerk, patrolman,
   peace officer, police captain, police commissioner,
   police constable, police inspector, police matron, police officer,
   police sergeant, policeman, policewoman, portreeve, precentor,
   reader, reeve, roundsman, ruling elder, sacrist, sacristan,
   sergeant, sergeant at arms, sexton, shames, sheriff, sidesman,
   succentor, suisse, superintendent, teaching elder, thurifer,
   tipstaff, tipstaves, trooper, verger, vergeress



Bouvier's Law Dictionary, Revised 6th Ed (1856):

BEADLE. Eng. law. A messenger or apparitor of a court, who cites persons to
appear to what is alleged against them, is so called.



U.S. Gazetteer Counties (2000):

Beadle -- U.S. County in South Dakota
   Population (2000):    17023
   Housing Units (2000): 8206
   Land area (2000):     1258.696136 sq. miles (3260.007889 sq. km)
   Water area (2000):    6.126141 sq. miles (15.866631 sq. km)
   Total area (2000):    1264.822277 sq. miles (3275.874520 sq. km)
   Located within:       South Dakota (SD), FIPS 46
   Location:             44.407146 N, 98.264937 W
   Headwords:
    Beadle
    Beadle, SD
    Beadle County
    Beadle County, SD