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George C. Stebbins

1846 - 1945 Person Name: George C. Stebbins, 1846-1945 Hymnal Number: 152 Composer of "ADELAIDE" in This Far By Faith Stebbins studied music in Buffalo and Rochester, New York, then became a singing teacher. Around 1869, he moved to Chicago, Illinois, to join the Lyon and Healy Music Company. He also became the music director at the First Baptist Church in Chicago. It was in Chicago that he met the leaders in the Gospel music field, such as George Root, Philip Bliss, & Ira Sankey. At age 28, Stebbins moved to Boston, Massachusetts, where he became music director at the Claredon Street Baptist Church; the pastor there was Adoniram Gordon. Two years later, Stebbins became music director at Tremont Temple in Boston. Shortly thereafter, he became involved in evangelism campaigns with Moody and others. Around 1900, Stebbins spent a year as an evangelist in India, Egypt, Italy, Palestine, France and England. (www.hymntime.com/tch)

John Francis Wade

1711 - 1786 Person Name: John Francis Wade, 1711-1786 Hymnal Number: 284 Composer of "ADESTE FIDELES" in This Far By Faith John Francis Wade (b. England, c. 1711; d. Douay, France, 1786) is now generally recognized as both author and composer of the hymn "Adeste fideles," originally written in Latin in four stanzas. The earliest manuscript signed by Wade is dated about 1743. By the early nineteenth century, however, four additional stanzas had been added by other writers. A Roman Catholic, Wade apparently moved to France because of discrimination against Roman Catholics in eighteenth-century England—especially so after the Jacobite Rebellion of 1745. He taught music at an English college in Douay and hand copied and sold chant music for use in the chapels of wealthy families. Wade's copied manuscripts were published as Cantus Diversi pro Dominicis et Festis per annum (1751). Bert Polman

Richard Proulx

1937 - 2010 Person Name: Richard Proulx, b. 1937 Hymnal Number: 44 Arranger of "[Knocks like Jesus]" in This Far By Faith Richard Proulx (b. St. Paul, MN, April 3, 1937; d. Chicago, IL, February 18, 2010). A composer, conductor, and teacher, Proulx was director of music at the Holy Name Cathedral in Chicago, Illinois (1980-1997); before that he was organist and choirmaster at St. Thomas' Episcopal Church in Seattle, Washington. He contributed his expertise to the Roman Catholic Worship III (1986), The Episcopal Hymnal 1982, The United Methodist Hymnal (1989), and the ecumenical A New Hymnal for Colleges and Schools (1992). He was educated at the University of Minnesota, MacPhail College of Music in Minneapolis, Minnesota, St. John's Abbey in Collegeville, Minnesota, and the Royal School of Church Music in England. He composed more than 250 works. Bert Polman

James Weldon Johnson

1871 - 1938 Person Name: James Welden Johnson, 1871-1938 Hymnal Number: 296 Author of "Lift Every Voice and Sing" in This Far By Faith James Weldon Johnson MA PhD USA 1871-1938. Born at Jacksonville, FL, he attended Clark University, Atlanta, GA, and also spent three months in the backwoods of Georgia., taking in the culture there. While in school he published a paper, ”The daily American newspaper”, which ran for a year until terminated for lack of funding. He graduated in 1894. He then taught at the largest school in Jacksonville, FL, eventually becoming principal and adding 9th & 10th grades there. While there he began preparing for the FL bar exam, taking it in 1897. In 1904 he became treasurer of the Colored Republican Club, becoming its president the following year. He became an author, activist, educator, lawyer, and diplomat. A musician from youth, he collaborated with his brother, Rosamond, also a musician, and Bob Cole to write Broadway songs, and they achieved some success. They also wrote an opera, “Tolosa”, satirizing the U.S. annexation of the Pacific islands. He became a writer and Civil Rights activist. He did the editorial page of the New York Age, an African-American newspaper. In 1916 he became active in the NAACP, and in 1917 he added many chapters to its southern membership. He was its executive secretary (essentially its operating officer) from 1920-1930. He was involved in the campaign to pass the Dyer Anti-lynching Bill. He wrote poems, novels, and anthologies, and collected poems and spirituals from black culture. He wrote the lyrics to the Negro National Anthem, “Lift every voice and sing”, in honor of Booker T Washington, who visited his school and heard the poem recited by 500 school children in his presence, paying tribute to Abraham Lincoln’s birthday. He participated in Theodore Roosevelt’s successful presidential campaign, and was rewarded by receiving an appointment as U.S. Consul to Venezuela (1906-1909), and later to Nicaragua (1909-1913). He married activist,Grace Elizabeth Nail during this period. They had collaborated on a screenwriting project. They had no children. In 1930, after years leading the NAACP, he became professor of creative literature and writing at Fisk University ( a historically black university), Nashville, TN, where he lectured on a wide range of issues. In 1934 he was the first African-American professor hired at New York University, where he taught several classes in literature and culture. He published four works: “Autobiography of an Ex-colored man” (1920) “The book of American negro poetry” (1922/1931), “God’s trombones” (1927), and “Along this way” (1933). In 1938 he supported efforts by Ignatz Waghalter, a Polish-Jewish composer who had escaped the Nazis in Germany, to establish a classical orchestra of African-American musicians. He perished at Wiscasset, ME, while on vacation when the car his wife was driving was hit by a train. She was severely injured, but recovered. More than 2000 people attended his funeral. Several universities named buildings or departments in his honor, as is a community library in St. Petersburg, FL. In 1988 a U.S, postage stamp was printed in his honor. John Perry

Lucie Eddie Campbell

1885 - 1963 Person Name: Lucie E. Campbell, 1885-1963 Hymnal Number: 172 Author of "If When You Give the Best of Your Service (He Understands; He'll Say, "Well Done")" in This Far By Faith Lucie Eddie Campbell, April 30, 1885–January 3, 1963, one of nine children born to parents who were slaves in Mississippi. She moved to Memphis with her mother after her father died when she was two years old. Became first Music Director of newly formed Education arm for the new National Baptist Convention formed in 1916 in Memphis. In 1919 at a NBC convention in Atlantic City, Campbell introduced a young, blind singer, Connie Rosemond, who electrified the delegates with his rendition of Campbell’s first gospel hymn, “Something Within.” Campbell met Rosemond on the famous Beale St in Memphis. She heard a man betting $10 that he could make the blind youngster “get down in the alley” an expression for singing the blues. The young man refused to sing, saying I’m trying to be a Christian in this dark world, and I believe I have found a way out of this darkness into light. I can’t explain it, but there’s something within me. His words inspired Lucy Campbell to write her first song, Something Within, which was the first gospel hymn written by a black woman. At this same convention in 1919, Campbell introduced singer Marion Anderson to the world as she accompanied her. Anderson would go to become a world-renowned classical contralto singer. Lucie Campbell was also good friends with Thomas A Dorsey, who wrote Peace in the Valley and Precious Lord, Take My Hand, was the first African American inducted into the Gospel Music H.O.F. Jim Westmoreland from "Lucie E. Campbell: Baptist Composer and Educator," by Luvenia A. George and Ada Gilkey in The Black Perspective in Music, Vol. 15, No. 1 (Spring, 1987), pp. 24-49.

Lydia Baxter

1809 - 1874 Person Name: Lydia Baxter, 1809-1874 Hymnal Number: 159 Author of "Take the Name of Jesus with You (Precious Name)" in This Far By Faith Baxter, Lydia, an American Baptist, was b. at Petersburg, N. York, Sep. 2, 1800, married to Mr. Baxter, and d. in N. Y. June 22, 1874. In addition to her Gems by the Wayside, 1855, Mrs. Baxter contributed many hymns to collections for Sunday Schools, and Evangelistic Services. Of these, the following are the best known:— 1. Cast thy net again, my brother. Patient toil. Given in the Royal Diadem, N. Y., 1873. 2. Go, work in my vineyard. Duty. Also given in the Royal Diadem, 1873, and Mr. Sankey's S. & Solos, No. 4. 3. I'm kneeling, Lord, at mercy's gate. Lent. In Coronation Hymns, &c, N. Y., 1879. 4. I'm weary, I'm fainting, my day's work is done. Longing for rest. Royal Diadem. 1873. 5. In the fadeless spring-time. Heavenly Reunion. In the Royal Diadem, 1873, I. D. Sankey's S. S. & Solos, No. 256, and others. It was written for Mr. H. P. Main in 1872. 6. One by one we cross the river. Death. In Songs of Salvation, N. Y., 1870, I. D. Sankey's S. S. & Solos, No. 357, &c. It dates cir. 1866. 7. Take the name of Jesus with you. Name of Jesus. Written late in 1870, or early in 1871, for W. H. Doane, and pub. in Pure Gold, 1871. It is No. 148 of I. D. Sankey's S. S. & Solos. 8. The Master is coming. Invitation. In Songs of Salvation, 1870, No. 38. 9. There is a gate that stands ajar. Mercy. In New Hallowed Songs, and also the Gospel Songs of P. Bliss, 1874. It was written for S. J. Vail about 1872. It has attained to some popularity. It is given in Mr. Sankey's S. & Solos, No. 2. -John Julian, Dictionary of Hymnology (1907)

William J. Kirkpatrick

1838 - 1921 Person Name: William J. Kirkpatrick, 1838-1921 Hymnal Number: 86 Composer of "[King of my life I crown thee now]" in This Far By Faith William J. Kirkpatrick (b. Duncannon, PA, 1838; d. Philadelphia, PA, 1921) received his musical training from his father and several other private teachers. A carpenter by trade, he engaged in the furniture business from 1862 to 1878. He left that profession to dedicate his life to music, serving as music director at Grace Methodist Church in Philadelphia. Kirkpatrick compiled some one hundred gospel song collections; his first, Devotional Melodies (1859), was published when he was only twenty-one years old. Many of these collections were first published by the John Hood Company and later by Kirkpatrick's own Praise Publishing Company, both in Philadelphia. Bert Polman

P. P. Bliss

1838 - 1876 Person Name: Philip P. Bliss, 1838-1876 Hymnal Number: 194 Composer of "IT IS WELL" in This Far By Faith Philip P. Bliss (b. Clearfield County, PA, 1838; d. Ashtabula, OH, 1876) left home as a young boy to make a living by working on farms and in lumber camps, all while trying to continue his schooling. He was converted at a revival meeting at age twelve. Bliss became an itinerant music teacher, making house calls on horseback during the winter, and during the summer attending the Normal Academy of Music in Genesco, New York. His first song was published in 1864, and in 1868 Dwight L. Moody advised him to become a singing evangelist. For the last two years of his life Bliss traveled with Major D. W. Whittle and led the music at revival meetings in the Midwest and Southern United States. Bliss and Ira D. Sankey published a popular series of hymn collections entitled Gospel Hymns. The first book of the series, Gospel Songs, was published in 1874. Bliss's tragic death at the age of thirty-eight happened near the end of 1876. Philip P. Bliss and his wife were traveling to Chicago to sing for the evangelistic services led by Daniel W. Whittle at Dwight L. Moody's Tabernacle. But a train wreck and fire en route claimed their lives. Bert Polman ================= Bliss, Philip, b. at Clearfield County, Pennsylvania, July 9, 1838. In 1864 he went to Chicago in the employ of Dr. George F. Root, the musician, where he was engaged in conducting musical Institutes, and in composing Sunday School melodies. Originally a Methodist, he became, about 1871, a choirman of the First Congregational Church, Chicago, and the Superintendent of its Sunday Schools. In 1874 he joined D. W. Whittle in evangelical work. To this cause he gave (although a poor man) the royalty of his Gospel Songs, which was worth some thirty thousand dollars. His death was sudden. It occurred in the railway disaster at Ashtabula, Ohio, Dec. 30, 1876. ... Some of his verses have obtained wide popularity in most English-speaking countries. The more widely known, and specially those which are found in collections in use in G. Britain, are in the following American works:— i. The Prize, 1870. 1. I should like to die. Death anticipated. This is one of his earliest compositions, and is unworthy of the position it holds. 2. Through the valley of the shadow I must go. Death anticipated. 3. Whosoever heareth, shout, shout the sound. Jesus the Way. Written during the winter of 1869-70 after hearing Mr. H. Moorhouse (from England) preach on St. John iii. 16. ii. The Charm, 1871. 4. Almost persuaded now to believe. Procrastination. This was suggested by the following passage in a sermon by the Rev. Mr. Brundnge, Bliss being present at its delivery:—" He who is almost persuaded is almost saved, but to be almost saved is to be entirely lost." 5. Ho! my comrades! see the signal. Faithfulness. 6. O! Jerusalem, the golden city, bright, &c. Heaven. 7. On what Foundation do [did] you build? Christ the Foundation. iii. The Song Tree, 1872. 8. Light in the darkness, sailor, day is at hand. Safety. This hymn, “The Life-Boat," has attained to great popularity. The incident upon which it is based, that of the rescue of a ship's crew by a life-boat, is given in detail by Mr. Sankey in his Sacred Songs, &c, No. 99 (large ed.). It is sometimes known by its refrain, "Pull for the shore," &c. iv. The Joy, 1873. 9. In me ye may have peace. Peace. 10. To die is gain. Death anticipated. v. Sunshine, 1873. 11. Down life's dark vale we wander. Death anticipated. 12. More holiness give me. For Holiness. 13. Only an armour-bearer. Soldiers of the Cross. 14. Standing by a purpose true. Faithfulness. 15. This loving Saviour stands patiently. Invitation. vi. Gospel Songs, 1874. 16. A long time I wandered. Peace and Joy. 17. Brightly beams our Father's mercy. Mercy. 18. Come, brethren, as we march along. Praise. 19. Free from the law, O happy condition. Redemption. 20. Have you on the Lord believed? Fullness of Grace. This hymn arose out of the following circumstances :—" A vast fortune was left in the hands of a minister for one of his poor parishioners. Fearing that it might be sqmandered if suddenly bestowed upon him, the wise minister sent him a little at a time, with a note saying, “This is thine; use it wisely; there is more to follow.” Hence also the refrain ‘More to follow,’ by which the hymn is known." 21. How much owest thou? Divine Claims. 22. I know not the hour when my Lord will come. Death anticipated. Suggested by reading the book, The Gates Ajar. 23. See the gentle Shepherd standing. The Good Shepherd. 24. Though the way be sometimes dreary. Divine Leading. 25. Will you meet me at the fountain? Fountain of Living Water. The incident out of which this hymn arose is thus stated in The Christian, No. 365, "At the Industrial Exposition at Chicago it was an everyday appointment to meet at the Central Fountain. Mr. P. P. Bliss, whose mind seemed always set on things above, caught up the words, and wrote this hymn, 'Meet me at the Fountain.'" vii. Gospel Hymns, No. 1, 1875. 26. One offer of salvation. The Name of Jesus. 27. Wandering afar from the dwellings of men. The Lepers. viii. The International Lesson Monthly, 1875. 28. Weary gleaner, whence comest thou? Duty. 29. The whole world was lost in the darkness of Sin. Light of the world. 30. Man of sorrows! what a name. Redemption. 31. The Spirit, O sinner, in mercy doth move. Holy Spirit. ix. Gospel Hymns, No. 2, 1876. 32. At the feet of Jesus. The good choice. 33. Come, sing the Gospel's joyful sound. Salvation. 34. Cut it down, cut it down. Justice and Mercy. 35. Do you see the Hebrew captive? Prayer. 36. Hallelujah, He is risen. Easier. Written in the spring of 1876 and first sung by Bliss on Easter afternoon, 1876, in the Court House Square, Augusta, Georgia, to 5900 people. 37. In Zion's rock abiding. Safety. 38. Repeat the story o'er and o'er. Grace and Peace. 39. Tenderly the Shepherd. The Good Shepherd. x. Gospel Hymns, No. 3, 1878. 40. Hear ye the glad good news from heaven. Faith and Salvation. 41. I will sing of my Redeemer. Praise. xi. Gospel Hymns, No. 4, 1881. 42. 'Tis known on earth and heaven too. More about Jesus. xii. Various. 43. Sing over again to me. Words of Life. This appeared in a paper entitled Words of Life, 1874, The following are undated:— 44. March to the battle-field. Duty and Victory. 45. There is sin in the camp. Hinderances. 46. 'Tis the promise of God. Praise. 47. While the silvery moon-beams, fall, New Birth. 48. God is always near me. Omnipresence. Two hymns," I am so glad that our Father in heaven," and " Sowing the seed by the daylight [dawnlight] fair," (sometimes given as " Sowing our seed in the morning fair ") are usually attributed to Mr. Bliss. In his Gospel Songs, Cincinnati, 1874, however, he lays claim to the music only. Mr. Sankey attributes this last to "E. A. Oakey." With the exception of No. 48, these hymns are given in Mr. Sankey's Sacred Songs & Solos, Pts. i. and ii. Their popularity is far beyond their literary merits, and is mainly due to the simple melodies to which they are wedded. As a writer of hymns of this class Mr. Bliss is second only to Mrs. Van Alstyne. Many anecdotes concerning hymns of this class are given in American Evangelists; an Account of their work in England and America, by the Rev. Elias Nason, Boston, U.S., Lathrop & Co., 1877. Mr. Bliss is usually known as "P. P. Bliss." This is found on the title-pages of his collections. On his own authority, however, we are enabled to say that his name originally stood thus : “Philipp Bliss.” Early in life he separated the final p from his Christian name, constituted it a capital P, and thus produced "P. P. Bliss." (For this article we are mainly indebted to Professor F. M. Bird, and Mr. H. P. Main.) -John Julian, Dictionary of Hymnology (1907) ======================== Bliss, Philip , p. 151, i. "Sowing the seed by the daylight fair" is in the Family Treasury , Edinburgh, 1861, pt. i., p. 84. It is said to be by Miss Emily Sullivan Oakey; born at Albany, N. York, Oct. 8, 1829, died May 11, 1883. Note also that Bliss's hymn, No. 43. on p. 150, ii., should read, "Sing them over again to me." --John Julian, Dictionary of Hymnology, Appendix, Part II (1907) ===================== Bliss, P., p. 150, i. Two works have been brought to our notice, since the issue of our first edition of this Dictionary, which concern this author, viz.:— 1. Memoirs of Philip P. Bliss. Edited by D. W. Whittle. Contributions by Rev. E. P. Goodwin, Ira D. Sankey, and Geo. F. Root. Introduction by D. L. Moody. New York, &c.: A. S. Barnes & Co., 1877. 2. My Life and Sacred Songs. By Ira D. Sankey. With an Introduction by Theodore L. Cuyler, D.D). London: Hodder & Stoughton, and Morgan & Scott, 1906. These works have a special interest for those who use I. D. Sankey's Sacred Songs & Solos, and all of P. Bliss's publications. To Mr. Sankey's My Life, &c, we direct special attention for P. Bliss's hymns:— “Do you see the Hebrew captive kneeling?" p. 294. "Down life's dark vale we wander." p. 285. "Ho! my comrades, see the signal." p. 105. "'Tis the promise of God full salvation to give." p. 99. --John Julian, Dictionary of Hymnology, New Supplement (1907)

William M. Runyan

1870 - 1957 Person Name: William M. Runyan, 1870-1957 Hymnal Number: 283 Composer of "FAITHFULNESS" in This Far By Faith Showing early musical promise, William Marion Runyan (b. Marion, NY, 1870; d. Pittsburg, KS, 1957) was a substitute church organist by the age of twelve. He became a Methodist minister in 1891 and served several churches in Kansas but turned to evangelism in 1903; he worked for the Central Methodist Conference for the next twenty years. Following that service, Runyan became pastor at the Federated Church at John Brown University, Sulphur Springs, Arkansas. Editor of Christian Workers Magazine, he also served the Moody Bible Institute and was an editor for Hope Publishing Company until his retirement in 1948. Runyan wrote a number of hymn texts, gospel songs, and hymn tunes. Bert Polman

J. Jefferson Cleveland

1937 - 1986 Person Name: J. Jefferson Cleveland, 1937-1986 Hymnal Number: 62 Arranger of "[I heard the voice of Jesus say]" in This Far By Faith Judge Jefferson Cleveland (1937-1986) was one of the most important scholars and editors of African-American congregational song of the 20th century. Along with Verogla Nix, he edited what is arguably the most groundbreaking collection of African-American song in the last half of the 20th century, Songs of Zion (1981/1982). Lutheran hymnologist Marilyn Stulken provides a biographical sketch of Cleveland’s life and accomplishments. Born in Georgia, Cleveland graduated from Clark College (Atlanta), Illinois Wesleyan University and received his doctorate in education from Boston University. He served on the faculty of three historically black Christian colleges: Claflin College (South Carolina), Langston University (Oklahoma), and Jarvis Christian College (Texas), before teaching at the University of Massachusetts and Wesley Theological Seminary in Washington, D.C. Cleveland’s musical arrangements, historical research and scholarship on the performance practice of African-American song have proven invaluable for the advancement of black gospel song, not only among African Americans, but also in Anglo hymnals to the present day. For example, Cleveland’s essay, “A Historical Account of the Hymn in the Black Worship Experience,” in Songs of Zion is a helpful introduction for laypersons and scholars alike. In addition to serving as a hymnody consultant for the United Methodist General Board of Discipleship, he toured the United States and Africa in 1981 and Europe in 1984 as a teacher, lecturer and performer. --www.umportal.org/