George Frederick Root (August 30, 1820August 6, 1895) was an American

songwriter A songwriter is a musician who professionally composes musical compositions or writes lyrics for songs, or both. The writer of the music for a song can be called a composer, although this term tends to be used mainly in the classical music ...

, who found particular fame during the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by states ...

, with songs such as "

Tramp! Tramp! Tramp! "Tramp! Tramp! Tramp! (The Prisoner's Hope)" was one of the most popular songs of the American Civil War. George F. Root wrote both the words and music and published it in 1864 to give hope to the Union prisoners of war. The song is written from ...

" and " The Battle Cry of Freedom". He is regarded as the first American to compose a secular cantata.

Early life and education

Root was born at Sheffield, Massachusetts, and was named after the German composer George Frideric Handel. Root left his farming community for

Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...

at 18, flute in hand, intending to join an orchestra. He worked for a while as a church organist in Boston, and from 1845 taught music at the New York Institute for the Blind, where he met

Fanny Crosby Frances Jane van Alstyne (née Crosby; March 24, 1820 – February 12, 1915), more commonly known as Fanny J. Crosby, was an American mission worker, poet, lyricist, and composer. She was a prolific hymnist, writing more than 8,000 hymns ...

, with whom he would compose fifty to sixty popular secular songs. In 1850, he made a study tour of Europe, staying in Vienna, Paris, and London.Obituary
''New York Times'', August 8, 1895, p. 2 He returned to teach music in Boston, Massachusetts as an associate of

Lowell Mason Lowell Mason (January 8, 1792 – August 11, 1872) was an American music director and banker who was a leading figure in 19th-century American church music. Lowell composed over 1600 hymn tunes, many of which are often sung today. His best-known ...

, and later Bangor, Maine, where he was director of the Penobscot Musical Association and presided over their convention at

Norumbega Norumbega, or Nurembega, is a legendary settlement in northeastern North America which was featured on many early maps from the 16th century until European colonization of the region. It was alleged that the houses had pillars of gold and the inh ...

Hall in 1856. From 1853 to 1855, Root helped Lowell Mason and William Bradbury establish the New York Normal Musical Institute, which served as a school for aspiring music educators. From 1855 on, Root would spend most of his summers traveling and teaching at music education conventions throughout New England. He applied a version of Pestalozzi's teaching and was instrumental in developing mid- and late-19th century American musical education. He was a follower of the teachings of

Emanuel Swedenborg Emanuel Swedenborg (, ; born Emanuel Swedberg; 29 March 1772) was a Swedish pluralistic-Christian theologian, scientist, philosopher and mystic. He became best known for his book on the afterlife, ''Heaven and Hell'' (1758). Swedenborg had a ...

Career

On his return from Europe, Root began composing and publishing sentimental popular songs, a number of which achieved fame as sheet-music, including those with

: ''The Hazel Dell'', ''Rosalie the Prairie Flower'', ''There's Music in the Air'' and others, which were, according to Root's ''New York Times'' obituary, known throughout the country in the

antebellum period In the history of the Southern United States, the Antebellum Period (from la, ante bellum, lit= before the war) spanned the end of the War of 1812 to the start of the American Civil War in 1861. The Antebellum South was characterized by ...

. Root chose to employ the pseudonym Wurzel (German for Root) to capitalize on the popularity of German composers during the 1850s, and to keep his identity as a serious composer against his composition of minstrel and popular songs. Besides his popular songs, he also composed gospel songs in the

Ira Sankey Ira David Sankey (August 28, 1840 – August 13, 1908) was an American gospel singer and composer, known for his long association with Dwight L. Moody in a series of religious revival campaigns in America and Britain during the closing decades ...

vein, and collected and edited volumes of choral music for singing schools, Sunday schools, church choirs and musical institutes. Root assisted William Bradbury in compiling ''The Shawm'' in 1853, a collection of hymn tunes and choral anthems, featuring the cantata ''Daniel: or the Captivity and Restoration''. The cantata was a collaboration between Root and Bradbury musically, with text by Fanny Crosby and C.M. Cady. In 1860 he compiled ''The Diapason: Collection of Church Music''. He also composed various sacred and secular cantatas including the popular ''The Haymakers'' (1857). Root's cantatas were popular on both sides of the Atlantic throughout the 19th century. His first cantata, ''The Flower Queen: or The Coronation of the Rose'', was composed in 1851 with libretto by Fanny Crosby, and gained immediate success in singing schools across the United States.''The Flower Queen'' has been regarded as the first secular cantata written by an American. The Battle Cry of Freedom, G

Building on his talent for song-writing, Root moved to

Chicago, Illinois (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

in 1859 to work for his brother's music publishing house of Root & Cady. He became particularly successful during the American Civil War, as the composer of martial songs such as "

" (The Prisoner's Hope), " The Vacant Chair" (with lyrics by Henry S. Washburn), " Just before the Battle, Mother", and " The Battle Cry of Freedom". He wrote the first song concerning the war, '' The First Gun is Fired'', only two days after the conflict began with the bombardment of

Fort Sumter Fort Sumter is a sea fort built on an artificial island protecting Charleston, South Carolina from naval invasion. Its origin dates to the War of 1812 when the British invaded Washington by sea. It was still incomplete in 1861 when the Battle ...

. He ultimately had at least 35 war-time "hits", in tone from the bellicose to the ethereal. His songs were played and sung at both the home front and the real front. ''Tramp, Tramp, Tramp'' became popular on troop marches, and "Battle Cry of Freedom" became well-known even in England. After the war, he was elected as a 3rd Class (honorary) Companion of the

Military Order of the Loyal Legion of the United States The Military Order of the Loyal Legion of the United States (MOLLUS), or simply the Loyal Legion is a United States patriotic order, organized April 15, 1865, by three veteran officers of the Army. The original membership was composed of members ...

. Root's songs, particularly "The Battle Cry of Freedom", were popular among Union soldiers during the war. According to Henry Stone, a Union war veteran recalling in the late 1880s:

Later life and death

Root was awarded the degree of Musical Doctor by the first

University of Chicago The University of Chicago (UChicago, Chicago, U of C, or UChi) is a private university, private research university in Chicago, Illinois. Its main campus is located in Chicago's Hyde Park, Chicago, Hyde Park neighborhood. The University of Chic ...

in 1872. He died at his summer home in Bailey Island,

Maine Maine () is a state in the New England and Northeastern regions of the United States. It borders New Hampshire to the west, the Gulf of Maine to the southeast, and the Canadian provinces of New Brunswick and Quebec to the northeast and ...

, at the age of 74. He was buried at the Harmonyvale Cemetery in North Reading, Massachusetts.

Legacy

Root was inducted into the

Songwriters Hall of Fame The Songwriters Hall of Fame (SHOF) is an American institution founded in 1969 by songwriter Johnny Mercer, music publisher/songwriter Abe Olman, and publisher/executive Howie Richmond to honor those whose work, represent, and maintain, the her ...

in 1970. ''Tramp, Tramp, Tramp, the Boys are Marching'' provided the tune for the later ''

Jesus Loves the Little Children A Christian child's prayer is Christian prayer recited primarily by children that is typically short, rhyming, or has a memorable tune. It is usually said before bedtime, to give thanks for a meal, or as a nursery rhyme. Many of these prayers ...

'', with lyrics by C. Herbert Woolston, and also for the later ''God Save Ireland''. ''The Vacant Chair'' provided a tune reused in '' Life's Railway to Heaven'', and sometimes reused in ''To Jesus' Heart All Burning''.

Bibliography

* George F. Root: ''The story of a musical life; an autobiography'' * Polly Carder: ''George F. Root, Civil War songwriter : a biography'' * Polly Hinson Carder: ''George Frederick Root, pioneer music educator his contributions to mass instruction in music'' * Cheryl Ann Jackson: ''George Frederick Root and his Civil War songs''

References

External links

*
Polly H. Carder Collection on George Frederick Root
- Special Collections in Performing Arts, University of Maryland, College Park * *
George F Root
Find A Grave memorial * *

throug

{{DEFAULTSORT:Root, George Frederick 1820 births 1895 deaths People from Sheffield, Massachusetts American male composers American composers American lyricists Songwriters from Illinois Songwriters from Massachusetts Bailey Island (Maine) People of Illinois in the American Civil War People of Massachusetts in the American Civil War Musicians from Massachusetts Musicians from Chicago 19th-century American musicians 19th-century American male musicians American male songwriters