SMITH, Samuel Francis (1808-1895). Autograph manuscript signed ("S. Fr. Smith"), a fair copy of the full five verses of "America" ("My country 'tis of thee..."). N.p., 31 January 1893.

2 pages on a bifolium, 8vo, 28 lines in 4 stanzas, center fold reinforced verso, a few tiny stains, tipped to mat; cloth folding case.

THE FULL FIVE VERSES OF "AMERICA"

The poem begins with the familiar "My country , 'tis of thee, / Sweet land of Liberty, / Of thee I sing..." and concludes: "Our fathers' God, to Thee, / Author of liberty, / To thee we sing; Long may our Land be bright / With freedom's holy light. / Protect us Thy might, / Great God, our King." Beneath, Smith notes "Written Feb. 1832." Smith describes the composition and publication of the poem in a clipping laid in, recalling: "[I] instantly felt the impulse to write a patriotic hymn of my own...Seizing a scrap of waste paper, I put upon it, within half an hour, the verses substantially as they stand to-day. I did not propose to write a national hymn. I did not know that I had done so." After sending "America" accidentally among other poems to a colleague in February 1832, he recalls "To my surprise, I found later that he had incorporated it into a programme for the celebration of July 4, 1832, in Park Street Church, Boston." In 1932, "America" became the national hymn of the United States. See James J. Fuld, The Book of World-Famous Music, pp. 249-251.

Property from the Collection of Ms. Lauren W. Henry

This lot is located in Chicago.