American Unitarian Hymn Writers and Hymns

Sears, Rev. Edmund Hamilton; Sandisfield, Massachusetts April 6, 1810—January 16, 1876, Weston, Massachusetts. Studied at Union College, graduated from the Harvard Divinity School in 1837. Ordained minister of the First Parish (Unitarian) of Wayland, Massachusetts, on February 20, 1839. He soon after went to Lancaster, Massachusetts; returned to Wayland, 1848-1864; and was minister of the First Parish, Weston, Massachusetts, 1866 until his death. He was author of many books and printed sermons, and of a good many poems, often hymns supplementary to his sermons. None of these, however, have come into general use, and his reputation as a hymn writer is based on his two widely used Christmas hymns, found in many hymn books. The first,

Calm on the listening ear of night,

was written in 1839. It was included as “Anon.” in The Christian Psalter, published in 1841 by Sears’ friend, Rev. W. P. Lunt, q.v. of Quincy, Massachusetts. In the New Hymn and Tune Book, 1914, the second line of sta. 6

The Saviour now is born!

was changed to read

The Prince of Peace is born!

but the original reading was restored in Hymns of the Spirit, 1937. His second hymn,

It came upon the midnight clear,

was written in 1849. One tradition about it reports that it was written at Mr. Lunt’s request and was first used at the Christmas celebration of the Sunday School in Quincy in that year. Sta. 5 of this hymn

has appeared in re-written forms more than once because its “backward look” to a golden age is not Biblical but is derived from the Fourth Eclogue of the poet Virgil. In the Episcopal Hymnal of 1874 this is altered to read

and this version was reprinted in the Episcopal hymnals of 1892 and 1916, and passed into other collections. In the Hymnal, 1940, it was again altered to read

These alterations may have brought the hymn into closer accord with orthodox theology, but at the expense of some of its poetic beauty.

Two patriotic songs by Sears were included in the army hymn book, The Soldier’s Companion, 1861. One headed “A Psalm of Freedom” begins,

Still wave our streamer’s glorious folds,

The other is headed “Song of the Stars and Stripes,” and begins,

We see the gallant streamer yet,

Neither has any great merit, though both may have served the purpose for which they were written.

J. 1036 H.W.F.

Sewall, C.

An anti-slavery hymn attributed to a person of this name is included in Hedge and Huntington’s Hymns for the Church of Christ, 1853. It begins,

Lord, when thine ancient people cried,

It is probable, but not certain, that the author was Rev. Charles Chauncy Sewall, Marblehead, Massachusetts, May 10, 1802—November 22, 1886, Medfield, Massachusetts; who was a graduate of Bowdoin College and who received the degree of Master of Arts from Harvard in 1832. He was a Unitarian minister serving churches in Peabody, Massachusetts, 1827-1841; Sharon, Massachusetts, 1857-1862; and Medfield, 1873-1377.

H.W.F.

Sigourney, Mrs. Lydia Howard (Huntley), Norwich, Connecticut, September 1, 1791—June 10, 1865, Hartford, Connecticut, wife of Charles Sigourney. She was a prolific writer of prose and verse contributed to many periodicals, and author of many books, chiefly moral tales for young people. She became a very popular writer and spent two years, 1840-1842, in England where she met many celebrities. Two hymns by her were included in Hedge and Huntington’s Hymns for the Church of Christ, 1853, viz:

1. Laborers of Christ, arise,(Brotherhood)

This was also included in Church Harmonies, 1895, with the first line altered to read

Servants of Christ, arise.

2. When adverse winds and waves arise(Trust)

Neither hymn has had later use.

J. 1057, 1589. H.W.F.

Sill, Edward Rowland, Windsor, Connecticut, April 29, 1841—February 27, 1887, Cleveland, Ohio. He graduated from Yale in 1861 and spent several months in the year 1866-1867 at the Harvard Divinity School, writing his one fine hymn,

Send down thy truth, O God,

for the School’s Visitation Day exercises in 1867. It was included in his collection of poems, The Hermitage, published the same year, and passed thence into many American hymnbooks. Presumably he entered the Divinity School intending to prepare for the Unitarian ministry, but he did not do so and neither then nor later associated himself with any denomination. At the end of the academic year 1867 he moved to California where he was Professor of English Literature, 1874-1882 at the University of California. He published several books of poems of superior quality.

J. 1703 H.W.F.

Silliman, Rev. Vincent Brown, D.D., Hudson, Wisconsin, June 29, 1894—still living. He graduated from Meadville Theological School in 1920 and from the University of Minnesota in 1925. He has served Unitarian churches in Buffalo, New York; Portland, Maine; Hollis, New York; and Chicago, Illinois. He was a member of the committee which edited The Beacon Song and Service Book for Children and Young People, 1935, and edited We Sing of Life, 1955, an unusual collection of songs for children and young people, with a strong ethical emphasis, some set to familiar hymn tunes, others to interesting folk music. Mr. Silliman contributed the words of several songs. One of them, beginning,

Morning, so fair to see,

is also included in Hymns of the Spirit, 1937, set to St. Elizabeth (Crusader’s Hymn).

H.W.F.

Spencer, Mrs. Anna Garlin, (wife of Rev. William H. Spencer), Attleboro, Massachusetts, April 17, 1851—February 12, 1931, New York. She was ordained as a Unitarian minister, and was a lecturer and author of books on social problems. In 1896 in her “Orders of Service for Public Worship” she included her song entitled “The Marching Song of the Workers,” beginning,

Hail the hero workers of the mighty past,

set to St. Gertrude. It was included in Hymns of the United Church, 1924, in Songs of Work and Worship, and in Hymns of the Spirit, 1937.

H.W.F.

Sprague, Charles, Boston, Massachusetts, October 22, 1791—January 22, 1875, Boston. A Unitarian layman. Although a business man without a college education he wrote much verse which brought him a considerable reputation and requests for poems to celebrate special occasions. One of them was read before the Harvard chapter of Phi Beta Kappa in Cambridge in 1829, and was re-published, with minor alterations, a few years later in Calcutta by a British officer, as his own work. A collection of his poems was published in 1841, and an enlarged edition in 1850. A number of his shorter poems are given in Putnam’s Singers and Songs, and a hymn attributed to “C. Sprague” is included in Hedge and Huntington’s Hymns for the Church of Christ, 1853, beginning

O Thou, at whose dread name we stand.

H.W.F.

Trapp, Rev. Jacob, S.T.D., Muskegon, Michigan, April 12, 1899—still living. He was educated at Valparaiso University and The Pacific Unitarian School for the Ministry (now called The Starr King School for the Ministry). He was ordained in 1929 and has served Unitarian churches in Salt Lake City, Utah; Denver, Colorado; and Summit, New Jersey. In 1932 he wrote a hymn beginning,

Wonders still the world shall witness,

which is included, with some revisions, in Hymns of the Spirit, 1937.

H.W.F.

Tuckerman, Rev. Joseph, D.D., Boston, Massachusetts, January 18, 1778—April 20, 1840, Havana, Cuba. He graduated from Harvard College in 1798, a classmate of Rev. William Ellery Channing, whose close friend he remained through life. He was licensed to preach by the Boston Association and in 1801 was ordained minister of a church in Chelsea, Massachusetts, at that time a small farming community, which he served for 25 years. He then moved to Boston to begin his “ministry-at-large” to the unchurched elements in the population, under the auspices of the American Unitarian Association and later of the Benevolent Fraternity of Churches. He attained wide reputation for his philanthropy and his wide methods of social reform. Harvard gave him the honorary degree of D.D. in 1824.

His hymn

Father divine! This deadening power control (Aspiration)

is attributed to “Tuckerman” in Hedge and Huntington’s Hymns for the Church of Christ, 1853, and in Longfellow and Johnson’s Hymns of the Spirit, 1864, but is not listed in Julian’s Dictionary or included in later collections.

H.W.F.

Very, Jones, Salem, Massachusetts, August 28, 1813—May 8, 1880, Salem, Massachusetts. He was brother of Washington Very, q.v. He graduated from Harvard College in 1836, and served as tutor in Greek there for two years. Although Julian, Dictionary, p. 1219, says that he entered the Unitarian ministry in 1843, he was never ordained as a settled minister though he served frequently as an occasional lay preacher. Most of his life was given to literary pursuits. In 1839 he published Essays and Poems, and thereafter was a frequent contributor in prose and verse to periodicals, including The Christian Register and the Monthly Magazine. The following hymns by him have passed into various American Unitarian collections.

1. Father! I wait Thy word, (Waiting upon God)

2. Father, there is no change to live with Thee (Peace)

3. Father! Thy wonders do not singly stand (The Spirit Land)

4. Wilt Thou not visit me? (The Divine Presence)

These four, from Essays and Hymns, were included in Longfellow and Johnson’s Book of Hymns, 1846, as were also three from other sources:—

5. I saw on earth another light (The Light Within)

6. The bud will soon become a flower (Sowing and Reaping)

7. Turn not from him who asks of thee (Kind Words)

Longfellow and Johnson’s second book, Hymns of the Spirit, 1864, also included

8. One saint to another I heard say, How long (The Future)

Most of these hymns are in Lyra Sacra Americana and in Putnam’s Singers and Songs, etc. Two other of his hymns have been published in later collections, viz:

9. O heavenly gift of love divine, (Divine assistance)

from his Essays and Poems is included in the Pilgrim Hymnal, 1904; and

10. We go not on a pilgrimage (This earth as holy land)

is included in the New Hymn and Tune Book, 1914 and in Hymns of the Spirit, 1937.

Of the hymns listed above nos. 2 and 3 are included in the Isles of Shoals Hymn Book, and in other publications. Another hymn beginning

There is a world eye hath not seen (The Spirit World)

included in Longfellow and Johnson’s Hymns of the Spirit, 1864, and there marked Anon., is attributed to Very in Julian’s Dictionary. The hymn is an abbreviated and mutilated version of the beautiful poem beginning

in A. M. Buchanan’s Folk Hymns of America, pp. 80-81. (See H. W. Foote, Three Centuries of American Hymnody, p. 173). The original form is in three stanzas of eight lines, long metre. The very inferior re-written form is in four stanzas, four lines, common metre. Some of the lines are unchanged from the original, others altered, and the last stanza is a didactic addition. It is altogether improbable that this was done by Very.

J. 1219, 1721 H.W.F.

Very, Washington, Salem, Massachusetts, November 12, 1815—April 28, 1853, Salem. He graduated from Harvard College in 1843, and from the Harvard Divinity School in 1846. After preaching for a year without settlement he opened a private school in Salem, which he conducted until his death. He was brother of Jones Very, q.v. Putnam in Singers and Songs of the Liberal Faith includes three of W. Very’s poetical pieces, one of which

There cometh o’er the Spirit (Spring)

appeared in Longfellow and Johnson’s Book of Hymns, 1846.

J. 1219 H.W.F.

Ware, Rev. Henry, Jr., D.D., Hingham, Massachusetts, April 21, 1794—September 22, 1843, Framingham, Massachusetts. His family was for three generations an outstanding one in the liberal ministry; his father, Dr. Henry Ware, Sr., was called in 1805 from a pastorate in Hingham to serve as Hollis Professor of Divinity at Harvard; his younger brother, William Ware, was the first minister of what is now All Souls Church, New York; and his son, J. F. W. Ware, was later the minister of Arlington Street Church, Boston. Henry Ware, Jr. graduated with high honors from Harvard in 1812, and after teaching for two years at Phillips Exeter Academy returned to Cambridge, to continue his theological studies. He was licensed to preach on July 31, 1815, but was not ordained as minister of the Second Church in Boston (Unitarian) until January 1, 1817. Never vigorous in body, he offered his resignation in 1829, but the congregation refused to accept it, appointing R. W. Emerson to be assistant minister. In 1830, however, he resigned, to accept an appointment as Professor of Pulpit Eloquence and Pastoral Care at the Harvard Divinity School, a position which he held till 1842. He then moved from Cambridge to Framingham, Massachusetts, where he died a few months later. Harvard gave him the degree of Doctor of Divinity in 1834. In spite of ill health he wrote much, and he was a greatly beloved teacher, whose saintly character commanded the highest respect. For several years he edited the Christian Disciple, established in 1813, and he was author of many printed books, addresses and sermons, listed in the Memoir of him, published by his brother, Dr. John Ware, in 1846. His collected works were published in four volumes in 1847, the first volume including his occasional poems and his hymns. Some of these last reached a high standard of excellence and brought him wide recognition in the liberal churches of Great Britain as well as in this country. No less than eight pieces of his verse were included in Lyra Sacra Americana, published by the British Religious Tract Society in 1868. His hymns are some of the choicest poetical expressions of liberal religious thought in the first period of American Unitarian hymnody, but almost all have dropped out of present use. Most of them will be found in Putnam’s Singers and Songs, etc.

1. All nature’s works His praise declare, (Worship)

Headed “On Opening an Organ” and dated November 9, 1822. In view of the almost universal use of organs in modern churches it is rather surprizing that this should be a well-nigh unique example of a hymn for the dedication of such an instrument. It is also a good general hymn of worship. It was included in Horder’s British Congregational Hymns, 1884, and in a number of American Unitarian collections.

2. Around the throne of God, the host angelic sings,

A hymn of “Universal Praise,” based on Revelation IV, 2, 3; XV, 3. Dated 1823 and published in the Christian Disciple, vol. V. A fine hymn of its type, but little used, perhaps because of its metre, 6.6.6.6.4.4.4.4.

3. Father of earth and heaven, Whose arm upholds creation, (Thanksgiving for Divine Mercies)

Included in Cheever’s Common Place Book, 1831, and in Lyra Sacra Americana.

4. Father, Thy gentle chastisement (In sickness)

Dated March, 1836. In Lyra Sacra Americana.

5. Great God, the followers of thy Son, (Ordination)

Written for the ordination of Jared Sparks, the historian, as minister of the First Unitarian Church, Baltimore, Maryland, May 5, 1819, but suitable for any service of worship and perhaps the most widely used of Ware’s hymns.

6. In this glad hour when children meet (Family Gatherings)

Dated August 20, 1835. In Lyra Sacra Americana.

7. Lift your glad voices in triumph on high (Easter)

Dated 1817, and published in the Christian Disciple of that year, in 2 stanzas of 8 lines. In Lyra Sacra Americana and included in many 19^th century hymn books. In a few cases the second stanza alone is given, beginning

Glory to God, in full anthems of joy!

8. Like Israel’s hosts to exile driven (The God of our Fathers)

Written for the Centennial Celebration of the Boston Thursday Lecture, October 17, 1833. It is a quasi-national hymn in praise of the Pilgrim Fathers. Included in Hedge and Huntington’s Hymns for the Church of Christ and in Lyra Sacra Americana.

9. O Thou in whom alone is found (Laying Foundation Stone for a Place of Worship)

Not dated. In Lyra Sacra Americana, and in Thring’s Collection (British) 1882.

10. O Thou who on thy chosen Son, (Ordination)

Written “For an ordination, March, 1829.” Included in Dale’s English Hymn Book, 1874.

11. Oppression shall not always reign, (Anti-Slavery Song)

Dated March 15, 1843, it is the last of the author’s writings in verse. In its original form it was a poem in several stanzas unsuited for use as a hymn, but 3 stanzas, beginning as above, had been taken from it, altered and transposed, and thus adapted for worship. Stanzas one and two were included in Hedge and Huntington’s Hymns for the Church of Christ and in Longfellow and Johnson’s Hymns of the Spirit, 1864.

12. To prayer, to prayer, for morning breaks, (Prayer)

In 1826 he wrote a poem of 10 stanzas, 6 lines each, entitled “Seasons of Prayer,” printed in full in Lyra Sacra Americana and in Putnam, Singers and Songs, from which at least three variant centos were in use in the 19^th century. One beginning with the first line, as above, adapting it for morning worship, was included in Lunt’s Christian Psalter, 1841, and in later collections. Another beginning with the second stanza

To prayer, the glorious sun is gone,

was adapted for evening worship. A third selection, beginning with the third stanza of the poem,

To prayer! for the day that God hath blest,

was included in Hedge and Huntington’s Hymns for the Church of Christ.

13. We rear not a temple, like Judah of old, (Dedication of a Place of Worship)

“For the dedication of a church, April, 1839.”

14. With praise and prayer our gifts we bring (Opening of a Place of Worship)

In Dale’s English Hymn Book, 1874. Not in Putnam’s Singers and Songs, etc.

None of the hymns listed above are in current use except nos. 1 and 5, both of which are included in The New Hymn and Tune Book, 1914, and Hymns of the Spirit, 1937.

J. 1233, 1595 Revised by H.W.F.

Waterston, Rev. Robert Cassie, Kennebunk, Maine, 1812—February 21, 1893, Boston, Massachusetts. He studied for a time at the Harvard Divinity School. In 1844 Harvard gave him the degree of Master of Arts, following the publication of his book on Moral and Spiritual Culture. In 1839 he was ordained to the ministry-at-large (Unitarian) in Boston, in charge of the Pitts Street Chapel, where he remained till 1845. From 1845 to 1852 he served as minister of the Church of the Saviour, Boston, and from 1854 to 1856 he was minister of the First Religious Society of Newburyport, Massachusetts. Thereafter he gave himself to educational and literary pursuits. He was a member of the Massachusetts Historical Society and was long active on the Boston School Committee. He wrote many essays, addresses and poems, the most important of which are listed in Putnam’s Singers and Songs, etc., pp. 390-410. He contributed one hymn to the Cheshire Pastoral Association’s Christian Hymns, 1844, and eight to his own Supplement to Greenwood’s Psalms and Hymns, 1845.

1. God of the soul (The soul and God)

2. Great God, in heaven above,

Written for a Sunday School.

3. Great Source of Good, our God and Friend (Worship)

4. In ages past, majestic prophets, (The Coming of Jesus)

5. Nature with eternal youth

Written before 1853 and included in Hedge and Huntington’s Hymns for the Church of Christ, published in that year. It is a selection of 4 stanzas, numbers 4 to 7, from a longer poem entitled Nature and the Soul, printed in full in Putnam.

6. Lord of all, we bow before Thee

Entitled “Christian Benevolence.”

7. O God of Light and Love,

Written for the annual meeting of the American Unitarian Association, Boston, 1845.

8. O Lord of Life! to Thee we pray,

Written for the dedication of a church.

9. One sweet flower has drooped and faded,

Included in the Cheshire Collection, 1844, entitled “Death of a Pupil.” In Putnam the opening line reads

“One bright flower has drooped”, etc.

and the hymn is entitled “On the Death of a Child”, with a note, “Sung by her classmates.”

10. Theories, which thousands cherish, (Truth)

Published in The Religious Monthly, Boston, and included in several collections.

11. Thou who didst aid our sires (On leaving an old house of worship)

Written for the last service of worship held in the Federal Street Meeting House, Boston, March 13, 1859.

All of these hymns, and a number of other poems by Waterston, are included in Putnam’s Singers and Songs, etc., but few of them are dated or annotated as to use. The author was a popular writer of verses which were respectable expressions of the religious thought and feeling of his community, in which they had considerable vogue, but they rarely rise above mediocrity and have long since dropped out of use.

J. 1235, 1724 H.W.F.

Weir, Hon. Robert Stanley, D.C.L. 1856-1926. Judge in Admiralty of the Exchequer Court of Canada. He translated, from the original French by Calixa Lavallée, the hymn beginning, in his English version,

O Canada, our home, our native land,

which was adopted by the Canadian government as Canada’s national hymn. It is included in The New Hymn and Tune Book, 1914. He was a member of the Church of the Messiah (Unitarian), Montreal.

H.W.F.

Weiss, Rev. John, Boston, Massachusetts, June 28, 1828—March 9, 1879, Boston. He graduated from Harvard College in 1837, and from the Harvard Divinity School in 1843. He was ordained minister of the First Church, (Unitarian) Watertown, Massachusetts in 1843; was minister of the First Church, New Bedford, Massachusetts, 1847-1858; and served the church at Watertown again 1862-1869. He was a leader in the anti-slavery movement and a prolific author of books and essays. For Visitation Day at the Divinity School, 1843, he wrote a hymn beginning,

1. A wondrous star our pioneer,

which was included in the Book of Hymns, 1846, compiled by S. Longfellow and S. Johnson, and in their later book, Hymns of the Spirit, 1864. The Book of Hymns also included a hymn “For a Summer Festival” beginning,

2. Beneath thy trees we meet today,

which is in the Universalist Church Harmonies, 1895.

His hymn

3. The world throws wide its brazen gates

was included in Hedge and Huntington’s Hymns for the Church of Christ, 1853.

Three other hymns by him, which have not found their way into any hymn books, are printed in Putnam’s Singers and Songs.

H.W.F.

Wendte, Rev. Charles William, Boston, Massachusetts, June 11, 1844—September 9, 1911, San Francisco, California. He graduated from the Harvard Divinity School in 1869 and served Unitarian churches in Chicago, Illinois; Cincinnati, Ohio; and Newport, Rhode Island. From 1885 to 1900 he was engaged in denominational work on the Pacific Coast and thereafter was Secretary for Foreign Affairs of the American Unitarian Association, Boston, spending a part of each year in Europe. Long interested in Sunday Schools he published in 1886 The Carol, for Sunday School and Home; a book of songs for use by children and young people entitled Jubilate Deo in 1900; and another in 1908 entitled Heart and Voice, a Collection of Songs and Services for the Sunday-School and Home. In 1907 he wrote a hymn on “The City of God” beginning,

Not given to us from out the sky,

which was included in The New Hymn and Tune Book, 1914, and in Hymns of the Spirit, 1937, (with a slight alteration by the author).

H.W.F.

Westwood, Rev. Horace, D.D., Wakefield, Yorkshire, England, August 17, 1884—December 24, 1956, Clearwater, Florida. Emigrating to the United States, he served in the Methodist ministry for several years, and after 1910 served as minister in Unitarian churches in Youngstown, Ohio; Winnipeg, Canada; Toledo, Ohio; and extensively as a mission preacher. His hymn in one stanza,

Spirit of Truth, of Life, of Power, (1922)

was included in Hymns of the Spirit, 1937, and he privately printed a small collection, Some Hymns and Verses, n.d., a few of which appeared in periodicals, but have not had wider use.

H.W.F.

Wile, Mrs. Frances Whitmarsh, Bristol Centre, New York, December 2, 1878—July 31, 1939, Rochester, New York. Married A. J. Wile in 1901. Her lovely hymn for use in winter, beginning,

All beautiful the march of days,

was written about 1907 while she was a parishioner of Rev. William C. Gannett, q.v., in Rochester, New York, in consultation with him, and was included in Gannett and Hosmer’s revised edition of Unity Hymns and Chorals, 1911, from which it passed into The New Hymn and Tune Book, 1914, and Hymns of the Spirit, 1937.

H.W.F.

Wiley, Hiram Ozias, Middlebury, Vermont, May 20, 1831—January 28, 1873, Peabody, [Danvers] Massachusetts. He was a Unitarian layman who practised law in Peabody from 1855 until his death, and was the author of occasional verse contributed to local newspapers. On May 17, 1865, the South Danvers Wizard published his hymn beginning

He leads us on by paths we did not know,

and republished it on May 8, 1867, with a note reading “Some years ago we published the following poem, which was written for our columns by H. O. Wiley, Esq. Since then it has traversed the country in all directions, without any credit being given either to our paper or to the author. We reproduce it from a Western paper in order to correct several errors that have crept into it. Ed.” It is the only hymn included in the small volume of Wiley’s poems published as a memorial to him soon after his death. Its earliest appearance in a hymn book was in the 1873 Supp. to the Unitarian Sunday School Hymn Book, with the first line changed to

God leads us on, etc.,

About the same time it reached England, where it passed into a number of collections without the name of the author. In Julian’s Dictionary, p. 1647, “J.M.” states that it appears as Anon. in Our Home beyond the Tide, Glasgow, 1878, and that in Meth. Free. Ch. Hys., 1889, it is attributed to “Count Zinzendorf, about 1750. Tr. H.L.L.” (Jane Borthwick) although that attribution is questioned because the hymn could not be found in any of Miss Borthwick’s translations. The mistaken attribution persisted, however, long enough to be included in the second edition of the Pilgrim Hymnal, in the first decade of this century. Since then the hymn has passed, in its original form and rightly attributed to Wiley, into various other collections, among them the New Hymn and Tune Book, 1914, and Hymns of the Spirit, 1937.

H.W.F.

Willard, Rev. Samuel, 1776-1859. He graduated from Harvard College in 1803, served the First Church (Unitarian) in Deerfield, Massachusetts 1807 to 1829, when he resigned on account of blindness. In 1823 he published a collection of 158 songs, composed by himself, and in 1830 a compilation entitled “Sacred Music and Poetry Reconciled,” a hymnbook containing 518 hymns by various authors, about 180 of them written by himself. This book was adopted for use in the Third Parish in Hingham, Massachusetts where Willard was then living, but had little circulation elsewhere, and none of his hymns came into general use.

H.W.F.

Williams, Velma Curtis (Wright), East Boston, Massachusetts, July 29, 1852—January 22, 1941, Boston, Massachusetts. Wife of Rev. Theodore C. Williams, q.v. Her Hymnal: Amore Dei, compiled by Mrs. Theodore C. Williams, was published in Boston in 1890, revised edition 1897. It was edited with the assistance of her husband, then minister of All Souls’ Church, New York, where it was used, and in many other churches as well. Mrs. Williams herself wrote no hymns.

J. 1604 H.W.F.

Williams, Rev. Theodore Chickering, Brookline, Massachusetts, July 2, 1855—May 6, 1915, Boston, Massachusetts. He graduated from Harvard College in 1876, and from the Harvard Divinity School in 1882. He was ordained minister of the Unitarian Church in Winchester, Massachusetts, in 1882, but became minister of All Souls’ Church, New York in 1883. He resigned in 1896, and spent two years in Europe. After his return he served as headmaster of Hackley School, Tarrytown, New York, 1899-1905. A classical scholar, and gifted as a poet, he published a fine metrical translation of Virgil’s Aeneid, wrote a number of hymns which are religious poetry of a high order, and assisted his wife, Velma C. Williams, q.v., in compiling her Hymnal: Amore Dei, 1890, revised edition 1897. A few of his hymns appeared in this book and, with others of later date, are included in The New Hymn and Tune Book, 1914, and Hymns of the Spirit, 1937, as follows:

1. As the storm retreating, (Peace after storm)

Dated 1888.

2. By law from Sinai’s clouded steep, (Sabbath rest)

3. God be with thee! Gently o’er thee (Inward Peace)

Dated 1889.

4. Hast thou heard it, O my brother? (The Challenge of Life)

Dated 1902.

5. In the lonely midnight (Christmas)

6. Lord, who dost the voices bless

Written for the ordination of Rev. Benjamin R. Bulkeley at Concord, Massachusetts, 1882.

7. My country, to thy shore, (Hymn for the Nation)

Dated 1912.

8. Thou rulest, Lord, the lights on high (Universal Praise)

Dated 1911.

9. To hold thy glory, Lord of all, (Dedication of a Church)

Dated 1911.

10. When the world around us throws, (Lent)

Dated 1899.

11. When thy heart, with joy o’erflowing (Brotherhood)

Dated 1891.

Three other hymns by him, included in Amore Dei, have not come into general use, viz.:

12. Glory be to God on high, (Universal Worship)

Dated 1889.

13. I long did roam afar from home,

Dated 1889.

14. My heart of dust was made,

Of the above all from nos. 1 to 11 are included in the New Hymn and Tune Book, 1914, and, except no. 9, in Hymns of the Spirit, 1937, which also includes no. 12. Nos. 5, 11 and 12 are in the Pilgrim Hymnal, 1934.

J. 1728 H.W.F.

Willis, Love Maria (Whitcomb), Hancock, New Hampshire, June 9, 1824—November 26, 1908, Elmira, New York. She married Frederick L. E. Willis, M.D., of Boston, in 1858. She was for some years one of the editors of The Banner of Light, Boston, and of Tiffany’s Monthly Magazine, and was a frequent contributor to these and other periodicals. She wrote a number of hymns, one of which, beginning,

Father, hear the Prayer I offer (Aspiration)

was published in Tiffany’s Monthly in 1859. In Longfellow and Johnson’s Hymns of the Spirit, 1864, it was considerably rewritten, with the opening line changed to read,

Father, hear the prayer we offer,

and was cited as “Anon.” This 1864 text came into considerable use in various collections in England, and was included in The English Hymnal as late as 1906. It has also had wide use in America and will be found in almost all Unitarian hymn books since 1864, most recently in the New Hymn and Tune Book, 1914, and in Hymns of the Spirit, 1937.

J. 1728 H.W.F.

Willis, Nathaniel Parker, Portland, Maine, January 20, 1807—January 29, 1867. He graduated from Yale College in 1826. A journalist and editor, he wrote for the American Monthly and the New York Mirror. From 1831 to 1837 he was in Europe attached to the American Legation at the French Court. On his return he became, in 1839, one of the editors of The Corsair. His works are numerous and include Sacred Poems, 1843. His hymn

The perfect world by Adam trod,

was “Written to be sung at the Consecration of Hanover Street [Unitarian] Church, Boston,” in 1826. It was included in Hedge and Huntington’s Hymns for the Church of Christ, 1853, and in a good many other collections, although of no exceptional merit.

J. 1285 H.W.F.

Wilson, Rev. Edwin Henry, D.D. Chester Park, Long Island, New York, August 23, 1898—still living. He graduated from Boston University, 1922; from Meadville Theological School, 1926; and took the degree of M.A. at the University of Chicago, 1928. He has served as minister of Unitarian churches in Chicago, Illinois; Schenectady, New York; and Salt Lake City, Utah. Since 1949 he has been Director of the American Humanist Association. His hymn beginning,

Where is our holy church?

written in 1928, is included in Hymns of the Spirit, 1937.

H.W.F.

Wilson, Rev. Lewis Gilbert, Southboro, Massachusetts, February 19, 1858—April 24, 1928, Floral City, Florida. He studied at Dartmouth, Harvard and Meadville Theological School, and in 1883 was ordained minister of the Unitarian Church at Leicester, Massachusetts. Later he served the Unitarian church at Hopedale, Massachusetts, and from 1907-1915 was Secretary in the American Unitarian Association. While there he was a member of the committee which edited The New Hymn and Tune Book published in 1914 by the Association. This book included three of his hymns, beginning

1. O God, our dwelling place,

2. O troubled sea of Galilee,

3. The works, O Lord, our hands have wrought,

all three of which were written in 1912. The first of these is also included in Hymns of the Spirit, 1937.

H.W.F.

Young, George H. (No information available)

A hymn of 4 stanzas, L.M., beginning,

With heart’s glad song, dear Lord, we come,

is attributed to him in the Isles of Shoals Hymn Book, 1908.

H.W.F.