In the middle of the summer in 1933, the Morgans, a poor homeless family in Murphy, North Carolina, was trying to scrape together enough money to buy the gas to drive out of town. The people of Murphy had complained about how the Morgans made their home in the middle of the city.
They had even hung their laundry out to dry on the confederate monument in the town square. The police were ordered to evict them from their unlikely temporary home in the town center, but they didn’t have enough money to leave.
Niles is Inspired
Mr. Morgan was a preacher and some evangelicals had come to assist in the fundraising. John Jacob Niles notes in his unpublished autobiography what happened next:
“It was then that Annie Morgan came out--a tousled, unwashed blond, and very lovely. She sang the first three lines of the verse of 'I Wonder As I Wander'. At twenty-five cents a performance, I tried to get her to sing all the song. After eight tries, all of which are carefully recorded in my notes, I had only three lines of verse, a garbled fragment of melodic material--and a magnificent idea.”
Sources note Niles heard anywhere from one to three lines of music that day. However many lines of music he heard, he took what the girl sang and turned it into the full version of “I Wonder as I Wander” that we hear today.
The First Performance in 1933
Niles performed his own song first at the John C. Campell Folk School in Brasstown, North Carolina on December 19, 1933 and it was published in 1944. Niles says in his unpublished autobiography that he performed the song in concerts for five years before it caught on.
Legal Troubles Along the Way
Niles had some legal troubles while he tried to popularize his song. Many thought the music should be labeled as anonymous because it was inspired by Appalachian folk music. Niles succeeded in his lawsuits and proved his right to receive royalties for all performances.
A Journey Toward Success
“I Wonder as I Wander” has come a long way from rural North Carolina to its rise to popularity. Niles said in his autobiography, “[I]t has been sung by soloists and choral groups wherever the English language is spoken and sung."
It has been recorded over 30 times in almost 60 years and shows no signs of loosing popularity. An annual favorite for many, this carol will be around for years to come.
Sources
Bradley, Ian. The Penguin Book of Carols. Penguin (1999), p148. ISBN 0140275266
Niles, John Jacob. "I Wonder as I Wander". John-Jacob-Niles.com.
Amy Schumaker - Amy is a young musician based out of Philadelphia. A native of northeast Ohio, she went to Capital University Conservatory of Music, where ...
