Benjamin Hanby
Encyclopedia
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
composer
Composer
A composer is a person who creates music, either by musical notation or oral tradition, for interpretation and performance, or through direct manipulation of sonic material through electronic media...
who wrote approximately 80 songs, the most famous of which are "Darling Nelly Gray"
Nellie Gray
"Darling Nelly Gray" is a 19th c. popular song composed by Benjamin Hanby, and as such, is a pseudo-African-American folksong. Hanby composed the song while attending Otterbein College in Westerville, Ohio in 1856, in response to the plight of a runaway slave named Joseph Selby or Shelby...
, the Christmas
Christmas
Christmas or Christmas Day is an annual holiday generally celebrated on December 25 by billions of people around the world. It is a Christian feast that commemorates the birth of Jesus Christ, liturgically closing the Advent season and initiating the season of Christmastide, which lasts twelve days...
song "Up on the House Top
Up on the House Top
"Up on the House Top" is a Christmas song written by Benjamin Hanby in 1864 in the town of New Paris, Ohio.. It has been recorded by a multitude of singers, among the most notable Gene Autry, who is also known for his version of the classic "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer".-History:According to...
", and the hymn "Who Is He In Yonder Stall?".
Hanby was born near Rushville
Rushville, Ohio
Rushville is a village in Fairfield County, Ohio, United States. The population was 268 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Rushville is located at ....
, Ohio
Ohio
Ohio is a Midwestern state in the United States. The 34th largest state by area in the U.S.,it is the 7th‑most populous with over 11.5 million residents, containing several major American cities and seven metropolitan areas with populations of 500,000 or more.The state's capital is Columbus...
. He moved to Westerville, Ohio
Westerville, Ohio
Westerville, once known as "The Dry Capital of the World", is a city in Franklin and Delaware counties in the U.S. state of Ohio. The population was 35,318 at the 2000 census.-Early history:...
in 1849, at the age of sixteen, to enroll at Otterbein University. He was the son of Bishop William Hanby, who with his son was involved in the Underground Railroad
Underground Railroad
The Underground Railroad was an informal network of secret routes and safe houses used by 19th-century black slaves in the United States to escape to free states and Canada with the aid of abolitionists and allies who were sympathetic to their cause. The term is also applied to the abolitionists,...
.
Hanby composed "Darling Nelly Gray" in 1856 in what is now a state historical site, the Hanby House, located at 160 West Main Street in Westerville, adjacent to the campus of Otterbein College. After graduation Hanby briefly taught school and then became a minister in the Church of the United Brethren in Christ
Church of the United Brethren in Christ
The Church of the United Brethren in Christ is an evangelical Christian denomination based in Huntington, Indiana. It is a Protestant denomination of episcopal structure, Arminian theology, with roots in the Mennonite and German Reformed communities of 18th century Pennsylvania, as well as close...
.
During his tenure as minister of a church near Dayton
Dayton, Ohio
Dayton is the 6th largest city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Montgomery County, the fifth most populous county in the state. The population was 141,527 at the 2010 census. The Dayton Metropolitan Statistical Area had a population of 841,502 in the 2010 census...
he composed "Up On The Housetop" in 1864 for use as a Christmas sing-along. He composed this in the town of New Paris
New Paris, Ohio
New Paris is a village in Preble County, Ohio, United States. The population was 1,623 at the 2000 census. It is part of the Dayton Metropolitan Statistical Area.- History :The area was in the tribal grounds of the Pottawatomi, Miami and Wyandot Indians....
.
In 1865 Chicago publisher George Frederick Root
George Frederick Root
George Frederick Root was an American songwriter, who found particular fame during the American Civil War.-Biography:...
published "Up On The Housetop" and brought Hanby to Chicago to pursue other publishing ventures.
Hanby died from tuberculosis
Tuberculosis
Tuberculosis, MTB, or TB is a common, and in many cases lethal, infectious disease caused by various strains of mycobacteria, usually Mycobacterium tuberculosis. Tuberculosis usually attacks the lungs but can also affect other parts of the body...
in Chicago on March 16, 1867. He is buried in Otterbein Cemetery in Westerville.