“Beautiful Ohio” was created in 1918 by composer Robert Keizer and lyricist Ballard MacDonald. It became Ohio’s state song in 1969, despite debate over its relevance. The song’s lyrics were revised in 1989 to better represent the state’s industry and agriculture. The instrumental version is more commonly known due to its use at sporting events.
Ohio’s state song is “Beautiful Ohio,” which was originally created from an instrumental waltz that a composer named Robert Keizer wrote in 1918. A lyric writer named Ballard MacDonald wrote the words, and the two collaborated to the first version of the song from the 1920s. This song soon became a favorite of Ohio natives over the next several decades for its depiction of the state in a positive light. Despite its popularity, the song was not granted official status as the state song of Ohio until 1969 due to debate among state officials and some residents over the direct relevance of some of the lyrics.
Ballard MacDonald’s lyrics originally created images of a loving couple in a small boat drifting down the Ohio River, which has led some Ohioans to question this choice for an official state song. Some believed it did not accurately reflect the hardworking, no-nonsense spirit of the state’s residents. Despite these misgivings, the song has remained popular with many people for its use of words like “beautiful” and “majestic” to describe the Ohio landscape. In the years following the first version’s official adoption, various suggestions for new words began to arise that would include more holistic representations of the state’s burgeoning farmlands and factories.
Ohio’s state song is a relatively recent addition to the set of official state symbols. The song was also subject to lyrical revisions, with a new chorus rewritten and adopted in 1989. An attorney named Wilbert McBride created a new set of song lyrics that he felt best described Ohio’s environment as a state thriving and industrious. Many long-term state residents agreed that the revised words were an improvement over the romantic images of the Ohio River contained in Ballard MacDonald’s original lyrics. Although the governor of Ohio initially objected, this new interpretation of the Ohio state song received enough legislative votes to become law that year.
Modern Ohio residents often associate their state song with the brass instrumental version of “Beautiful Ohio” that is often played at major sporting events. “Beautiful Ohio” is the theme song for the Ohio State University marching band. As a result, many venues are less familiar with the lyrics than with the instrumental score.
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