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“Oregon My Oregon” was chosen as the state song in 1920 after a contest sponsored by the Society of Oregon Composers. Henry Murtagh wrote the music and John Andrew Buchanan wrote the lyrics, which were inspired by the state’s natural beauty and settlers. Murtagh wanted the song to be unique and not generic like other state songs with the same title pattern.
Oregon’s state song is “Oregon My Oregon,” which was selected in 1920 as the winner of a statewide song contest. The Society of Oregon Composers sponsored the contest to give all residents the opportunity to submit their creative work for consideration as a state song. A Portland composer named Henry Murtagh wrote the instrumental score and an amateur lyric writer named John Andrew Buchanan added the lyrics. Although both collaborated on the song, the finished copyright was in Henry Murtagh’s name only. Once the two were announced as the winners of the Oregon State Song, the composer’s company launched a campaign to promote “Oregon My Oregon” as often as possible, and it soon became a regular number performed at school and state events. community prior to the song’s official legislative adoption in 1927.
John Andrew Buchanan had previously written poetry and song lyrics as a hobby. He made his living as a judge in the city of Astoria in competition for possible state songs. He also previously worked as a school teacher and served in the Oregon state legislature.
When he began work on the Oregon State Song, Buchanan wanted to capture the rugged beauty of the state’s mountains, lakes and forests. He also wanted to honor the settlers of previous centuries who worked hard to make Oregon both their home and a unique part of the United States. Perhaps due to the recognition he received from winning the Oregon State Song Contest, Buchanan later fulfilled his dream of having one of his books of poetry accepted for publication.
Prior to entering the Oregon State Song Competition, Henry Murtagh made a living writing Broadway scores and playing the organ in various movie theaters during the time when silent films were played along with piano, organ or sometimes to calliope music. He wrote the music for this state song with the intention of making it unique among other two state songs with the same title pattern and instrumental melody. The songs “Michigan, My Michigan” and “Maryland, My Maryland” had been written to the same tune, and Murtagh didn’t want his finished work to be placed in the same category that he might consider generic and unimaginative. Instead, he wrote the score as a livelier march in the key of F major with the two lyrical lines spread over 16 lines of musical notes.
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