On the Banks of the Wabash
Paul Dresser
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On the Banks of the Wabash by Paul Dresser
Performed by
Paul DresserAbout
One of the 19th century’s biggest popular hits in America, this song waxes sentimental about Dresser’s childhood in Indiana. The song earned about $100,000 in revenues in sheet music and was also one of the first to be recorded on a phonograph, though Dresser received no royalties from the recording...
On the Banks of the Wabash Lyrics
Round my Indiana homestead wave the cornfields
In the distance loom the woodlands clear and cool
Oftentimes my thoughts revert to scenes of childhood
Where I first received my lessons Nature’s school
But one thing there is missing in the picture;
Without her face it seems so incomplete
I long to see my mother in the doorway
As she stood there years ago her boy to greet
Oh, the moonlight’s fair tonight along the Wabash;
From the fields there comes the breath of new-mown hay
Through the sycamores the candlelights are gleaming
On the banks of the Wabash, far away
Many years have passed since I strolled by the river
Arm in arm, with sweetest Mary by my side
It was there I tried to tell her that I loved her;
It was there I begged of her to be my bride
Long years have passed since I strolled thro’ the churchyard
She’s sleeping there, my angel, Mary dear
I loved her but she thought I didn’t mean it
Still I’d give my future were she only here
On the Banks of the Wabash Q&A
Who wrote On the Banks of the Wabash's ?
On the Banks of the Wabash was written by Paul Dresser.