Are you planning a Fourth of July celebration this year? Let's go back in time and check out the festivities of our Ozarks' History.
July 10, 1908
Misses Argie and Margie Redus entertained a large number of their friends Friday evening with an apron and tie party. The girls brought the aprons and ties and the boys chose the ties in envelops and matched them with the aprons the girls were wearing. Each apron was unhemed and the boys had to hem the girl’s apron. A prize was offered for this and was won by Mr. Claude Alley. Later a gum molding contest kept the fun moving. Each had to make from a piece of chewing gum some animal or bird designed. Miss Beulah Casey won this prize by making an excellent dog. Refreshments were served later in the evening. All spend a very pleasant evening.Cotter was the only town in the county that held a celebration for the fourth. A good size crowd spent the day there. While some of the things billed on the program were not pulled off, everybody reported a good time. About 50 Mountain Home people spent the day there. At Mountain Home, no one celebrated, but the younger generation, and they kept firecrackers popping all day. Many merchants observed the day with flag decorations etc. We should not overlook our Fourth of July parade either. Several of the younger children of the town, all girls, costumed one to represent Columbia, the rest, her escort, singing “Columbia, the Gem of the Ocean” made the rounds of the down town streets. Their idea was a very pretty one and it helped break the monotony of the day. No causalities from the fireworks of other noise making devices were reported.
End of Article
Historical Note:Columbia, the Gem of the Ocean was a widely popular song of the 19th and early 20th Century. It was written and composed by David T. Shaw in 1843. Occasionally, it was used as an unofficial national anthem in competition with The Star-Spangled Banner and Hail, Columbia. (Later, in 1931, “The Star-Spangled Banner” became our national anthem.) This song was a favorite anthem of Northern generals for their men to sing before marching on the battlefield during the Civil War. It was also published in 1882 as a soldier’s song book entitled: The Good Old Songs We Used to Sing, '61 to'65. The idiom/expression "Columbia" was understood as a symbolic name for the United States. It is believed this song was a “sanctification” of an old British tune/ditty entitled: Red, White, and Blue. This song’s history, arrangement, and lyrics can be easily found on the internet at the Project Gutenberg at http://www.pgdp.net/. The following are the lyrics once heard on the streets of Baxter County in 1908.
Columbia, the Gem of the Ocean
First Verse
O Columbia! the gem of the ocean,
The home of the brave and the free,
The shrine of each patriot's devotion,
A world offers homage to thee;
Thy mandates make heroes assemble,
When Liberty's form stands in view;
Thy banners make tyranny tremble,
When borne by the red, white, and blue,
When borne by the red, white, and blue,
When borne by the red, white, and blue,
Thy banners make tyranny tremble,
When borne by the red, white and blue.
Second Verse
When war wing'd its wide desolation,
And threaten'd the land to deform,'
The ark then of freedom's foundation,
Columbia rode safe thro' the storm;
With her garlands of vict'ry around her,
When so proudly she bore her brave crew;
With her flag proudly floating before her,
The boast of the red, white and blue,
The boast of the red, white and blue,
The boast of the red, white, and blue,
With her flag proudly floating before her,
The boast of the red, white and blue.
Third Verse
The Union, the Union forever,
Our glorious nation's sweet hymn,
May the wreaths it has won never wither,
Nor the stars of its glory grow dim,
May the service united ne'er sever,
But they to their colors prove true?
The Army and Navy forever,
Three cheers for the red, white, and blue,
Three cheers for the red, white, and blue,
Three cheers for the red, white, and blue,
The Army and Navy for ever,
Three cheers for the red, white and blue.
(Alternate Third Verse)
The star spangled banner bring hither,
O'er Columbia's true sons let it wave;
May the wreaths they have won never wither,
Nor its stars cease to shine on the brave.
May thy service united ne'er sever,
But hold to the colors so true;
The army and navy forever,
Three cheers for the red, white, and blue!
Three cheers for the red, white, and blue!
The army and navy forever,
Three cheers for the red, white, and blue.
Work Cited:
"Fourth of July." Baxter Bulletin 7.24 (10 Jul. 1908) A1-1. Baxter County Microfilm Archive. Baxter County Library, Mountain Home, AR. 2 Jan. 2008.
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