James Lord Pierpont

Musician · 1822–1893 · Boston, Massachusetts
Best known for Songwriter Composer

James Lord Pierpont (1822–1893) was an American songwriter and organist who wrote “Jingle Bells,” copyrighted in 1857 as “The One Horse Open Sleigh.”

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  • Born in Boston; went to sea on a whaler at fourteen and later served in the U.S. Navy.
  • In 1857 became organist and music director of the Unitarian church in Savannah, Georgia.
  • An uncle of the financier J. P. Morgan; elected to the Songwriters Hall of Fame for “Jingle Bells.”
  • Died in Winter Haven, Florida.

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