"The original words and music of this sprightly song were written in the summer of 1862 by George F Root, one of the North's leading composers . So catchy was the tune that southern composer H.L Shriner and lyricist W.H Barnes adopted it for the Confederacy . The differnt versions became popular on both sides of the Mason-Dixie Line ....."

From the fly leaf of James M. McPherson's Battle Cry Of Freedom