Katharine Lee Bates was a patriot who loved her country, but wanted it to live up to its ideals and correct its flaws.
The Backstory
‘America the Beautiful’ Song Origins
America the Beautiful may be America’s most beloved song. Its words are found in nearly every hymn book in the country. There have been numerous proposals to make it our national anthem, most notably by music legend Ray Charles. It celebrates our natural beauty and makes a powerful appeal for justice, brotherhood and inclusion. It has been sung at inaugurations, demonstrations, and sporting events, in operatic, folk, country and other styles.
Few know about the fascinating life of Katharine Lee Bates; the woman who wrote the song. Her story should not be forgotten, nor its context. The first words of the song came to Bates as she surveyed the Great Plains and the Rocky Mountains from the broad summit of Colorado's Pike's Peak on July 22, 1893. It is a tale that does not ignore the fact that the United States has often not lived up to its promises and ideals, yet it honors the unbroken chain of Americans who, honoring those ideals and loving their country deeply, strived to make it all it can be.
Who was Katharine Lee Bates?
Bates was a scholar, author, poet, and advocate for social reform. She had keen interests in history and politics. She saw good in people and the world but was unafraid to speak and write about what she felt was very wrong - and what needed to change. She loved her country and lived during a pivotal era of American history. It's clear from what she advocated for, that she was also ahead of her time.
Wellesley College, class of 1880. Katharine is second row from bottom, 4th person from the right.
Bates was born a few years before the American Civil War. She longed to see a more equal and inclusive America. She personally experienced sexism and discrimination. She fought for Native Americans, was among the first to protest against animal cruelty by refusing to wear fur, opposed capital punishment, and stood for immigrants, the poor, world peace, and the rights of women.
She lived to see achievements that she argued for and helped champion, including the ratification of the 19th Amendment, enshrining a woman's right to vote in 1920. But she was dismayed by the Spanish-American War and war with the Philippines and only reluctantly supported American participation in World War I, afterwards she worked hard for the proposed League of Nations, which the United States Senate failed to recognize. In her final speech, she asked Americans to consider the whole world as one community, “from sea to shining sea.”
Her travels in 1893, at the age of 33, greatly impacted her life and legacy. She had already developed an appreciation for nature and simplicity at Wellesley, yet her writings were often about people - civilization and culture. She saw beauty in both. She visited the futuristic Chicago World's Fair that year and was struck by "the alabaster city" which gleamed in white.
When asked about her primary inspiration for America the Beautiful, whose first verses were jotted into her notebook that summer in 1893, while she taught in Colorado, she remarked:
"One day, some of the teachers and I decided to go on a trip to 14,000-foot Pikes Peak. We hired a prairie wagon. Near the top we had to leave the wagon and go the rest of the way on mules. I was very tired. Then I saw the view. I felt great joy. All the wonder of America seemed displayed there, with the sea-like expanse."
- Katharine Lee Bates, 1893
Chris Gall Author and Illustrator
Carrying on the Family Tradition
“Chris Gall is an author and illustrator of over 20 books for children. His first book, America the Beautiful, was an illustrated homage to his great, great aunt, Katharine Lee Bates and her revered poem. As a child, he grew up with a hand-written copy of the poem on the living room wall, and years later, he was inspired to take a fresh look at the lyrics and reinterpret them for a new generation. As an illustrator, he has worked with clients all over the world for more than 30 years. He is a pilot and avid outdoor explorer living in Tucson, Arizona.”