The lyrics to “The Old North State” were written by Judge William Gaston of the North Carolina supreme court, who was born in New Bern in 1778. According to the traditional story, Judge Gaston overheard a group of young girls singing the tune, which they had heard previously at a local concert of the “Swiss bell-ringers.” Gaston thought that such a pretty tune should have words, and wrote the current lyrics in 1835. In 1928 the Caswell-Nash chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution placed a bronze tablet honoring Gaston on the corner of Hargett and Salisbury streets, where it is thought that Gaston penned the song.

Click on the picture of the music to the left to learn more.

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