Paul Dresser

Paul Dresser (b. Johann Paul Dreiser in Terre Haute, April 21, 1857 – d. New York, January 30, 1906) – Songwriter, actor, playwright, producer, and publisher. One of the most famous American songwriters at the turn of century, Dresser was baptized as Johann Paul Dreiser at Terre Haute’s St. Joseph’s Catholic Church (still standing on South Fourth Street). He is also the older brother of novelist Theodore Dreiser. Running away from his father’s strict home at age sixteen, Paul Dresser toured the country as an actor and singer in a medicine show. After proving himself as a songwriter, he eventually wound up in New York’s Tin Pan Alley, where he established his own publishing company in 1901. Among his 106 songs is “On the Banks of the Wabash, Far Away,” which he composed in 1897 and became Indiana’s state song in 1913. His other million-copy seller was “My Gal Sal” (1905), the same name used for a 1942 film biopic on Dresser (played by Victor Mature).