Paul Dresser Jr. (1857-1906) - Find a Grave Memorial

Songwriter. He gained fame as an American songwriter from the "Tin Pan Alley" era. He was also known for being an actor, musician, composer, playwright, and singer of less fame. He is credited with writing the 1897 hit song "On the Banks of the Wabash," which became the official song of Indiana in 1913. He was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 1970. Born Johann Paul Dreiser Jr., the son of German immigrants, he changed his name at age twenty. At one point in his early years, his father sent him to seminary school to become a Roman Catholic priest, but he left to join a traveling musical show. He could play the organ and composed sheet music that was sold after performing. By the turn of the century, his style of music had fallen from favor. Although he was wealthy at one point in his career, overspending made him nearly impoverished by 1903, forcing him to live with his sister. While living with his sister, he died of a brain hemorrhage and died. His body was held for almost a year until the funeral arrangements were paid in full. His burial was on November 23, 1907, without a stone. His brother Theodore Dreiser became a well-known novelist.

Bio by: Linda Davis

Inscription

Author
State Song of Indiana
"On The Banks of The Wabash, Far Away"
Erected by
Indiana Society of Chicago
Nov. 1922
Rededicated Nov. 1974

Gravesite Details

His grave was unmarked until 1922, when the Indiana Society of Chicago had a boulder from the banks of the Wabash River brought to Chicago to mark his burial site.