Hymn Story: Take Thou My Hand, O Father
Happy Father’s Day!
Take Thou My Hand, O Father was written by Julie Katharina von Hausmann, a Baltic German Poet (born 1825). Daughter of a teacher she became a governess until ill health forced her to return home. After her father’s death in 1864 she lived with her sisters in Germany, Southern France, and St. Petersburg, Russia. She never married and died on summer vacation in Estonia in 1901.
Friedrich Silcher wrote the melody and paired it with the lyrics.
Herman H. Brueckner translated the German lyrics into English. He was born on March 11, 1866 in Iowa and received a Bachelor of ARts degree from Iowa State University. In 1926, he joined the faculty of Hebron College in Nebraska. He died on January 25, 1942 in Hebron, Nebraska.
