On November 22, 1873, the British sailing freighter
Loch Earn collided with the French steam-sailer
Ville du Havre, a passenger liner, which went down with most of its passengers and crew. The wreck inspired Horatio Spafford, who lost most of his family in the wreck, to write the hymn "It Is Well with My Soul," whose tune name is Ville du Havre. Soon afterwards, Phillip Paul Bliss, who wrote the music to which the hymn was set, died in a train wreck near Ashtabula, Ohio.
Yes. Very sad. My major in seminary was Church Music and one class covered the history of many of the great old hymns. Some I’ve forgotten; some are unforgettable — like this one.
Also the story behind “Does Jesus Care”.