There are numerous popular American hymns that have shaped culture and worship in the United States. On this page, we dive into the different types of American hymns to show their significance and better understand the meaning behind them.
American Hymns from 1700-1899
Contents
According to research done by many different scholars and organizations, we’ll split this list of American Hymns into three main categories.
Early American Psalmody
This list was originally published in The Core Repertory of American Psalmody that was edited by Richard Crawford. It lists 50 of the most influential hymns in American history in the order of the number of prints which were published.
| Song Title | Songwriter: Words | Songwriter: Music | Year Written |
|---|---|---|---|
| Psalm 100 | Psalm 57 | European | 1551 |
| Wells | Isaac Watts | Israel Holdroyd | 1724 |
| St. Martin's | Isaac Watts | Wiliam Tans'ur | 1735 |
| Little Marlborough | Isaac Watts | English | 1763 |
| Aylesbury | Isaac Watts | English | 1718 |
| Mear | Isaac Watts | English | 1720 |
| Psalm 149 | Psalm 149 | European | 1708 |
| Windsor | Isaac Watts | English | 1591 |
| Psalm 34 | Psalm 34 | Joseph Stevenson | 1760 |
| Bangor | Isaac Watts | Wiliam Tans'ur | 1735 |
| Lenox | Isaac Watts | Lewis Edson | 1782 |
| Greenfield | Psalm 46 | Lewis Edson | 1782 |
| Plymouth | Isaac Watts | Wiliam Tans'ur | 1735 |
| Bridgewater | Isaac Watts | Lewis Edson | 1782 |
| Colchester | Isaac Watts | Wiliam Tans'ur | 1735 |
| Funeral Thought | Isaac Watts | English | 1763 |
| Denmark | Isaac Watts | Martin Madan | 1769 |
| Virginia | Isaac Watts | Oliver Brownson | 1782 |
| Bath | Isaac Watts | English | 1713 |
| Canterbury | Isaac Watts | English | 1585 |
| Brookfield | Isaac Watts | William Billings | 1770 |
| St. Anne | Isaac Watts | William Croft | 1708 |
| Norwich | Isaac Watts | Hibbard | 1779 |
| Stafford | Isaac Watts | Daniel Read | 1782 |
| Landaff | Isaac Watts | European | 1758 |
| Bedford | Psalm 147 | William Wheall | 1720 |
| Rochester | Isaac Watts | Israel Holdroyd | 1724 |
| Greenwich | Isaac Watts | Daniel Read | 1786 |
| Irish | Isaac Watts | English or Irish | 1749 |
| Bristol | Joseph Addison | Timothy Swan | 1785 |
| Sherburne | Nahum Tate | Daniel Read | 1785 |
| Ocean | Isaac Watts | American | 1787 |
| Majesty | Thomas Sternhold | William Billings | 1778 |
| Amherst | William Billings | William Billings | 1770 |
| Buckingham | Isaac Watts | English | 1763 |
| Angels Hymn | Psalm 95 | Orlando Gibbons | 1623 |
| Dalston | Isaac Watts | English | 1763 |
| Jordan | Isaac Watts | Aaron Williams | 1763 |
| St. Helen's | Isaac Watts | Joseph Stevenson | 1760 |
| Putney | Isaac Watts | Daniel Read | 1786 |
| Milford | Arnold | English | 1763 |
| Russia | Isaac Watts | Daniel Read | 1785 |
| Wantage | Isaac Watts | Daniel Read | 1785 |
| Lisbon | Isaac Watts | Amos Bull | 1779 |
| Windham | Isaac Watts | English | 1720 |
| Middletown | Isaac Watts | English | 1729 |
| Isle of Wight | Isaac Watts | English | 1780 |
| Bromsgrove | Isaac Watts | Oliver King | 1779 |
| Newton | Isaac Watts | English | 1760 |
| Suffield | Isaac Watts | Abraham Wood | 1778 |
Popular Hymns of the 19th Century
Here is a list of the most popular hymns during the 1900s.
| Song Title | Songwriter: Words | Songwriter: Music | Year Written |
|---|---|---|---|
| Silent Night! Holy Night! | Joseph Mohr [Translated by Joseph Freeman Young] | Franz Xaver Gruber | 1818 |
| The Tyrolese Evening Hymn | Mrs. Felicia Dorethea Hemans | Augusta Browne | 1828 |
| From Greenland's Icy Mountains | Reginald Heber | Lowell Mason | 1829 |
| My Faith Looks Up to Thee | Ray Palmer | Lowell Mason | 1832 |
| Rock of Ages | Augustus Montague Toplady | Thomas Hastings | 1832 |
| Jesus, Lover of My Soul | Charles Wesley | Simeon Butler Marsh | 1834 |
| See, Gentle Patience Smiles on Pain | Anne Steele | Henry Kemble Oliver | 1835 |
| Joy to the World | Isaac Watts | George Frederick Handel | 1836 |
| God Bless Our Native Land | Siegried A. Mahlman | Henry Carey | 1844 |
| Blest Be the Tie That Binds | John Fawcett | Johann (Hans) Georg Naegeli | 1845 |
| Just As I Am Without One Plea | Charlotte Elliot | William Batchelder Bradbury | 1849 |
| Fairest Lord Jesus | Munster Gesangbuch | Schleische Volkslieder | 1850 |
| It Came Upon the Midnight Clear | Edmund Hamilton Sears | Richard Storrs Willis | 1850 |
| The Spacious Firmament on High | Joseph Addison | J. Huntington | 1850 |
| Hark! the Herald Angels Sing | Charles Wesley | Felix Mendelssohn-Bartholdy | 1855 |
| Cantique de Noël | Cappeau de Roquemaure | Adolphe Adam | 1858 |
| Nearer, My God, to Thee | Sarah Francis Adams | Dr. Lowell Mason | 1859 |
| Holy, Holy, Holy! Lord God Almighty | Reginald Heber | John Bacchus Dykes | 1861 |
| Holy! Holy! Holy! Lord God Almighty | Reginald Heber | James B. Taylor | 1861 |
| Jerusalem the Golden | Bernard of Cluny | Alexander Ewing | 1861 |
A Treasury of 101 Best-Loved Hymns
This list was published by EMI-Capitol Music in a 3 Disc set called A Treasury of 101 Best-Loved Hymns that was released in 1997 by the label.
| Song Title | Songwriter: Words | Songwriter: Music | Year Written |
|---|---|---|---|
| Abide With Me | Henry Francis Lyte | William Henry Monk | 1861 |
| Alas, and Did My Savior Bleed | Isaac Watts | Hugh Wilson | 1707 |
| All Creatures of Our God and King | St. Francis of Assisi | Geistliche Kirchengesang | 1623 |
| All Hail the Power of Jesus' Name | Edward Perronet | Oliver Holden, | 1779 |
| Amazing Grace | John Newton | Traditional | 1779 |
| And Can It Be? | Charles Wesley | Thomas Cambell | 1738 |
| At the Cross | Isaac Watts | Ralph E. Hudson | 1885 |
| Be Thou My Vision | Translation: Mary Elizabeth Byrne | Arrangement: Norman Johnson | 1966 |
| Because He Lives | Gloria Gaither | William J. Gaither | 1971 |
| Beneath the Cross of Jesus | Elizabeth Cecilia Clephane | Frederick Charles Maker | 1872 |
