In 1900 the Jefferson City ‘Missouri State Tribune’ noted that fame and fortune awaited the author of a state song. It even printed its own suggestion – a work by D. E. Grayson with music by B. J. Wrightsman. It was called “Missouri.” But it didn’t catch on. Nothing did for about half a century, despite contests in which the state put up prize money. What we finally ended up with is a song which has little to do with Missouri and is sometimes known by a title which has absolutely nothing to do with Missouri.
