Who knew postcards of North Carolina could be so cool?
I certainly didn’t. But, in doing research for this post, I discovered the UNC-CH digital collection of North Carolina postcards.
The postcard pictured here inspired me to look into the history of our school’s fight song, “Hark the Sound.”
According to Tar Heel Blue’s website, “Hark the Sound” was written by William Starr Myers, a graduate of the class of 1897!
The song was first sung on June 2, 1897, at a graduation concert in Gerrard Hall.
The UNC Music Library’s entry for this song also shows two additional verses that I had never heard before.
The second verse is:
_’Neath the oaks the sons true hearted
Homage pay to thee?
Time worn walls give back their echo
Hail to U.N.C. _
The third verse is:
_Though the storms of life assail us
Still our hearts beat true
Naught can break the friendships formed at
Dear old N.C.U._
It’s not clear, however, when the chorus of “I’m a Tar Heel born” came about.
The music library includes the chorus in the lyrics written in 1897, while Tar Heel Blue states that the chorus was added in the 1930s.
While this part may not have gained popularity at sporting events until the early decades of the 20th century, it was nevertheless a part of the song before then.
This postcard on the right, which was copyrighted in 1908 but now part of the public domain, is evidence of the rich history of our school’s spirit songs.
Questions? Comments? Tweet us @PitTalk.
To get the day's news and headlines in your inbox each morning, sign up for our email newsletters.
