Major Daniel Webster Whittle (November 22, 1840,

Chicopee Falls, Massachusetts Chicopee ( ) is a city located on the Connecticut River in Hampden County, Massachusetts, United States. At the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the city had a population of 55,560, making it the second-largest city in western Massachuset ...

- March 4, 1901,

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) was a 19th-century American

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lyricist, evangelist, and

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teacher.

Life and career

Whittle was associated with the evangelistic campaigns of Dwight Lyman Moody. Marrying Abbie Hanson in 1861 the night before he deployed with

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B of the 72d Illinois Infantry, he served in the

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. He was wounded at Vicksburg and marched with

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’s forces through

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. Whittle was breveted with the rank of

major Major most commonly refers to: * Major (rank), a military rank * Academic major, an academic discipline to which an undergraduate student formally commits * People named Major, including given names, surnames, nicknames * Major and minor in musi ...

at the end of the war and is still widely known among hymnologists as Major Whittle. Settling in

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to work for the Elgin Clock Company, he became closely associated with Moody, who successfully encouraged him to go into evangelistic work. One of Whittle’s war experiences served as the basis for the gospel song "Hold the Fort" by Philip Paul Bliss, of whom Whittle edited a biography. He was also known to have worked with Bliss' sister, Mary Elizabeth Willson. Whittle wrote mostly under the pseudonym "El Nathan" although editors of later hymnals routinely credit his actual name. Of his approximately 200 hymns, "I Know Whom I Have Believed" and "Showers of Blessing" are among the most familiar. James McGranahan wrote the tunes for both of those and for Whittle's "Banner of the Cross" as well. The name of the tune associated with "I Know Whom I Have Believed" is EL NATHAN, Whittle's pseudonym. The tune for Whittle's "Moment by Moment" (first line "Dying with Jesus") was composed by Whittle's daughter Mary "May" Whittle Moody.

Writings of Daniel W. Whittle

* ''Memoirs of Philip P. Bliss'' edited by D.W. Whittle. Chicago: A. S. Barnes and Company, 1877. B00085OH8S * ''Jonathan and other poems''. BiblioBazaar, 2009 September. Old Tappan, New Jersey: Fleming H. Revell company, 1900. * ''The Wonders of Prayer''. BiblioBazaar, 2009 February 10. .

Example of hymn: "I Know Whom I Have Believed"

References

External links

Hymn music of D W Whittle
* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Whittle, Daniel Webster 1840 births 1901 deaths American Christian hymnwriters American evangelists American gospel musicians United States Army officers Writers from Illinois Writers from Massachusetts Musicians from Chicopee, Massachusetts 19th-century American writers Songwriters from Massachusetts Union army officers Military personnel from Massachusetts