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Who Wrote Over The River And Through The Woods

Over the River and Through the Wood or The New-England Boy’s Song about Thanksgiving Day was written by Lydia Maria Child and published in 1844. It is a famous Thanksgiving song sung even today. The song has many versions, and the modern one is more well-known than the original.

The original title used the word ‘wood’. However, it became ‘woods’ over time to signify the forests. Other similar changes occurred where the word ‘grandfather’ became ‘grandmother’.

Written Lyrics (this is the popular version)

Over the river and through the woods,To grandfather’s house we go;The horse knows the way to carry the sleigh,Thru the white and drifted snow, oh!Over the river and thru the woods,Oh, how the wind does blow!It stings the toes and bites the nose,As over the ground we go.Over the river and thru the wood,To have a first-rate play;Oh, hear the bell ring, “Ting-a-ling-ling!”Hurrah for Thanksgiving Day-ay!Over the river and thru the woods,Trot fast my dapple gray!Spring over the ground like a hunting hound,For this is Thanksgiving Day!Over the river and through the woods,And straight through the barnyard gate.We seem to go extremely slow,It is so hard to wait!Over the river and through the woods,Now Grandmother’s cap I spy!Hurrah for fun! Is the pudding done?Hurrah for the pumpkin pie!

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Printable Lyrics

Get the printable PDF with full lyrics of the Thanksgiving song Over the River and Through the Woods. Download it from here.

Photo Lyrics

Save the below image on your device.

Over the River and Through the Woods lyrics

Video Links

Check out this animated video with a shortened version of the lyrics:

Here’s another shorter version:

Origins and History

Over the River and Through the Wood was a poem published in Flowers for Children, Volume 2. The poet, Lydia Maria Child, was an abolitionist, Native American rights activist, women’s rights activist, and journalist. She wrote the poem based on her visit to her grandfather’s house during Thanksgiving. The house was later restored by Tufts University in 1976. It is also called Paul Cutis House and is located in Medford, Massachusetts.

The poet had only a few happy memories of her childhood, and the Thanksgiving celebrations were one of them. More than twenty local people (workers) joined her grandparents for Thanksgiving to enjoy the meal and take some home for their kids.

An unknown composer set the tune to turn the poem into a joyful song for kids. The song is sung in community programs and at school every year. The song inspired a children’s book by Derek Anderson. Titled Over the River—A Turkey’s Tale, the book tells a funny story of a family of turkeys going to a vegetarian Thanksgiving. Simon & Schuster published this book in 2005.

Brynna Williamson wrote a young adult novel with the same title. Published in 2020, the book is the author’s debut and only novel to date.

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