BIO: Mildred J. Hill, 1859, Jefferson Co. Submitted by Connie Hurley ______________________________ Mildred J. Hill 27 June 1859 Louisville, Kentucky, USA Date of death 5 June 1916 Chicago, Illinois, USA. An authority on Negro spirituals. Happy Birthday to You, which she wrote with her sister, Patty Smith Hill, was intended as a classroom greeting. It was first published in 1893 as "Good Morning To All." The lyrics were amended in 1924 to include a stanza beginning "Happy Birthday to You." In 1988, Birch Tree Group, Ltd. sold the rights of Happy Birthday to You, along with all its other assets, to Warner Communications for an estimated $25 million. With Auld Lang Syne and For He's a Jolly Good Fellow, Happy Birthday to You is among the three most popular songs in the English language. The song is expected to enter public domain upon expiration of copyright in 2010. Mildred J. Hill and Patty Smith Hill are postumously inducted into The Songwriter's Hall of Fame. [12 June 1996] She and sister, Patty Smith Hill, are buried at Cave Hill Cemetery (Louisville, KY) ************************************************************************* USGENWEB ARCHIVES NOTICE: These electronic pages may NOT be reproduced in any format for profit or presentation by any other organization or persons. Persons or organizations desiring to use this material, must obtain the written consent of the contributor, or the legal representative of the submitter, and contact the listed USGenWeb archivist with proof of this consent. The submitter has given permission to the USGenWeb Archives to store the file permanently for free access. **************************************************************************