Joseph Marion Dixon Cates

Cates, Joseph Marion Dixon. (Orange County, North Carolina, June 15, 1815--August 1, 1887, Cannon County, Tennessee). Southern Baptist. Missionary in Liberty Baptist Association, Tennessee, 1844-1846; pastorate in Marion, Tenn., 1847-1887; editor of The Baptist Messenger, 1874-1881. Compiled The Companion (Nashville, 1846), The Baptist Companion (Nashville, ca. 1850), and The Sacred Harp (Nashville, 1867). Bespite his lack of formal education, Cates' hymns maintained a surprisingly high level of quality. Worthy of particular notice is his version of the Lord's Prayer, beginning "Our Father and our God Who are in heaven above."

--David W. Music, DNAH Archives