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1999 SESSION

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980866120
HOUSE BILL NO. 1004 Offered January 26, 1998 A BILL to amend and reenact § 7.1-37 of the Code of Virginia, relating to the official song of the Commonwealth. ---------- Patron-- Baker (By Request) ---------- Referred to Committee on General Laws ----------

Whereas, the Commonwealth has no effective official song because "Carry Me Back To Old Virginia," declared the State song in 1940, has become so controversial that it is no longer possible or appropriate to use the song; and

Whereas, the official song should reference the rich history and tradition of the Commonwealth and invoke images of the natural and scenic beauty its citizens celebrate; and

Whereas, the Commonwealth requires an official song that can be sung on all occasions with pride and affection; now, therefore, be it

Resolved by the House of Delegates, the Senate concurring, That "Oh! We Hail Thee Old Virginia," lyrics and music by Ronald Stoots, be designated as the official song of the Commonwealth, the words of which are as follows:

Oh! We Hail Thee Old Virginia From her majestic Blue Ridge Mountains to her green valleys below Blooms Virginia's scenic dogwoods and the Old New River flows, Up along the Appalachians, through the Piedmont's rolling plains, Oh! We hail thee Old Dominion, our historic domain.

Chorus:

Oh! We hail thee old Virginia, our beautiful Virginia, mother of independence, giving freedom birth. Oh! We hail thee old Virginia, our beautiful Virginia, Our little piece of heaven here on earth. Oh! How we love thee old Virginia, your factories and your fields, The history that made you great; all those years of reconcile. The tender years when you were young, when you were down on your knees, Before the battle smoke had changed to a sweet Virginia breeze.

Chorus:

Oh! We hail thee old Virginia, our beautiful Virginia, mother of independence, giving freedom birth. Oh! We hail thee old Virginia, our beautiful Virginia, Our little piece of heaven here on earth. God bless Virginia so triumphant, who's success has led the way in restoring one great nation once divided blue and gray. As Virginians, we stand proudly and together we stand free, And we thank thee old Virginia, old Virginia, we hail thee.

Chorus:

Oh! We hail thee old Virginia, our beautiful Virginia, mother of independence, giving freedom birth. Oh! We hail thee old Virginia, our beautiful Virginia, Our little piece of heaven here on earth.

Be it enacted by the General Assembly of Virginia:

1. That § 7.1-37 of the Code of Virginia is amended and reenacted as follows:

§ 7.1-37. Official song.

A. The song "Carry Me Back to Old Virginia," by James A. Bland, as set out in the House Joint Resolution 10, adopted by the General Assembly of Virginia at the Session of 1940, is declared to be the official song emeritus of the Commonwealth.

B. The song "Oh! We Hail Thee Old Virginia," by Ronald Stoots as set out in the 1998 Acts of Assembly, is declared to be the official song of the Commonwealth.