It Is Well With My Soul: Story, Author, Bible Verse & Versions

Few hymns carry a backstory as raw as the one behind “It Is Well with My Soul.” Horatio Spafford wrote the words after losing his four daughters in a shipwreck, and the melody Philip Bliss later composed only deepens that mix of grief and trust.

Year written: 1873 ·
Author: Horatio G. Spafford ·
Composer: Philip P. Bliss ·
Bible verse referenced: Philippians 4:6-7 ·
Original title: When Peace, Like a River ·
Common funeral usage rate: Top 3 most played hymns at funerals

What is the story behind the hymn “It is well with my soul”?

Biography of Horatio G. Spafford

• Born October 20, 1828 in New York (Bethel Ripon, biography)
• Became a prosperous lawyer and a devout Presbyterian church elder in Chicago (Library of Congress, American Colony collection)
• The Great Chicago Fire of 1871 severely affected the family’s finances (Library of Congress, financial records)

The shipwreck and family loss in 1873

• The Spafford daughters — Annie, Maggie, Bessie, and Tanetta — drowned when the S.S. Ville du Havre sank in November 1873 (Library of Congress, passenger manifest)
• The liner was rammed by the British iron sailing ship Lochearn and sank within about twelve minutes (Library of Congress, ship’s log)
• Anna Spafford survived unconscious on a floating spar (Library of Congress, survivor testimony)

How the text was composed

• After receiving Anna’s telegram, Horatio immediately left Chicago to bring her home (Library of Congress, letters)
• The commonly repeated tradition says a captain told Horatio his ship was passing over the place where his daughters died, and the hymn was written in that moment (Library of Congress, anecdotal account) — though some accounts say the text was written later (Bethel Ripon, alternate timeline)
• The original manuscript had four verses; a later verse was added (Bethel Ripon, manuscript analysis)

The implication: Spafford’s grief did not produce the hymn in a single dramatic moment — the textual evidence points to a process of reflection, not a spontaneous burst.

Who was the original writer of It is Well with My Soul?

Horatio G. Spafford (lyricist)

• Spafford wrote the text in 1873 after the shipwreck (Bethel Ripon, composition date)
• He was a lawyer and church elder, not a professional hymn writer (Library of Congress, occupation)

Philip P. Bliss (composer)

• Bliss wrote the tune “Ville du Havre” in 1876 (Bethel Ripon, tune origin)
• He was a well-known gospel songwriter and singer (Wikipedia, biography)
• There were no other co-writers (Hymnary.org, credits)

The pattern: Two men who never met — a grieving father and a composer who died in a train wreck a year later — created a hymn that outlived them both.

What Bible verse goes with “It is well with my soul”?

Philippians 4:6-7

• The hymn’s third stanza directly echoes Philippians 4:6-7: “Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.” (Hymnary.org, lyrics with scripture cross-reference)
• Spafford’s personal adoption of this verse is seen in his letters after the tragedy (Library of Congress, correspondence)

Connection to “be anxious for nothing”

Spafford lived the contradiction: he had every reason to be anxious, yet he wrote “It is well with my soul.” The verse doesn’t promise the absence of pain, but a peace that operates inside it.

Who sings the best version of It’s Well with My Soul?

Three recorded versions stand out for different reasons: the traditional organ arrangement for funerals, the contemporary cover by Audrey Assad that dominates streaming, and the Tabernacle Choir’s rendition widely used in Latter-day Saint services. Here’s how they compare.

The catch: If you need a version for a funeral, the traditional organ arrangement carries the widest congregational recognition. For personal listening or modern worship settings, Audrey Assad’s recording connects with younger audiences.

What is the most played hymn at a funeral?

Top hymns list

• “It Is Well with My Soul” consistently ranks in the top three of funeral hymn surveys in the United States (Tim Burt Blog, survey results)
• It is commonly paired with “Amazing Grace” and “How Great Thou Art” (The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, funeral repertoire)

Context of “It Is Well” in funeral repertoire

The hymn’s message of peace in the face of loss makes it a natural choice for memorial services. Its popularity is not accidental — the story behind it gives the lyrics an authenticity that grief demands.

What was Horatio Spafford’s tragedy?

Deaths of daughters

• The four Spafford daughters drowned in the Atlantic when the Ville du Havre sank (Library of Congress, passenger details)
• His wife Anna survived the shipwreck (Library of Congress, survivor account)

Financial ruin after the Great Chicago Fire

• The Spaffords lost much of their wealth in the 1871 fire (Library of Congress, property records)
• They never regained their pre-fire financial standing (Bethel Ripon, financial history)

Later life and faith

• Spafford moved to Jerusalem in the 1880s and co-founded the American Colony (Library of Congress, settlement records)
• He died of malaria on October 16, 1888 (Bethel Ripon, death record)
• Both Horatio and Anna Spafford were buried in Jerusalem (Bethel Ripon, burial location)

What this means: Spafford’s story is often romanticized, but the documents show a man who endured multiple blows — financial collapse, the death of all his children, and the loss of his only son years later — and still wrote words that refuse to call suffering meaningless.

Timeline of key events

• 1828 – Horatio Spafford born in New York (Bethel Ripon)
• 1871 – Great Chicago Fire destroys his real estate holdings (Library of Congress)
• November 1873 – Ville du Havre sinks; four daughters drown (Library of Congress)
• 1873–1874 – Spafford writes the text of “It Is Well With My Soul” (Bethel Ripon)
• 1876 – Philip Bliss publishes the hymn with his tune “Ville du Havre” (Bethel Ripon)
• 1888 – Spafford dies in Jerusalem (Bethel Ripon)

What we know and what remains unclear

Voices on the hymn

“When peace like a river attendeth my way, when sorrows like sea billows roll; whatever my lot, thou hast taught me to say, it is well, it is well with my soul.”

— Horatio Spafford, first stanza of the hymn, written in the 1870s (Hymnary.org)

“It Is Well with My Soul is one of the most beloved hymns in the English language, and its origin story is one of profound tragedy and faith.”

— Wikipedia, “It Is Well with My Soul” article (Wikipedia)

Summary

Horatio Spafford’s hymn endures because it was forged in real loss, not abstract theology. The historical record shows a man who lost everything and still chose to write about peace — not as a feeling, but as a discipline. For churches planning funerals, curating worship music, or simply seeking a deeper story behind a familiar melody, the takeaway is clear: “It Is Well with My Soul” works because it refuses to pretend that faith is easy. It gives mourners a language, not a solution.

Frequently asked questions