Where, O Where Has My Little Dog Gone?

"Oh Where, Oh Where Has My Little Dog Gone?" was written by American teacher, performer, and music publisher Septimus Winner in 1864. The song is based on the tune of the German folk song "In Lauterbach hab' ich mein' Strumpf verlor'n" (In Lauterbach I Lost My Stocking). Winner's original song was titled "Der Deitcher's Dog" (sometimes "Oh Where, Oh Where Ish Mine Little Dog Gone") and was a comic ballad written in Pennsylvania German dialect—the original lyrics also contained verses about drinking beer. The first verse of "Der Deitcher's Dog" became the popular nursery rhyme we know today. An interesting historical footnote: Winner wrote the song shortly after being released from arrest for publishing a song about General George B. McClellan, whom President Abraham Lincoln had fired.