Notable people · Musician · Religious Leader · Business Founder
Homer Rodeheaver
Born in Hocking County, Rodeheaver led the singing for evangelist Billy Sunday for twenty years, built a gospel music publishing company and founded Rainbow Records, called the first label devoted only to gospel music.
At a glance
- Born
- 1880-10-04
- Died
- 1955-12-18
- Education
- Ohio Wesleyan College, Delaware, OH
- Known as
- Musician, Religious Leader, Business Founder
- Organizations
- Rodeheaver Company, Rainbow Records
Life story
Homer Rodeheaver was born in 1880 at Cinco Hollow in Hocking County, though he moved to Tennessee as a child. He studied at Ohio Wesleyan, where he was a cheerleader, and left in 1898 to serve in a band in the Spanish-American War.
Around 1904 he became song leader for evangelist W. E. Biederwolf, and from 1910 to 1930 he led the music at Billy Sunday's crusades. He also founded a publishing business in 1910 and began recording for Victor in 1913.
About 1922 he launched Rainbow Records, described as the first record company devoted solely to gospel music. In 1936 he bought the Hall-Mack Company and joined it to his publishing house.
He never married. He started a ranch for abused and abandoned boys in Florida and a music school at Winona Lake, Indiana, where he died in 1955. He entered the Gospel Music Hall of Fame in 1973.
Timeline
- 1880-10-04: Born (Cinco Hollow, OH) source
- 1898: Leaves college to serve in the Fourth Tennessee Band source
- 1904: Joins W. E. Biederwolf as music director source
- 1910: Becomes Billy Sunday's song leader; founds Rodeheaver Company source
- 1913: Begins recording for Victor source
- 1922: Launches Rainbow Records source
- 1936: Buys Hall-Mack Company source
- 1955-12-18: Dies (Winona Lake, IN) source
- 1969: Rodeheaver Company acquired by Word Music source
What Homer is known for
- Music director for Billy Sunday, 1910-1930
- Founded Rodeheaver Company (1910) and Rainbow Records
- Rodeheaver Company (1910)
- Rainbow Records (c. 1922)
- About 500 recorded sides
Honors and things named for them
- Gospel Music Hall of Fame, 1973
- Rodeheaver Auditorium at Bob Jones University and at Grace College
Family
- half-sister: Ruth
Ohio places
Where Homer Rodeheaver was born, lived, worked and is remembered, with the ZIP code, town and county pages for each.
- Born: Cinco Hollow, Hocking County ZIP 43138 · Hocking County
- School: Delaware, Delaware County ZIP 43015 · Delaware · Delaware County
Further reading
Sources
Confidence. Medium: the main facts were confirmed, but some details (often an address or ZIP code) were not.
- Wikipedia: Homer Rodeheaver birth, career, companies, honors
