Recently, some questions about the true origins of the song have arisen. A plaque at 19 High Street in Medford, Massachusetts proudly commemorates the location of the tavern where James Lord Pierpont supposedly wrote the famous holiday ditty in 1850. For many years, most New England natives have accepted that version of the story as fact, claiming that Pierpont was inspired to write by watching the sleigh races that used to take place on Salem Street.
This has led to some contention between the town of Medford and the town of Savannah, Georgia, because Savannah also claims to have been the birthplace of "Jingle Bells." In the 1850s, Pierpont had moved south, and found work as the music director at a Unitarian church in Savannah. Locals insist that he wrote the song while he was employed at the church, where it was performed as a sing-along, according to CNN.
ncG1vNJzZmivp6x7qL7Up56eZpOkunB%2Bl25panBfqbWmeceiqq2noq56sLKMo6Cnn5yaeqOxy6WqZp2opbmitc2em2g%3D