"America the Beautiful" is an American patriotic song based on a poem written by Katharine Lee Bates published July 4, 1895, inspired by a cross-country rail trip during the summer 1893, set to a piece composed in 1882 by church organist and choirmaster Samuel A. Ward. The lyrics in the fourth and final verse of "Thine alabaster cities gleam, undimmed by human tears," is a reference to the "White City" of the Columbian Exhibition in Chicago, also known as the World's Fair, which Ms. Bates passed through on her way to her destination of Colorado Springs.
