J. H. Payne

Born in New York City in 1791, John Howard Payne built an unusually varied career as an actor, poet, playwright, and editor. He went on the stage while still young and later found success in London, where he spent many important years working in the theater and writing for the public.

Payne is most closely linked with "Home! Sweet Home!", the song from his 1822 opera Clari, or the Maid of Milan. The piece became enormously popular and outlived much of the rest of his writing, giving him a lasting place in American cultural memory.

Later in life, Payne also served as a United States consul in Tunis. He died there in 1852, and his remains were eventually returned to the United States, where he continued to be remembered not only as a man of the theater, but as the writer of one of the best-known sentimental songs of the 19th century.