Andrew Linnaeus Byers was born on August 26, 1869, in Albany, Illinois, to a family that was fond of and gifted in music. His mother was Nancy Byers, who also wrote songs. She wrote #279 in the Evening Light Songs hymnal, titled “The Clefted Rock.” Andrew was 8 or 9 years old when his father gave him his first music reading lesson. Although he developed a love for music early in life, he never dreamed of composing songs until D. S. Warner and his company of singers came to the Byers’ home in April 1888. Andrew later wrote, “Perhaps I should never have started in tune composition had I not met Bro. B. E. Warren. … He was but a youth, as was I. He and Brother Warner were preparing the book, Anthems From the Throne. When I saw Brother Barney at the organ, actually working on original composition and putting it on paper, I thought it was wonderful. But the religious movement which they represented was charged with heavenly song, and somehow it wanted to work out through me also.” Young Andrew composed his first tune that year to words written by his sister and the song was published in the new songbook D. S. Warner and Barney Warren were preparing.
On June 19, 1891, A. L. Byers became a worker at the Gospel Trumpet Company, Grand Junction, Michigan, his future wife, Della Wickersham, arriving there as a worker on the same day. Although he is credited as author of 260 songs, he wrote, “Song writing, for the greater part of my life at the Gospel Trumpet Office was not a constant thing. It was only in connection with a new book proposed that I would get started. This was due to the absorbing work in the publishing office. My tunes, therefore, are comparatively few — only about 250 in a period of 38 years.” On November 9, 1952, he passed away at the age of 82 years, a resident of California where his body awaits the final resurrection. Interment was in Sacramento Memorial Lawn Cemetery, Sacramento, CA.
