James Lord Pierpont "Jolly Old Saint Nicholas"). In this slightly modified form, "Jingle Bells" became one of the most popular and most recognizable songs ever written. In 1859, the Unitarian Church in Savannah had closed because of its abolitionist position, which was unpopular in the South. By 1860, the Rev. John Pierpont, Jr. had returned to the North. James, however, stayed in Savannah with his second wife Eliza Jane, and at the beginning of the Civil War, joined the Lamar Rangers, which became part of the Fifth Georgia Cavalry of the Confederacy. Records indicate that he served as a company clerk. He also
James Lord Pierpont Piano Accompaniment by J. S. [sic] Pierpont". Pierpont's name occasionally appeared incorrectly as "J. S. Pierpont". Jamie Keena, a balladeer and authority on 19th century music, who plays the guitar, banjo, fife, hammered dulcimer, and concertina, has recorded several Pierpont compositions from this period. The Pierpont compositions that were performed by Keena included "Ring the Bell, Fanny" (1854), "Quitman Town March", and "Wait, Lady, Wait", as well as three Confederacy songs written in the 1860s, "Our Battle Flag", "We Conquer or Die" (1861), and "Strike for the South" (1863). Pierpont published several ballads, polkas, such as "The Know Nothing Polka",