Person Page - 2666

     William Ball was born circa 1836 at NY.¹ He was the son of Benjamin Ogden Ball and Mary (????)¹ William Ball married Susan S. (????)²

     Leland Fessenden Ball was born circa 1837 at NY.¹ He was the son of Benjamin Ogden Ball and Mary (????)¹ Leland Fessenden Ball married Alice A. (????) circa 1857.³

     Margaret A. Ball was born circa 1840 at NY.² She was the daughter of Benjamin Ogden Ball and Mary (????)² Margaret A. Ball died on 31 March 1909.¹ She was buried at Lake View Cemetery, Cleveland, Cuyahoga Co., OH.¹

     Douglas W. Ball was born circa 1842 at NY.² He was the son of Benjamin Ogden Ball and Mary (????)² Douglas W. Ball married Frances Downing, daughter of Jane (????), circa 1867.³ Douglas W. Ball married Josephine (????) circa 1885.¹

     Charles Wright Ball was born on 16 December 1845 at Jordan, Onondaga Co., NY.¹ He was the son of Benjamin Ogden Ball and Mary (????)² Charles Wright Ball married Rose M. Furman.¹ Charles Wright Ball died on 29 July 1930 at Cuyahoga Co., OH, at age 84.³ He was buried at Knollwood Cemetery, Mayfield Heights, Cuyahoga Co., OH.¹

     Sarah M. Ball was born in April 1848 at NY; "Sarah M." age 52, b. NY, with husband, etc.² She was the daughter of Benjamin Ogden Ball and Mary (????)³ Sarah M. Ball married William E. Huggins circa 1872.² Sarah M. Ball died in 1925.¹

     Mary Ball was born circa 1850 at NY.¹ She was the daughter of Benjamin Ogden Ball and Mary (????)¹

     Frank Ball was born circa 1852 at NY.¹ He was the son of Benjamin Ogden Ball and Mary (????)¹

     Edward Ball was born circa 1855 at NY.¹ He was the son of Benjamin Ogden Ball and Mary (????)¹

     Ernest Adelbert Ball was born circa 1858 at NY.² He was the son of Benjamin Ogden Ball and Mary (????)² Ernest Adelbert Ball married Anna Kockers circa 1877.¹ Ernest Adelbert Ball died in 1879 at OH.¹ He was buried at Lake View Cemetery, Cleveland, Cuyahoga Co., OH.¹

     Frances Downing was born circa 1846 at OH.¹ She was the daughter of Jane (????)¹ Frances Downing married Douglas W. Ball, son of Benjamin Ogden Ball and Mary (????), circa 1867.¹

     Charles Ball was born circa 1868 at OH.¹ He was the son of Douglas W. Ball and Frances Downing.¹

     Maud Ball was born circa 1869 at OH.¹ She was the daughter of Douglas W. Ball and Frances Downing.¹

     Douglas Ball was born circa 1872 at OH.¹ He was the son of Douglas W. Ball and Frances Downing.¹ Douglas Ball married Nellie (????) circa 1902.²
     May have been the Douglas G. Ball b. 1872 that died in Cuyahoga Co. OH 2 December 1958.

     Ernest Roland Ball was born on 22 July 1878 at Cleveland, Cuyahoga Co., OH.² He was the son of Ernest Adelbert Ball and Anna Kockers.^3,2 Ernest Roland Ball married Jessie Mae Jewett, daughter of William A. Jewett and Mary A. (????), say 1903.² Ernest Roland Ball and Jessie Mae Jewett were divorced circa 1911. Ernest Roland Ball married Maude Lambert circa 1911. Ernest Roland Ball died on 3 May 1927 at Santa Ana, Orange Co., CA, at age 48.² He was buried at Lake View Cemetery, Cleveland, Cuyahoga Co., OH.²
     Composer Ernest Ball was trained at the Cleveland Conservatory. In 1905, Ball was already in New York City, he was given a few verses written by the then state Senator, James J. Walker, who later became famous as the Dapper Jimmy Walker, Mayor of New York City. He put one of the verse to music, and called it "Will You Love Me In December as You Do In May?", which became a national hit.

Beginning in 1906, Ball had a dual career, writing songs and also singing them himself on the vaudeville stages. At first he worked alone, but later shared billing with his second wife, Maude Lambert. In 1907 he was a charter member of the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers (ASCAP) and signed a contract with Witmark Music as a demonstrator and house composer.

Between 1907 and 1910, Ball wrote a number of popular songs including the first of his Irish ballads, "Mother Machree". He followed this in 1912 with "When Irish Eyes Are Smiling". Other highlights from the Ball catalog include "Love Me and the World is Mine", "Saloon", "Till the Sands of the Desert Grow Cold", "Dear Little Boy of Mine", "I'll Forget You", "A Little Bit of Heaven", "Let the Rest of the World Go By", "In the Garden of My Heart", "My Dear", "Who Knows?", "Goodbye, Good Luck, God Bless You", "Turn Back the Universe", "I Love the Name of Mary", "To the End of the World With You", "West of the Great Divide", "Ireland is Ireland to Me", "She's the Daughter of Mother Machree", "To Have, To Hold, To Love", "Mother of Pearl", "For the Sake of Auld Lang Syne" and "You Planted a Rose."

Ball has said that he became a successful composer when he learned to write songs that came from his heart, and were about things that he knew. He collaborated with several lyricists including Chauncey Olcott, George Graff, Darl MacBoyle, J. Kiern Brennan, James J. Walker, Arthur Penn, Annelu Burns and David Reed.⁴      Left photo courtesy of the Songwriters Hall of Fame; right photo from a passport application.⁴

     Susan S. (????) was born circa 1840 at MI.¹ She married William Ball, son of Benjamin Ogden Ball and Mary (????).¹

     Grace Ball was born circa 1869 at OH.¹ She was the daughter of William Ball and Susan S. (????)¹

     Josephine (????) was born in September 1851 at OH.¹ She married Douglas W. Ball, son of Benjamin Ogden Ball and Mary (????), circa 1885.¹

     Rose M. Furman was born circa 1856 at NY.² She married Charles Wright Ball, son of Benjamin Ogden Ball and Mary (????).¹ Rose M. Furman was buried at Knollwood Cemetery, Mayfield Heights, Cuyahoga Co., OH.¹

     Claude B. Ball was born in April 1875 at NY.² He was the son of Charles Wright Ball and Rose M. Furman.³ Claude B. Ball married Margaret Blanche (????) circa 1898.⁴

     William E. Huggins was born in November 1846 at Ireland.² He married Sarah M. Ball, daughter of Benjamin Ogden Ball and Mary (????), circa 1872.²

     Jessie Huggins was born circa 1873 at OH.¹ She was the daughter of William E. Huggins and Sarah M. Ball.¹