Horatio G. Spafford (1828-1888) was a wealthy Chicago businessman who lost his fortune during the Chicago fire. Despite this, he and his wife, Anna, devoted countless hours to helping the survivors. Later he sent Anna and his four daughters to England for a rest. While crossing the Atlantic their ship sank in a collision. Anna survived and sent him the heartbreaking telegram, “Saved Alone.” Several weeks later, as Spafford’s own ship passed near the spot where his daughters died, he wrote the hymn “It Is Well With My Soul.” In 1881 the Spaffords moved to Jerusalem – taking two daughters born after the shipwreck – and helped found a group called the American Colony. Its mission was to serve the poor. The colony later became the subject of the Nobel prize-winning novel Jerusalem. Few hymn stories are as powerful as this one. His unwavering faith has comforted countless grieving Christians; helping to assure them that God is in control, regardless of the circumstances.
