Song Clearance Sheet
4 sources citedPeg o' My Heart
Tin Pan Alley1910sPictured: Original sheet music (public domain) · source
C majKey
More in C major → · More “Public Domain” →
Key from published sheet music / hymnals
The verdict
Public Domain
In the public domain — but check the Rights Status below; a specific host's copy can carry its own caveat.
Used by independents?
Yes — it’s in the public domain — free for any independent artist to use, with no clearance needed.
Quick Facts
Released1913
GenreTin Pan Alley, Ballad
Writer(s)Alfred Bryan — an ASCAP founding member and U.S. Songwriters Hall of Fame inductee (also "I Didn't Raise My Boy to Be a Soldier"); Fred Fisher — German-born, also a U.S. Songwriters Hall of Fame inductee
More infoWikipedia →
Origin
Inspired by the title character in J. Hartley Manners' hit Broadway play (debuted December 20, 1912, Cort Theatre NYC), starring Laurette Taylor — the sheet music was dedicated directly to her
A genuine unresolved origin story
Wikipedia says it was first performed by Irving Kaufman in 1912 after he found a draft on a shelf at the Leo Feist offices. The Canadian Songwriters Hall of Fame instead says Bryan and Fisher wrote it to enter a contest promoting the play, winning a $1,000 prize. Both could be partly true — presented as-is, not picked
The writers
Alfred Bryan — an ASCAP founding member and U.S. Songwriters Hall of Fame inductee (also "I Didn't Raise My Boy to Be a Soldier"); Fred Fisher — German-born, also a U.S. Songwriters Hall of Fame inductee
Rights Status
Licenses explained →Public domain is not one blanket badge — each source can carry its own caveat
The compositionPublic domain
The early recordingPublic domain
Cultural Impact
Documented covers, adaptations, and cultural echoes — each with a real, dated source
ASCAP named it one of the century's most-performed love songs
A real institutional recognition of its lasting popularity across the 20th century.
Canadian Songwriters Hall of Fame · read it →
A massive instrumental hit, decades later
A 1947 instrumental harmonica version by The Harmonicats became a major hit in its own right, introducing the song to a new generation.
Grokipedia · read it →
The composer got his own Hollywood biopic — and this song was in it
Featured in the 1949 film "Oh, You Beautiful Doll," a fictionalized biography of composer Fred Fisher himself.
Wikipedia · read it →
Covered by four generations of major artists
Recorded by Frank Sinatra, Josephine Baker, Benny Goodman, and Dean Martin, among others.
Canadian Songwriters Hall of Fame · read it →
Can You Use It for Free?
How to check PD →Is it public domain?Yes — free to use without clearance
References
Every source cited on this page — 4 in total
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Page history · 3 updates
Jul 2026Key added from published sheet music / hymnals (documented source)
Jul 2026Page created — full PD research (batch 8.3)
Jul 2026BPM/Key pending a separate manual keyfinder pass