Maple Leaf Rag published

In 1899, composer Scott Joplin published "Maple Leaf Rag" through John Stark's music company in Sedalia, Missouri. The syncopated piano composition sold hundreds of thousands of sheet music copies, establishing Joplin as the leading figure in ragtime. Its commercial success transformed both Joplin's career and Stark's publishing business. The piece popularized ragtime as a recognized musical form and laid rhythmic groundwork that influenced the development of jazz in the early twentieth century.