Here are a few versions of Dan Emmett’s song, displaying the far-reaching sense of international politics and breaking-news commentary to be found on the antebellum popular stage…
Category: songs
Old Folks At Home (Foster, 1851)
Stephen Foster’s 1851 song “Old Folks At Home” provides an excellent introduction to the antebellum period:
Vacant Chair (Root & Washburn, 1861)
George Root’s setting of Henry S. Washburn’s popular poem …
Richmond a Hard Road to Travel (1862)
An annotated look at an epic parody…
Babylon is Fallen (Work, 1863)
After the Emancipation Proclamation changed the face of the Civil War, Henry Clay Work released this sequel to his popular “Kingdom Coming”:
Kingdom Coming (Work, 1862)
Popular in both the North and the South, perhaps because of his ambiguous treatment of the plight of “contraband” (liberated slaves) …
Bonnie Blue Flag (Macarthy, 1861)
Harry Macarthy’s lively jig documents the secession of the southern states in winter 1860-1861…
Marching Through Georgia (Work, 1865)
This jaunty march commemorating Sherman’s March to the Sea proved to be one of Henry Clay Work’s most famous pieces:
Battle Hymn of the Republic (Howe, 1861)
Written in November 1861 by abolitionist poet Julia Ward Howe, this song seems to glimpse the fiery trial ahead:
Battle Cry of Freedom (Root, 1862)
“And at the fourth verse a thousand voices were joining in the chorus…”
The Hardtacks 