Other than "Yankee Doodle," most of what can be considered early American folk-music traces back to the first iconic American composer, Stephen Foster. His songs were extremely popular in nineteenth century United States, and remained popular in the twentieth century in no small part due to their frequent appearance in Looney Tunes shorts.
Foster's first hit was "Oh! Susanna," which became an anthem for the "Forty-Niners" during the California Gold Rush of 1849.
Structurally, Foster's songs tend to be Lieder just like Franz Schubert's. They are written for solo voice, accompanied either by a piano (or often a banjo.) Their form is strophic, arranged by verses.
Foster's song The Old Folks at Home, better known by its first line, Way Down upon the Suwanee River, has been the official state song of Florida since 1935. The Florida state legislature revised the lyrics in 2008, due to perceived racial insensitivities.
Beautiful Dreamer
Camptown Races
Oh! Susanna
The Old Folks at Home
Should songs with lyrics that are now considered insensitive but were not when they were composed be performed as written, adapted to new sensitivities, or left unperformed?
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