NATIONAL and PATRIOTIC SONGS
of the
United States of America.
It is not within the province of this collection to enter into the history of the numerous National Songs belonging to the United States, nor to give the songs themselves, except in so far as may be necessary to contrast them with the parodies which have been written on them.
Those desirous of further information on an interesting topic should refer to the following works:—
- Rebel Rhymes and Rhapsodies, collected by Frank Moore. New York. G. P. Putnam, 1864.
- Poetry of the Civil War, selected by R. G. White. New York, 1866.
- A History of National Anthems and Patriotic Songs, by Walter Hamilton, in Our Ocean Highways, London, 1872.
- The Songs of the War, by Brander Matthews, in The Century Magazine, August 1887.
- The Dictionary of Music and Musicians, by Sir George Grove. London. Macmillan & Co.
The following is a list of the more important songs,
- Yankee Doodle. 1755.
- Hail Columbia! 1788. By Joseph Hopkinson. Adapted to the tune of “The President’s March.” This was always sung when George Washington went to the theatre.
- The Star-Spangled Banner, written by Francis Scott Key, and first printed in the Baltimore American, shortly after the defeat of the British by the Americans at Fort McHenry.
- My Country ’tis of thee, sung to the air of “God save the King.” As we stole this air from the Germans (or, as some say, from the French), so the citizens of the United States have appropriated it as one of their national songs.
- John Brown’s Body, 1861.
- Marching through Georgia, written and composed by Henry C. Work, near the close of the Civil War.
- Battle Hymn of the Republic, by Mrs. Julia Ward Howe, first published in The Atlantic Monthly. 1862.
- We are coming, Father Abraäm, by John S. Gibbons, of New York. 1862.