What is Stephen Foster Memorial Day?
On January 13th, Stephen Foster Memorial Day commemorates the music of the man who composed hundreds of America's first popular songs.
Stephen Foster, a native of Lawrenceville, Pennsylvania, was born as America's First Composer on July 4, 1826. Today, His catchy tunes based on minstrel songs are still popular.
When Foster's exclusive music deal with Firth, Pond, and Company came to an end, he died at the age of 37. Although his albums were extremely popular, the lack of copyright protection and alcoholism left him with nothing of value to show for his efforts.
***During his short life, Foster wrote over 200 songs. His best-known compositions include "Oh! Susanna," "Camptown Races," "Old Folks at Home," "My Old Kentucky Home," "Jeanie with the Light Brown Hair," "Old Black Joe," and "Beautiful Dreamer" and are still very popular today.
Foster died on January 13, 1864, at the age of 37.
