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Show Remember Relnell1ber Stephen Foster FosterWith Fosterwith FosterWith With New Gothic Shl Shrine ine Memorial Shelters Relics Relicsof Relicsof of 'America's Americas America's ' merica ' s Troubador . ' Washington Washmgton , , DC-The DC The D CThe C -The The - The new Goth Goth- GothIC Gothic Gothic - - ic memorial to Stephen Foster IS ISanother isanother isanother another tie between the most most"southern most"southern most"southern mostsouthern " " northern north north- northern northern "southern southern minstrel mmstrel and his - ern birthplace , Pittsburgh The me- me memOrIal memorial me memorial - - morial includes mcludes an auditorium auditonum and anda a separate shrine shrme of Foster rellcs relics relicslocated , located on the campus of the Uni Um- Um Uni- University UmversIty University - versity of Pittsburgh The shrme shrine shrmeshelters shrineshelters shrineshelters shelters music manuscripts , , first ed edIhons editions editions Ihons itions , portraits of the composer composerphonographic , phonographIc recordings recordmgs of all hIs hIssongs hissongs hissongs songs , the musician's musicians ' old melo- melo melodeon melodeon melo-deon melo deon - - deon , and other personal iclics ellcs iehcs I iehcsOddly ' , Oddly enough , smoky , . mdustrIal industrial mdustrIalPIttsburgh industrialPittsburgh industrialPittsburgh ' ' WhICh WhIChFoster whichFoster whichFoster PIttsburgh is the 'factory factory in m Foster manufactured much of hIs hIsdreamy hisdreamy hisdreamy dreamy musical rrusical Dixie DlXle , " , " says the National Nahonnl Geographic society 'ThIS ThIS 'ThISis ' This Thisis ThisIs is the city behind behmd many a song songwhIch songwhich songwhich whIch swept s\\ept s ept \ \ all aU nationalit nahonallt cs es with witha a vocal wave of yearning yearnmg for My MyOld MyOld MyOld Old Kentuck Kentucky ; > ) Home and the Swanee SwaneeRIver SwaneeRiver SwaneeRiver RIver For Foster roster , publicity publlcIty agent agentsupreme agentsupreme agentsupreme supreme for the Southland , was WlS : a asta astay astaa sta stay ; > , at home Pennsylvaman PennsylvanIan , who is isknown isknown isknown known to have crossed the Mason MasonI Masonand Masonand Masonand I and Dixon DJxon Im line just twice t\lice t lice ttice \ , in hIS hISI hislife hislife I We life , , and then for comparahvely comparatively comparahvelybnef comparativelybrief comparativelybrief bnef brief periods penods penodsCaught periodsCaught periodsCaught Caught Stc-imboat Stc imboat Ste\mboat Ste mboat Steamboat ' \ - Glamor . ' , Millions MilllOns have sung their longmg longing longingto longmgto to be 'way way 'WlY WlY ' : do\ do dot don \ n upon the SWlnee Swanee SWlneerIver Swaneeriver Swaneeriver : rIver , ' , ' but few have ever taken tahen the thetrouble thetrouble thetrouble trouble to go down there and see 11 it 11Even itEven itEven Even Foster didn't didnt ' As a matter of offact offact offact fact , , travelers through south central centralGeorgIa centralGeorgia centralGeorgia GeorgIa into mto Florida usually cross crossthe crossthe crossthe the muddy little httle creek ( correctly correctlyspelled correctlyspelled correctlyspelled spelled 'Suwanncc Suwanncc 'Suwannee Suwannee ' ' ) unawares una\lares una lares unatrares \ A AmemorIal Amemorial Amemorial memorIal to the Foster song is the thegramte thegramte thegranite gramte shaft in Fargo , GeorgIa Georgiawhere , where the Suwannee SUannee SU\\ SU \ \ annee river passes"PIttsburgh passes"Pittsburgh passes passes"Pittsburgh "Pittsburgh Pittsburgh " Is the land where he hewas hewas hewas was born , , and there , , too , , the themaestro's themaestro's themaestro's themaestros maestro's maestros ' ' ' 'in in 'm m ' the cold , , cold coldground coldground coldground ground * ' Foster's Fosters ' reputed home homethere homethere homethere there is preserved as a memorIal memorIalThe memorialThe memorialThe The famous songwriter's songwriters ' actual actualhome actualhome actualhomo home town was Lawrenceville Lawreneevllle , a avIllage avillage avillage vIllage founded by the Foster tam fam tamIly family family Ily as a competitor for the baby babymetropol1s babymetropolis babymetropolis metropol1s metropolis of Pittsburgh , , but the thebaby thebaby thebaby baby metropolis grew up first nnd and nndengulfed andengulfed andengulfed engulfed It"A it"A it it"A "A A " tombstone in 111 Allegheny AUegheny ceme ccme- ccme ccmetery cemetery . - tery is not Pittsbuigh Plttsbutgh Pittsburgh s only monu monument monument monument ment to the local lad who made madegood madegood madegood good in a musical way A statue of oftile ofthe ofthe tile the sad musician mUSlcmn stands in m HIgh HIghland Highland Highland land pirk p"1rk p1rk park " ' , Foster 'oster oster " ' did not completely ignore ignorehis ignorehis ignorehis his Pennsylvania Pennsylvama surroundings when whenscehmg whenseeking whenseeking scehmg seeking a song subject He was im- im impressed impressed Im Impressed - - pressed by the picturesque river rivertraffic rivertraffic rivertraffic traffic that Ulat steamed up and down downthe downthe downthe the Ohio and Mississippi from Pitts Pittsburgh Pittsburgh Pittsburgh burgh to New Orleans And he did didnot didnot didnot not let the . world v.orld vorld forget torget that ' 'the the ' Glendv Glend GIendy ; > Burk , ' in m reality the steamer steamerGlenn steamerGlenn steamerGlenn Glenn D Burk , 'was was ' a mighty fast fastboat fastboat fastboat boat , wid a mighty fast captam captain captaintoo , too ' ' The steamer has vanIshed vanIshedfrom vanishedfrom vanishedfrom from the American scene , , but shll still shllin stillin stillIn in Foster's Fosters ' ' song ' 'de de ' smoke goes up upan upan upan an ' de mjme lnJme injine roars , an ' de wheel wheelgoes wheelgoes wheelgoes . goes round and round ' . "Old Old " Kentucky IIome Dome home " * , ' City scenes are rare in m Foster's Fosters Foster'smUSIC Foster'smusic Foster'smusic Fostersmusic ' mUSIC , although Dolcy Jones 'steps steps 'stepsso 'stepsso stepsso ' so lightly among de bricks n a andstones n d dstones dstones stones ' ' Settings Settmgs for most of the theI thepathetIc thepathetic thepathetic I , pathetIc little I1ttle somg dramas are areplantations areplantations plantatIons , some sometimes tunes in m Kentucky Kentuckypossibly , , possIbly in m Tennessee , perhaps m in mLou'suma inLou'siana inLou'siana inLousiana Lou'suma Lousuma Lou'siana Lousiana ' There's Theres ' where Old Black BlackI BlackJoe's BlackJoe's BlackJoe's BlackJoes Joe's Joes ' friends fnends went from the cotton cottonfields cottonfields cottonfields I fields away There Nelly was a alady alady alady lady , , and there tilere she died There ThereUncle ThereUncle ThereUncle Uncle Ned laid down the shovel and andthe andthe andthe the hoe hoc ' , But Foster rarely saw them HIs HIstwo Histwo Histwo two excursions e\.curSlons e.curSlons e .curSlons curSlons \ . down South were werea a steamboat trip to New Orleans OrleanswIth Orleanswith Orleanswith wIth his wife Jane , in m 1852 and a aVISIt avisit avisit VISIt at some unspecified time to toKentuchy toKentucky toKentucky Kentuchy Kentucky At Bardstown , , Kentuchy Kentucky Kentuckynot , , not far from Louisville Lowsvllle , . stands the thefamous thefamous thefamous famous Federal Hill HIlI , a dIgnified dIgnifiedmansIOn dignifiedmansion dignifiedmansion mansIOn of Revolutionary times m in mwhIch inwhich inwhich whIch Foster visited his lus cousms cousins cousinsthe , the Rowans-no Rowans no Rowans - no doubt the only 'Ken Ken 'Kentucky 'Kenlucky 'Kentucky Kentucky ' tucky lucky home ' he ever knew . , ' ' He might have needed a South Southem Southern Southcm em ern climate for the Old Massa Massadon't Massadont , , don't dont ' ' you cry ' ' type of tune tunc , but butaround butaround butaround around him hun was local color enough enoughfor enoughfor enoughtor for other kinds kmds Many graduates of ofthe ofthe ofthe the 'underground underground ' railway ' could couldtruthfully couldtruthfully couldtruthfully truthfully say , . with the black boy boyfrIend boyfriend boyfriend frIend of 'Oh Oh ' ' Susanna , ' , , ' that 'I I 'Icame 'Icame 'Icame Icame ' came from Alabama with my banjo banjoon banjoon banjoon on my knee ' ' Roustabouts along the theOhIO theOhio theOhio OhIO might sing smg 'Way Way ' down in 111 m Ca- Ca Cai Ca-1 Ca 1 - - i ro , ' the little httle town at the Ohio OhlO s smouth smouth smouth smouth"Foster mouth mouth"Foster "Foster Foster " knew hnew the Ohio well , for formost formost formost most of his hfeas life hfe \ was \/as as tas / ; spent in m PItts PIttsburgh Pittsburgh Pittsburgh burgh , , and river nver commerce was wasalso wasalso wasalso also important in m Cincinnati CmcmnatI where whereas , , as a bookkeeper bookheeper , he made his one oneI onebrief onebrief I brIef attempt to transform a musl musi muslI musician musician I clan cian into mto a business busmess man Yet he lie left leftthe leftthe leftthe the 'Beautiful Beautiful 'Beautrlul Beautrlul ' Ohio ' for someone someoneelse someoneelse someoneelse else to write wnte songs about HIS HISchoIce Hischoice Hischoice choIce of the t'1e t1e ' Suwanee was made madehowever , , however , , not because it had senti sentI- sentII sentImentnl senti- senti sentimental sentimental - - I mental mentnl associations assoclahons , , but because becausetre becausethe becausethe tre the name could be condensed mto into mtotwo intotwo intotwo two syllables Rejecting ReJectmg Yazoo and andPeedee andPeedee andPeedee Peedee he wrote 'Swanee Swanee ' ' into mto 'Old Old 'OldFolhs 'OldFolks 'OldFolks OldFolks ' Folhs Folks at Home , ' seizing seJzmg upon it as assoon assoon assoon soon as suggested by his Ius brother brotherwho , . who had just made a 'sight sight ' seemg seeing seemgtour seeingtour seeingtour ' ' ' " ' " tour through an atlas |