Stephen Foster Folk Culture Center State Park History
In 1931 Josiah K. Lilly, an Indiana pharmaceutical manufacturer, suggested that Florida create a memorial to the American composer Stephen Foster, whose lyrics had made the Suwannee River famous around the world. The Florida Federation of Music Clubs worked with local citizens in White Springs to obtain land contributions that were then presented to the state. In 1950 the Stephen Foster Memorial Commission was set up to administer development of the park. Shortly thereafter the Florida Folk Festival was established to highlight the state’s cultural history and traditions. In 1979 the memorial became a part of the Florida Park Service and now carries the name of the Stephen Foster Folk Culture Center State Park. In 2002, the Florida Folk Festival will celebrate its 50th year anniversary.
Stephen Foster
Stephen Collins Foster was born outside Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania on July 4, 1826. He showed early promise as a musician and in a life span of only 37 years, Foster became America’s first professional songwriter. Altogether he wrote more than 200 songs with tunes and lyrics that captured the heart and spirit of the nation at a critical point in its history.
While he wrote songs for both the minstrel show and the family parlor, Foster blended musical styles throughout his career. The songs of immigrants from Germany, Italy, Africa and the British Isles influenced his work. He incorporated elements of religious hymns, ballads, opera and popular songs into his compositions. The popularity and endurance of his compositions are due in part to Foster’s ability to write tunes that were in some way familiar to everyone.
Influenced by the anti-slavery activism of his contemporaries in Pittsburgh in the mid 1800s, Foster considered it his mission to reform the stereotypical images of African Americans in minstrel shows. Some of his best-known songs are written from the viewpoint of slaves who express common themes in human experience, including the importance of family, personal freedom, and the right to an honorable life.
Foster’s music has continued to influence the nation’s music and history for the past 150 years. “Oh! Susanna” became wildly popular with the men who followed the California gold rush. “Camptown Races” and “Old Black Joe” have alternately been heralded and reviled as emblems of America’s struggle for racial equality. “Beautiful Dreamer” and “Jeanie With The Light Brown Hair” are sentimental ballads with lasting lyrical beauty. Two of his compositions, “My Old Kentucky Home” and “Old Folks at Home” became state songs in the 20th century, long after Foster’s death. (Credit for this analysis of Foster’s music belongs to Steven Saunders and Deane L. Root, who authored, “The Music of Stephen C. Foster, Vols. I & II.” Smithsonian Institution Press. 1990.) For more information on Stephen Foster, visit our Favorite Links page.
While writing “Old Folks at Home,” Foster had difficulty finding the right word to complete a verse joining his image of a beautiful river and longings for family and home. Legend holds that his brother suggested the Suwannee River after consulting a world atlas. The word fit and “Way down upon the Suwannee River,” was on its way to becoming imprinted in the national memory. Foster never visited Florida and he never saw the Suwannee River. For those who know the tannic waters and white limestone banks of the Suwannee, the song is a fitting tribute to their own sense of home.
White Springs
The Suwannee River has its headwaters in the Okefenokee Swamp of southeastern Georgia. It travels a southwestern course for about 250 miles before it empties into the Gulf of Mexico. East of White Springs, the river’s limestone outcroppings and a drop in elevation create Florida’s only whitewater rapids at Big Shoals. Opportunities abound for fishing, canoeing, kayaking and camping along the Suwannee River.
White Sulphur Springs, located on the banks of the Suwannee River at the Stephen Foster Center, can be dated at least to the 1700s. Native Americans regarded the sulphur springs as sacred ground because of its curative powers.
White European settlers did not establish substantial populations in the area until after the Civil War. In the late 1800s, they began promoting the springs as a health resort, advertising the sulphuric waters as a cure for almost any ailment.
In 1906 the spring was enclosed with gates and a high concrete wall to keep the river out. Buildings on either side of the spring contained shops, dressing rooms, and clinical examination rooms. Among the resort’s many famous visitors were Henry Ford and Teddy Roosevelt. The spring house continued to attract visitors as late as the 1950s. Today the original concrete wall and gate still exist. White Springs retains its cultural heritage as a tourist destination spot.
Stephen Foster
Stephen Collins Foster was born outside Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania on July 4, 1826. He showed early promise as a musician and in a life span of only 37 years, Foster became America’s first professional songwriter. Altogether he wrote more than 200 songs with tunes and lyrics that captured the heart and spirit of the nation at a critical point in its history.
While he wrote songs for both the minstrel show and the family parlor, Foster blended musical styles throughout his career. The songs of immigrants from Germany, Italy, Africa and the British Isles influenced his work. He incorporated elements of religious hymns, ballads, opera and popular songs into his compositions. The popularity and endurance of his compositions are due in part to Foster’s ability to write tunes that were in some way familiar to everyone.
Influenced by the anti-slavery activism of his contemporaries in Pittsburgh in the mid 1800s, Foster considered it his mission to reform the stereotypical images of African Americans in minstrel shows. Some of his best-known songs are written from the viewpoint of slaves who express common themes in human experience, including the importance of family, personal freedom, and the right to an honorable life.
Foster’s music has continued to influence the nation’s music and history for the past 150 years. “Oh! Susanna” became wildly popular with the men who followed the California gold rush. “Camptown Races” and “Old Black Joe” have alternately been heralded and reviled as emblems of America’s struggle for racial equality. “Beautiful Dreamer” and “Jeanie With The Light Brown Hair” are sentimental ballads with lasting lyrical beauty. Two of his compositions, “My Old Kentucky Home” and “Old Folks at Home” became state songs in the 20th century, long after Foster’s death. (Credit for this analysis of Foster’s music belongs to Steven Saunders and Deane L. Root, who authored, “The Music of Stephen C. Foster, Vols. I & II.” Smithsonian Institution Press. 1990.) For more information on Stephen Foster, visit our Favorite Links page.
While writing “Old Folks at Home,” Foster had difficulty finding the right word to complete a verse joining his image of a beautiful river and longings for family and home. Legend holds that his brother suggested the Suwannee River after consulting a world atlas. The word fit and “Way down upon the Suwannee River,” was on its way to becoming imprinted in the national memory. Foster never visited Florida and he never saw the Suwannee River. For those who know the tannic waters and white limestone banks of the Suwannee, the song is a fitting tribute to their own sense of home.
White Springs
The Suwannee River has its headwaters in the Okefenokee Swamp of southeastern Georgia. It travels a southwestern course for about 250 miles before it empties into the Gulf of Mexico. East of White Springs, the river’s limestone outcroppings and a drop in elevation create Florida’s only whitewater rapids at Big Shoals. Opportunities abound for fishing, canoeing, kayaking and camping along the Suwannee River.
White Sulphur Springs, located on the banks of the Suwannee River at the Stephen Foster Center, can be dated at least to the 1700s. Native Americans regarded the sulphur springs as sacred ground because of its curative powers.
White European settlers did not establish substantial populations in the area until after the Civil War. In the late 1800s, they began promoting the springs as a health resort, advertising the sulphuric waters as a cure for almost any ailment.
In 1906 the spring was enclosed with gates and a high concrete wall to keep the river out. Buildings on either side of the spring contained shops, dressing rooms, and clinical examination rooms. Among the resort’s many famous visitors were Henry Ford and Teddy Roosevelt. The spring house continued to attract visitors as late as the 1950s. Today the original concrete wall and gate still exist. White Springs retains its cultural heritage as a tourist destination spot.
