Commonplace
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www.common-place.org · vol. 5 · no. 4 · July 2005
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The Common School

Andrea Maxeiner
Sing America!
Using Folk Songs to Teach American History

When I took world history in high school many years ago, I wrote a term paper tracing the Scottish history of "Scarborough Fair" after hearing Simon and Garfunkel’s version. My teacher was not amused and was clearly upset that I had found that almost every reference was sexual (a totally unforeseen conclusion). She was even more offended that I thought folk songs had any place in a history class, suggesting I put it back in English class where it belonged.

Once the students begin actively listening to the songs, their enthusiasm for the material grows.

Ironically, now that I teach United States history, I use an American song practically every day. I find songs to be one of the best motivators a teacher can employ. I use them to set the mood, to illustrate an aspect of history, to trace the history of popular culture, but especially as an important primary source. Some songs underline economic change; some commemorate a historical event; some are campaign songs; some are protest songs; and some may bring a voice to an overlooked people.

A song works as well, and in many ways better, than video. Songs are short and flexible for use within a lesson, the equipment can be kept in the closet, and, most importantly, the students do not have time to lose focus.

Printed lyrics for the students are essential, not only because they help students understand the songs but also because they provide regular reading assignments. I often hand out the lyrics as the students enter the classroom, especially if the text is difficult. Lyrics are frequently found with the recording of the song, or can be transcribed if necessary. An excellent way to find song lyrics is to search Websites dedicated to collecting them, such as those listed at the end of this essay. Some sites provide illustrations, additional discussion, or even the music itself.

Realistically, students, sitting in their hard little desks, will not transport themselves to a historical era and embrace it just because they hear a song. Be forewarned that they, in fact, may often hate it. I will never forget inner-city students’ expressions of polite disgust when introduced to Bob Dylan’s "Only a Pawn in Their Game." The usual responses are, "Do you listen to this for fun? Do you actually like this? This is the worst song I ever heard!" One girl clapped her hands over her ears, horrorstricken, during an entire song. At the end she cried, "My friends will never believe I listened to country music!" That actually gave me a nice opportunity to discuss the origins of country music.

Despite their skepticism, eventually students’ feet start tapping and I hear them singing in the hall. One day my rowdy ninth period was almost in tears listening to IZ Kamakawiwo’ole sing "Hawai’i 78," his tribute to Hawaiian culture prior to United States annexation.

I have had particular classroom success with two songs related to the bitter presidential election of 1824. Andrew Jackson’s supporters sang the lighthearted "Hunters of Kentucky" commemorating their candidate’s generalship in the victorious battle of New Orleans:

But Jackson he was wide awake, and wasn’t scared at trifles,
For well he knew what aim we take with our Kentucky rifles;
He led us down to Cyprus swamp, the ground was low and mucky,
There stood John Bull in martial pomp, and here stood old Kentucky.
Old Hickory led our little band, none wished it to be greater,
For every man was half a horse and half an alligator.

The lesser-known song used by partisans of John Quincy Adams, "Little Know Ye Who’s Comin’" on the other hand, is wonderfully dark and scary warning to those who would bring that "frontier madman" Jackson to the White House:

Little know ye who’s comin’
If John Quincy not be comin’
Fire’s comin’, swords are comin’
Pistols, guns and knives are comin’
Famine’s comin’, famine’s comin’
Slavery’s coming, knavery’s comin’
Fears are coming, tears are comin’
Plague and Pestilence’s comin’
Satan’s comin’, Satan’s comin’

The song is an ideal starting point for a discussion of negative campaigning and the related rise of modern political parties in the Jacksonian era.

Which songs should be included in a class? I try to use only songs that underscore the essential points of the day’s lesson. That is, I try not to include songs simply because they were typical of the day, unless the focus of the lesson is exclusively on popular culture. While Stephen Foster’s Oh Susanna is a good sample of the popular culture of its era, for example, the lesser-known Gold-Rush version may actually help students remember that particular event:

I come from Salem City with my wash pan on my knee;
I'm going to California, the gold dust for to see.
It rained all day the day I left; the weather it was dry.
The sun so hot I froze to death. Oh brothers, don't you cry.

To further engage students I challenge them to seek out songs that speak to historical themes. That is how I discovered a They Might Be Giants’ song about the often-neglected James K. Polk:

But precious few have mourned the passing of
Mister James K. Polk, our eleventh president
Young Hickory, Napoleon of the Stump.

A student’s choice of Weird Al Yankovic’s parody of Amish life ("As I walk through the valley where I harvest my grain / I take a look at my wife and realize she's very plain") provided a good counterpoint to "Simple Gifts," the classic Shaker hymn, and ignited a spirited discussion of the conflicting American ideals of the country and the city.


"The Hunters of Kentucky," words by S. Woodworth and music composed by William Blondell, Philadelphia, 1824. Courtesy of the American Antiquarian Society.

Unfortunately, some contemporary music tends to be profane, so be advised: never play a song you have not previewed. I had to tell a student I could not play Against All Authority’s excellent, but vulgar, "Sacco and Vanzetti," because the lyrics could not be shared with the class.

An additional way to help students establish ownership of the songs is to have them actually sing the songs. When I teach the Mexican-American War, I have the students sing the "Marine Corps Hymn." We also sang the Civil War classic, "John Brown’s Body" as we examined the martyrdom of the radical abolitionist.

Once the students begin actively listening to the songs, their enthusiasm for the material grows. For me, it is clear that songs are taking them into another world, another time, and another place. What could be more gratifying for a history teacher?

Folk Songs for Teaching U.S. History

Lyrics and Background Information

Album Sources

British

Colonial

Great Awakening

French and Indian War

Revolution

Early Presidents

War of 1812

Jacksonian Politics

Utopian Reform

Women’s Rights

Temperance

Industrialization

Manifest Destiny

Slavery

Civil War

Reconstruction/Segregated South

Imperialism

1920s

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