Stephen Foster
/ˌstiːvn ˈfɒstə(r)/
/ˌstiːvn ˈfɑːstər/
- (1826-1864) a US writer of almost 200 popular songs, most of them about the US South. They are sometimes called folk songs because they are so simple. Most were for musical shows performed by white entertainers with words representing the speech of African Americans at that time. They include Oh! Susanna, Old Folks at Home, Camptown Races, My Old Kentucky Home, Beautiful Dreamer and Old Black Joe. Foster himself only visited the South once.