University of Pittsburgh Library System

The Center for American Music is the principal repository for all materials pertaining to American composer Stephen Collins Foster (1826-1864), considered by many to be America's first professional composer.  The Center for American Music is housed in the Stephen Foster Memorial building alongside the Stephen Foster Memorial Museum and two theatres.

Choose from the menu to learn more about Foster's life, his career, and his songs, including "Camptown Races," "Oh! Susanna," "Old Folks at Home (Way Down Upon the Swanee River)," "My Old Kentucky Home," "Beautiful Dreamer," and many, many more.