"Tenting on the Old Camp Ground" (also known as Tenting Tonight) was a popular song during the
American Civil War
The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by states ...
. A particular favorite of enlisted men in the
Union army
During the American Civil War, the Union Army, also known as the Federal Army and the Northern Army, referring to the United States Army, was the land force that fought to preserve the Union of the collective states. It proved essential to th ...
, it was written in 1863 by
Walter Kittredge
Walter Kittredge (October 6, 1834 – July 8, 1905), was a famous musician during the American Civil War.
Born in Merrimack, New Hampshire, the tenth of eleven children, Kittredge was a talented self-taught musician who played the seraphine, t ...
and first performed in that year at Old High Rock,
Lynn, Massachusetts
Lynn is the eighth-largest municipality in Massachusetts and the largest city in Essex County. Situated on the Atlantic Ocean, north of the Boston city line at Suffolk Downs, Lynn is part of Greater Boston's urban inner core. Settled by E ...
.
A
Methodist
Methodism, also called the Methodist movement, is a group of historically related denominations of Protestant Christianity whose origins, doctrine and practice derive from the life and teachings of John Wesley. George Whitefield and John's ...
camp meeting
The camp meeting is a form of Protestant Christian religious service originating in England and Scotland as an evangelical event in association with the communion season. It was held for worship, preaching and communion on the American frontier ...
variant appeared with title "Tenting Again" in 1869, using the same tune but words modified for the religious environment.
Charles Ives later quoted the song in his own political song, "They Are There," changing the lyrics to "Tenting on a new campground"—referring to a worldwide
social democracy
Social democracy is a political, social, and economic philosophy within socialism that supports political and economic democracy. As a policy regime, it is described by academics as advocating economic and social interventions to promote s ...
.
Lyrics
Lyrics from the original sheet music:
[Kittredge, "Tenting on the Old Camp Ground" (Sheet music).]
We're tenting tonight on the old camp ground,
Give us a song to cheer
Our weary hearts, a song of home
And friends we love so dear.
''Chorus:''
:Many are the hearts that are weary tonight,
:Wishing for the war to cease;
:Many are the hearts looking for the right
:To see the dawn of peace.
:Tenting tonight, tenting tonight,
:Tenting on the old camp ground.
We've been tenting tonight on the old camp-ground,
Thinking of days gone by,
Of the loved ones at home that gave us the hand,
And the tear that said, "Good-bye!"
''Chorus''
The lone wife kneels and prays with a sigh
That God his watch will keep
O'er the dear one away and the little dears nigh,
In the trundle bed fast asleep.
''Chorus''
We are tenting tonight on the old camp ground.
The fires are flickering low.
Still are the sleepers that lie around,
As the sentinels come and go.
''Chorus''
Alas for those comrades of days gone by
Whose forms are missed tonight.
Alas for the young and true who lie
Where the battle flag braved the fight.
''Chorus''
No more on march or field of strife
Shall they lie so tired and worn,
No rouse again to hope and life
When the sound of drums beat at morn.
''Chorus''
We are tired of war on the old camp ground,
Many are dead and gone,
Of the brave and true who've left their homes,
Others been wounded long.
''Chorus''
We've been fighting today on the old camp ground,
Many are lying near;
Some are dead, and some are dying,
Many are in tears.
''Final Chorus:''
:Many are the hearts that are weary tonight,
:Wishing for the war to cease;
:Many are the hearts looking for the right,
:To see the dawn of peace.
:Dying tonight, dying tonight,
:Dying on the old camp ground
References
Bibliography
*Billings, John D.; Charles W. Reed (illus). ''Hardtack and Coffee: The Unwritten Story of Army Life''. Boston: George M. Smith & Co. (1887).
*Kittredge, Walter. "Tenting on the Old Camp Ground" (Sheet music). Boston: Oliver Ditson & Co. (1864).
*Smith, Nicholas, Col. ''Stories of Great National Songs''. Milwaukee: The Young Churchman Co. (1899).
External links
"Tenting on the Old Camp Ground" Peerless Quartet
The Peerless Quartet was an American vocal group that recorded in the early years of the twentieth century. They formed to record for Columbia Records, where they were credited as the Columbia Quartet or Columbia Male Quartet. From about 1907, wh ...
(U.S. Everlasting 1079, 1909)—
Cylinder Preservation and Digitization Project'.
"Tenting on the Old Camp Ground" (Sheet Music)Oldroyd, Osbourne H. ''The Good Old Songs We Used to Sing, '61 to '65'' &mdas
''Project Gutenberg''MIDIfor "Tenting on the Old Camp Ground", from Project Gutenberg.
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Tenting On The Old Camp Ground
1864 songs
Songs of the American Civil War