Richmond is a Hard Road to Travel

Performed by Lisa Meyer
Lyrics anonymous; tune by Daniel Emmett

Would you like to hear my song? I'm afraid it's rather long, of the famous "On to Richmond" double trouble,
Of the half-a-dozen trips and half-a-dozen slips and the very latest bursting of the bubble.
'Tis pretty hard to sing and like a round, round ring, 'tis a dreadful knotty puzzle to unravel;
Though all the papers swore, when we touched Virginia's shore that Richmond was a hard road to travel. Then pull off your overcoat and roll up your sleeve, for Richmond is a hard road to travel, Then pull off your overcoat and roll up your sleeve, Richmond is a hard road to travel, I believe.

First McDowell, bold and gay, set forth the shortest way, by Manassas in the pleasant summer weather,
But unfortunately ran on a Stonewall -- foolish man! And had a "rocky journey" altogether;
And he found it rather hard to ride o'er Beauregard, and Johnston proved a deuce of a bother,
And 'twas clear beyond a doubt that he didn't like the route, and a second time would have to try another. Then pull off your overcoat and roll up your sleeve, for Manassas is a hard road to travel; Manassas gave us fits, and Bull Run made us grieve, for Richmond is a hard road to travel, I believe!

Next came the Wooly-Horse,* with an overwhelming force, to march down to Richmond by the Valley,
But he couldn't find the road, and his "onward movement" showed his campaigning was a mere shilly-shally.
Then Commissary Banks, with his motley foreign ranks, kicking up a great noise, fuss, and flurry,
Lost the whole of his supplies, and with tears in his eyes, from the Stonewall ran away in a hurry. Then pull off your overcoat and roll up your sleeve, for the Valley is a hard road to travel; The Valley wouldn't do and we all had to leave, for Richmond is a hard road to travel, I believe!

Then the great Galena came, with her portholes all aflame, and the Monitor, that famous naval wonder,
But the guns at Drewry's Bluff gave them speedily enough, the loudest sort of reg'lar Rebel thunder.
The Galena was astonished, the Monitor admonished, our patent shot and shell were mocked at,
While the dreadful Naugatuck, by the hardest kind of luck, was knocked into an ugly cocked hat. Then pull off your overcoat and roll up your sleeve, for James River is a hard road to travel; The gun-boats gave it up in terror and despair, for Richmond is a hard road to travel, I declare!

Then McClellan followed soon, both with spade and balloon to try the Peninsular approaches,
But one and all agreed that his best rate of speed was no faster than the slowest of slow coaches.
Instead of easy ground, at Williamsburg he found a Longstreet indeed, and nothing shorter,
And it put him in the dumps, that spades wasn't trumps, and the Hills he couldn't level as he "orter." Then pull off your overcoat and roll up your sleeve, for Longstreet is a hard road to travel - Lay down the shovel, and throw away the spade for Richmond is a hard road to travel, I'm afraid!

Then said Lincoln unto Pope, "You can make the trip, I hope." "I will save the Universal Yankee nation!
To make sure of no defeat, I'll leave no lines of retreat, and issue a famous proclamation."
But that same dreaded Jackson, this fellow laid his whacks on and made him, by compulsion, a se-Cedar**,
And Pope took rapid flight from Manassas' second fight, 'twas his very last appearance as a leader. Then pull off your overcoat and roll up your sleeve, for Stonewall is a hard road to travel; Pope did his very best, but was evidently sold, for Richmond is a hard road to travel, I am told!

Last of all Burnside, with his pontoon bridges, tried a road no one had thought of before him,
With two hundred thousand men for the Rebel slaughter pen and the blessed Union flag waving o'er him;
He met a fire like hell, of canister and shell, that mowed down his men with great slaughter,
'Twas a shocking sight to view, that second Waterloo, and the river ran with more blood than water. Then pull off your overcoat and roll up your sleeve, Rappahannock is a hard road to travel; Burnside got in a trap, which caused for him to grieve, for Richmond is a hard road to travel, I believe!

We are very much perplexed to know who is the next to command the new Richmond expedition,
For the capital must blaze, and that in ninety days, Jeff and his men be sent to perdition.
We'll take the cursed town, and then we'll burn it down, and plunder and hang each cursed Rebel;
Yet the contraband was right when he told us they would fight. "Oh, yes, mister, they will fight like the devil!" Then pull off your overcoat and roll up your sleeve, for Richmond is a hard road to travel; Then pull off your overcoat and roll up your sleeve, for Richmond is a hard road to travel, I believe!

*General Fremont
**The Battle of Cedar Run

Category:

Music

Tags:

• civil
• war
• confederate
• rebel
• yankee
• robert
• lee
• stonewall
• jackson
• longstreet
• stuart
• gettysburg

[captahabsbrother]

Lincoln once asked winfeild scot hancock "How is it that with 10,000 men you took mexico city but with 100,000 men you cannot take richmond?" The General sighed and lemented "sir the men who took me into Mexico are keeping us out of Richmond!"

[eringobragh915]

Funny story, but I don't believe it really happened. For one, Hancock didn't take Mexico City; he was sick with a fever. Secondly, why would Lincoln ask Hancock this question? Hancock wasn't in charge.

[CrosslegLuke]

I cant figure it Out........ Is this Southern, or Yankee?????

Cuase, it appears to be making fun of the Yankees, but at the same time....

[eringobragh915]

It's a Southern song. It's about a Southerner who's pretending to be a frustrated Yankee.

[BenAliGtor]

@eringobragh915 No. Daniel Decatur Emmett (who wrote the words to "Dixie's Land" in 1858 in NYC, BTW) was a native of Ohio. He was most definately not a Southerner.

[eringobragh915]

@BenAliGtor What are you smoking? Emmett didn't write this. LOL @ the very thought. This song is very pro-Confederacy, as you ought to realize if you bothered to listen to the lyrics.

[dudehokie]

Good song Long live the SOUTH

[activeplum]

I actually still think it should be "o yes massa they will fight fight like Devil" (not mister) with the appropriate accent in the last verse:)

[Thx1138d]

Yankee , written by Dan Emmet. Emmet was from Ohio and also was the author of Dixie. Emmet also wrote the fife and drum manuall for the Union Army.

[Route2Dburg]

I guess just for fun, I learned to sing this song by memory, at the speed presented here. The section dealing wtih McClellean and his balloon, and part of the gunboat battle was the toughest, but I managed to do it. Why? Don't ask, I guess. It was just a challenge and a great Southern victory song. Too bad they didn't go one further and put Hooker and Chancellorsville in here.

[Malaggarmod]

@eringobragh915

Oh, what a mistake, I was thinking about Scott (damn similiarity of his name and surname with names of WSH).

[icesbro3]

@Malaggarmod It was Winfield Scott not Hancock.

[eringobragh915]

@Malaggarmod During the Mexican War??  Dude, follow along...

[hungarygator]

The song is funny....if only they had waited a little longer then they could have added another verse about "fighting" Joe Hooker and Chancellorsville.

[hungarygator]

@eringobragh915 Probably Winfield Scott not Winfield Scott Hancock and considering how instrumental Lee was on the campaign to Mexico city twice outflanking and defeating superior Mexican forces, Scott may well have told him that. He was certainly effusive in his praise of Lee and it was Scott who recommended that Lee be given command of the union army. He knew a good general when he saw one.....