Red River Valley- Version 9 
Sandburg/Gordon Collection

Red River Valley/Sherman Valley/Bright Mohawk Valley/Laurel Valley
/A Lady in Love/Cowboy's Love Song

Painting of Red River Valley by Richard L. Matteson Jr. C 2008

Old-Time Country, American, Two-Step; Widely known

ARTIST:  Lyrics from Sandburg and Gordon Collection.

CATEGORY: Fiddle and Instrumental Tunes 

EARLIEST DATE:  Two handwritten versions of Red River Valley from the Piper collection at the University of Iowa: One has, written under the lyrics, "Nemaha. 1879. Harlan 1885."

"A Lady in Love" Wehman's Collection, dated October 1889. "The Bright Mohawk Valley" by James Kerrigan, 1896.

First recording: Carl T. Sprague, "Cowboy Love Song" (Victor 20067, 1926)

RECORDING INFO: Gene Autry, "Red River Valley" (Columbia 20085/Columbia 37184, 1946)
Bascom & Blackwell, "Sherman Valley" (OKeh 45008, 1925)
Beverly Hillbillies, "Red River Valley" (Brunswick 421 [w. Tom & Ezra], 1930/Vocalion 03164, 1936)
Bud Billings Trio, "Red River Valley" (Victor V-40267, 1930; Montgomery Ward M-4058, 1933) [Bud Billings is a pseudonym for Frank Luther; record may have been issued as by Bud Billings & Carson Robison]
Bob Brooks, "Red River Valley" (Columbia 15689-D, 1931)
[Bill] Childers & [?] White, "Red River Valley" (OKeh 45208, 1928)
Luther Clarke & the Blue Ridge Highballers, "Bright Sherman Valley" (Columbia 15069-D, 1926)
Ned Cobben, "Red River Valley" (Harmony 901-H, 1929)
Sid Harkreader, "Red River Valley" (Paramount 3141, 1928; Broadway 8202, c. 1930)
Kelly Harrell, "Bright Sherman Valley" (Victor 20527, 1926; on KHarrell01)
Hill Billies, "Red River Valley" (Regal Zonophone [UK] MR-1698, 1935)
Bradley Kincaid, "Red River Valley" (Champion 15710 [as Dan Hughey]/Supertone 9403, 1929; Champion 45098, c. 1935) (Vocalion 5476, c. 1930/Vocalion 04647, 1939) (Decca 5048, 1934)
Dr. Lloyd & Howard Maxey [Massey], "Bright Sherman Valley" (OKeh, unissued, 1927)
Bascom Lamar Lunsford, "Sherman Valley" (OKeh 45008, 1926)
Frank Luther & Zora Layman, "Bright Sherman Valley" (Decca 5028, 1934)
Harry "Mac" McClintock, "Red River Valley" (Victor 21421, 1928)
Lester McFarland & Robert A. Gardner, "Bright Sherman Valley" (Brunswick 169/Vocalion 5174, 1927; Supertone S-2031 [as Kentucky Mountain Boys], 1930)
Bill Mooney & his Cactus Twisters, "Red River Valley" (Imperial 1096, n.d. but post-World War II)
Holland Puckett, "The Bright Sherman Valley" (Challenge 329 [as by Harvey Watson]/Gennett 6433/Herwin 75562 [as by Robert Howell]/Silvertone 5064, 25064, 8153, 1927/Supertone 9254 [as by Si Puckett; issued 1929])
[Hugh Cross &] Riley Puckett, "Red River Valley" (Columbia 15206-D, 1927) (Bluebird B-8335/Montgomery Ward M-8481, 1940; rec. 1939)
Ranch Boys, "Red River Valley" (Decca 5045, 1934)
Goebel Reeves, "Bright Sherman Valley" (Melotone M-12186, 1931)
Texas Jim Robertson, "Red River Valley" (Victor 27552, 1941)
Carson Robison Trio, "Red River Valley" (Romeo 1233/Banner 0615/Perfect 12591/Jewel 5871/Conqueror 7492, 1930) (Clarion 5109-C, 1930) (Crown 3025, 1930)
Pete Seeger, "Red River Valley" (on PeteSeeger32)
Leo Soileau & his Four Aces, "Red River Valley" (Decca 5182, 1936; rec. 1935)
Carl T. Sprague, "Cowboy Love Song" (Victor 20067, 1926)
Ernest V. Stoneman and the Dixie Mountaineers, "Bright Sherman Valley" (Edison 51951, 1927) (CYL: Edison [BA] 5383, 1927)
Sunshine Sue w. Joe Maphis, "Red River Valley" (Astra 1215, n.d.)
Texas Drifter, "Bright Sherman Valley" (Melotone M-12186, 1931)
Art Thieme, "Red River Valley" [instrumental version] (on Thieme02)
Vagabonds, "Red River Valley" (Bluebird B-5297/Montgomery Ward M-4479, 1934)
Harvey Watson [pseud. for Riley Puckett], "The Bright Sherman Valley" (Challenge 329, 1927)
Sandburg, Carl (ed.) / American Songbag, Harcourt, Sof (1955/1928), p130
Snyder, Jerry (arr.) / Golden Guitar Folk Sing Book, Hansen, Fol (1972), p102
Lovett, Benjamin B. / Good Morning: Music, Calls and Directions for Old-, Henry Ford, fol (1943), p 74
Leisy, James / Songs for Pickin' and Singin', Gold Medal Books, sof (1962), p 69
Lomax, John A. & Alan Lomax / Folk Song USA, Signet, Sof (1966/1947), # 65
Lynn, Frank (ed.) / Songs for Swinging Housemothers, Fearon, Sof (1963/1961), p180
Best, Dick & Beth (eds.) / New Song Fest Deluxe, Hansen, Sof (1971/1948), p 39
Blood, Peter; and Annie Patterson (eds.) / Rise Up Singing, Sing Out, Sof (1992/1989), p 56
Home Spun Songs, Treasure Chest, Fol (1935), p 2
Boni, Margaret Bradford (ed.) / Fireside Book of Folk Songs, Simon & Schuster, Bk (1947), p146
Song Book of the AFL-CIO, AFL, poc (198?), p40
Albert E Brumley's Songs of the Pioneers, Brumley, Fol (1970), 5
Silverman, Jerry / Folksingers Guide to Note Reading and Music Theory, Oak, Sof (1966), p27b
Silverman, Jerry / Folk Guitar - Folk Song, Scarborough Book, Sof (1983/1977), p 27
Lomax, John A. & Alan Lomax / Cowboy Songs and Other Frontier Ballads, MacMillan, Bk (1938), p298
Hughes, Norman / Hammered Dulcimer, Mel Bay, Sof (1979), p14b
Banjo Newsletter, BNL, Ser (1973-), 1977/08,p21
Frey, Hugo(ed.) / Bill Hardey's Songs of the Gay Nineties, Robbins, Fol (1942/1938), p88
Leisy, James F. (ed.) / Folk Song Abecedary, Bonanza, Bk (1966), p276
Herder, Ronald (ed.) / 500 Best-Loved Song Lyrics, Dover dn500/500, Sof (1998), p287
Kraus, Richard / Square Dances of Today, Barnes, Bk (1950), p 55
Autry, Gene. Country Music Hall of Fame, Columbia CS 1035, LP (1970), trk# 13
Bailey, Mike. Banjo Newsletter, BNL, Ser (1973-), 1984/09,p11
Boxcar Willie. King of the Road, Warwick WW 5084, LP (1980), trk# B.08
Brumfield, Deacon. Deacon Brumfield and the Dobro, DB CO-1037, LP (196?), trk# B.05
Cerrigione, Heidi. Dulcimer Players News, DPN, Ser, 29/2, p33(2003)
Child, Marilyn; & Glenn Yarborough. Marilyn Child - Glenn Yarborough Sing Folk Songs, Elektra EKL 143, LP (1958), trk# B.03
Clark, Mickey. Cowboy Songs, National Geographic Soc. 07786, LP (1976), trk# A.04
Flint, Tommy. Travis, Merle; and Tommy Flint / Merle Travis Guitar Style, Mel Bay, fol (1974), p30
Fluharty, Russell. West Virginia Heritage, Page SLP 601, LP (197?), trk# A.02
Fraser, Mrs.. Fowke, Edith (ed.) / The Penguin Book of Canadian Folk Songs, Penguin, Sof (1973), p124/#52
Freeman, Arlie. Randolph, Vance / Ozark Folksongs. Volume IV, Religous Songs and Others, Univ. of Missouri, Bk (1980/1946), p204/#730D [1941/12/10]
Gammie, Mrs. Georg. Fowke, Edith and Richard Johnston / Folk Songs of Canada, Waterloo Music, Bk (1954), p 88
Geiger, Fred. Banjo Newsletter, BNL, Ser (1973-), 1981/11,p23
Goodwyn, Frank. Fife, Austin E. & Alta S. / Cowboy and Western Songs, Bramhall House, Bk (1982/1969), p157/# 56A
Greenwood County Singers. New Frankie and Johnnie Song, Kapp KL 1362, LP (196?), trk# B.06b
Griffin, Neil. Griffin, Neil / Deluxe Bluegrass Banjo Method, Mel Bay, sof (1974), p100
Hall, Kenny. Gray, Vykki M,; and Kenny Hall / Kenny Hall's Music Book, Mel Bay, Sof (1999), p193
Hicks, Darby. Randolph, Vance / Ozark Folksongs. Volume IV, Religous Songs and Others, Univ. of Missouri, Bk (1980/1946), p203/#730B [1935/12/22]
Jeffus, Daniel. Owens, William A. (ed.) / Texas Folk Songs. 2nd edition, SMU Press, Bk (1976/1950), P 98 [1939] (Bright Sherman Valley)
Kincaid, Bradley. Bradley Kincaid. Volume 2, Old Homestead OHCS 155, LP (1984), trk# B.01 [1934/11]
Luckiamute River String Band. Waterbound, Lucks '94, Cas (1994), trk# B.07
Lunsford, Bascom Lamar. Mountain Frolic. Rare Old Timey Classics; 1924-37, JSP 77100A-D, CD (2007), trk# A.07 [1925/08/25ca] (Sherman Valley)
Maxson, Charles; and Karen Skidmore. From the Heartland of West Virginia. The Hammered & Plucked Dul, Peaceable 4, LP (1975), trk# 1
McCurdy, Ed. Song of the West, Tradition TLP 2061, LP (196?), trk# 6
Mid-Columbia Old-Time Music Club. Way It Was, Kuiper, CD (2002/1978), trk# 6 [1978]
Miller, Archie. Guntharp, Matthew G.(ed.) / Learning the Fiddler's Ways, Penn State, Sof (1980), p 77 [1974ca]
Pettyjohn, Bunk. In an Arizona Town, AFF AFF 33-3, LP (197?), trk# 6 [1960s?]
Pointer, Mrs. Joseph (Joe). Randolph, Vance / Ozark Folksongs. Volume IV, Religous Songs and Others, Univ. of Missouri, Bk (1980/1946), p204/#730C [1940/04/15]
Poston, Mutt; and the Farm Hands. Hoe Down! Vol. 7. Fiddlin' Mutt Poston and the Farm Hands, Rural Rhythm RRFT 157, LP (197?), trk# A.11
Reid, Harvey. Steel Drivin' Man, Woodpecker WP 107, Cas (1991), trk# B.10
Reno, Maxine. Randolph, Vance / Ozark Folksongs. Volume IV, Religous Songs and Others, Univ. of Missouri, Bk (1980/1946), p203/#730A [1927/03/14]
Sandburg, Carl. Flat Rock Ballads, Columbia ML 5339, LP (1972), trk# 8
Smith, Albert. Sing, Say and Play, Topic 12TS 375, LP (1978), trk# B.11b
Snow, Jim and Kilby. Mountain Music on the Autoharp, Folkways FA 2365, LP (1965), trk# 18 [1961/07/19]
Sokolow, Fred. Sokolow, Fred / Jazzing It Up, Warner, sof (1982), p22
Sons of the Pioneers. Cool Water, RCA (Victor) LSP-2118, LP (1959), trk# 8
Sons of the Pioneers. Favorite Cowboy Songs, RCA (Victor) LPM-1130, LP (1956), trk# B.07
Stanley, Ralph. Banjo Newsletter, BNL, Ser (1973-), 1983/03,p12
Stephens, Norma Jo. Moore, Ethel & Chauncey O.(ed.) / Ballads and Folk Songs of the Southwes, Univ. of Okla, Bk (1964), p372/#182 [1940s]
Taussig, Harry. Taussig, Harry / Folk-Style Guitar, Oak, Sof (1973), p 32
Taussig, Harry. Taussig, Harry / Teach Yourself Guitar, Oak, Sof (1971), p115
Taussig, Harry. Taussig, Harry / Folk Style Autoharp, Oak, Sof (1967), p 36
Texian Boys. Asch, Moses (ed.) / 124 Folk Songs as Sung and Recorded on Folkways Reco, Robbins, Fol (1965), p101
Thieme, Art. Songs of the Heartland, Kicking Mule KM 148, LP (1982), trk# 15
Thompson, Linda Lowe. Dulcimer Players News, DPN, Ser, 14/3, p24(1988)
Tinsley, Jim Bob. He Was Singin' This Song, Mark Five MV 6045, LP (1982), trk# B.03
West, Hedy. Love, Hell and Biscuits, Bear Family BF 15009, LP (1975), trk# 14a
Wills, Bob; and the Texas Playboys. Tiffany Transcriptions, Vol. 4. You're From Texas, Edsel ED 324, LP (1984), trk# B.07
Yarbrough, Glenn. Come and Sit by My Side, Tradition TLP 1019, LP (196?), trk# A.02

OTHER NAMES: In the Bright Mohawk Valley; Little Valley; Cowboy's Love Song (Sprague); When It's Hogcalling Time (Pankake-PHCFSB, p. 158); (Conqueror 8485, 1935; Perfect/Melotone 6-08-51, 1936; Conqueror 9512 [as Gene Autry Trio, "Answer to the Red River Valley"], 1940)
Hartman's Tennessee Ramblers, "New Red River Valley" (Bluebird B-6162, 1935' Bluebird B-8894 [as Tennessee Ramblers], 1941)

Melody For: Song of the Cove Creek Dam; Red Jacket Mine Exploxion; Dying Soldier; Jesus Saves from Sin; Red River Gal
Parody: From these Praries of Life I'll Be Leaving; Lost River Desert 
 
SOURCES (Print Sources): Thede; Ceolas; Folk Index; Randolph 730, "The Red River Valley" (2 texts plus 2 excerpts, 1 tune)
BrownIII 260, "Red River Valley" (1 text plus 2 excerpts and mention of 3 more)
Cambiaire, pp. 81-82, "Red River Valley" (1 text)
Fowke/Johnston, pp. 88-89, "The Red River Valley" (1 text, 1 tune)
Fowke/MacMillan 52, "The Red River Valley" (1 text, 1 tune)
Sandburg, pp. 130-131, "Red River Valley" (1 text, 1 tune)
Lomax-FSUSA 65, "Red River Valley" (1 text, 1 tune)
Fife-Cowboy/West 56, "Red River Valley" (3 texts, 1 tune; the first text is "Red River Valley" and the third is the variant "Lost River Desert"; the second is a variant of "Nobody's Darling on Earth"); also 102, "Red River Gal" (1 text, 1 tune, consisting of square dance instructions set to this rune)
Arnett, p. 124, "Red River Valley" (1 text, 1 tune)
Silber-FSWB, p. 115, "Red River Valley" (1 text)
Fuld-WFM, p. 457, "Red River Valley"
cf. Gardner/Chickering, p. 482, "Red River Valley" (source notes only)
 
NOTES:   Kuntz: The redoubtable tune ubiquitous to old songsters and children’s music books. “Red River Valley” is usually played as a two-step by fiddlers, or as a breakdown for dances. In the movie The Grapes of Wrath, Henry Fonda sings the tune to his mother while dancing with her (in ¾, waltz, time).

Traditional Ballad index: Fuld reports a claim by Fowke that this song predates the Kerrigan text, and that the original was sung as early as 1869 in Canada, referring to the Red River of the North. I know of no supporting evidence for this claim. On the other hand, the song was recorded repeatedly in the early part of the twentieth century, with major variants in text and few versions mentioning the Mohawk Valley; this is certainly indirect evidence that the song is older than the Kerrigan version and originally referred to some other river, presumably either the northern or the southern Red.

The "Sherman Valley" variant is interesting, because there is no significant river by that name. There is a town called Sherman in Texas, though, not far south of the Red River (it's almost due north of Dallas). There is also a Sherman Peak in Colorado, southwest of Denver; it has no connection with the Red River that I can see. 

The Red River Valley is a song that has come through the years to represent the idealization of the cowboy and the west. After it became a hit song in the 1920s it became immortalized by Gene Autry's 1936 hit movie "Red River Valley" and then it was followed up by Roy Rogers 1941 movie also named "Red River Valley."

Dispite its widespread national and international notoriety it has been known exclusively as a cowboy song. By the 1920s the song was traced back to James Kerrigan's 1896 song "In the Bright Mohawk Valley." Frank Walker, head of Colombia Records "Country Music" division knew about the "Mohawk Valley" song as did Carl Sandburg. By the 1960s Kerrigan and the US claim of authorship was challenged by Edith Fowke who claimed the song originated in Manitoba during the Red River Rebellion of 1869-70. She documented several occurances of the song before 1896 in the Red River area.

NOTES (Richard Matteson): The origin of Red River Valley is still debated by music scholars but recently new light has been shed. There's some great information about this and other songs at the Mudcat Discussion Forum: http://www.mudcat.org/threads.cfm

Where is the Red River?

There are several Red Rivers in the US and Canada. While studying the life of Lily May Ledford we learned that she was from Red River Gorge, Kentucky and fished and hunted in the Red River.

The song was first recorded in 1925 by cowboy Carl Sprague as "Cowboy's Love Song" then the "Sherman Valley" by Bascom Lunsford the same year. Many early country artists including Kelly Harrell and Ernest Stoneman followed with "Bright Sherman Valley."

The biggest hit was the 1927 version by Hugh Cross and Riley Puckett named the "Red River Valley." How did it get the name?

Frank Walker, head of Colombia Records "Country Music" division talked about how the song was named in an interview with Mike Seegar: "There was a thing up my neck of the woods called Mohawk Valley. There was a tune we played called Bright Mohawk Valley. I loved the tune and taught it to Riley Puckett. Riley played it and sang it and we made a record called Bright Mohawk Valley. We didn’t sell many records but it didn’t bother me cause I loved the song. I thought it over and figured that maybe it was because the Mohawk River wasn’t well known. There was a river in Arkansas named the Red River. So why couldn’t I change the Mohawk River to the Red River? Which we did. Riley recorded it over again and it became one of the biggest selling country music records ever made."

Frank Walker's neck of the woods was upstate New York and the Red River in Arkansas is called the Little Red River. Did he mean the Red River in Texas which is large and better known? We'll look at the two largest Red Rivers in the US and Canada.

RED RIVER, TEXAS: The Red River, Texas is in the Mississippi drainage basin and is the second longest river associated with Texas. Its name comes from its color, which in turn comes from the fact that the river carries large quantities of red soil in flood periods. The total length of the Red River is 1,360 miles, of which 640 miles is in Texas or along the Texas boundary. The drainage area of the river in Texas is 30,700 square miles. In 1944 Denison Dam was completed on the Red River to form Lake Texoma, which extends into Grayson and Cooke counties, Texas, and Marshall, Johnson, Bryan, and Love counties, Oklahoma, and was once the tenth-largest reservoir in the United States. Principal tributaries of the Red River, exclusive of its various forks, include the Pease and Wichita rivers in north central Texas, the Sulphur River in Northeast Texas, and, from Oklahoma, the Washita. The Ouachita is the main tributary in its lower course.

RED RIVER, CANADA- NORTHERN US: The Red River Valley is a region in central North America that is drained by the Red River of the North. It is significant in the geography of North Dakota, Minnesota, and Manitoba for its relatively fertile lands and the population centers of Fargo, Grand Forks, and Winnipeg. Palaeographic Lake Agassiz laid down the Red River Valley silts.

It seems that Frank Walker deserves credit for the song becoming popular by the name "Red River Valley." But where did the Mohawk Valley song he knew come from?

One of the first printed versions of the song appears in sheet music, titled "In the Bright Mohawk Valley," published in New York in 1896 with James J. Kerrigan as the writer. According to folk researcher and collector Carl Sandburg, this song originated as "In the Bright Mohawk Valley" (1896) and became "The Red River Valley" in the western United States and Canada. Here are the lyrics from Kerrigan:

IN THE BRIGHT MOHAWK VALLEY (Excerpt)
Words and music by James J. Kerrigan; New York: Howley, Haviland & Co. Copyright 1896

Oh they say from this valley you're going,
We shall miss your sweet face and bright smile,
You will take with you all the sunshine
That has gladdened our hearts for awhile.

Chorus:For the sake of the past, do not leave me,
Do not hasten to bid me adieu!
Oh, remain in this bright Mohawk valley,
With the fond heart that lives but for you.

This is the version that Walker knew from New York. Others including Edith Fowke disagreed that Kerrigan was the author of the song. Her 1964 article "'The Red River Valley' Re-Examined," appeared in Western Folklore 23, p. 163-171 suggested a Canadian origin of "Red River Valley." She offers evidence that the song was known in at least five Canadian provinces before 1896, claiming that the song developed in 1869 at the time of the Red River Rebellion. This finding led to speculation that the song was composed at the time of the Wolseley Expedition to the northern Red River Valley of 1870 in Manitoba. It expresses the sorrow of a local girl or woman (possibly a Métis, meaning of French and aboriginal origin) as her soldier/lover prepares to return to Ontario.

Edith Fowke: "This is probably the best known folk song on the Canadian prairies. --- later research indicates that it was known in at least five Canadian Provinces before 1896, and was probably composed during the Red River rebellion of 1870 ('The Red River Valley Re-examined', Western Folklore, 23, 163). Later versions are short and generalized but the early form told of an Indian or half-breed girl lamenting the departure of her white lover, a soldier who came west with Colonel Wolseley to suppress the first Riel Rebellion. Mrs Fraser's text is very similar to the earliest known versions, and Barbeau gives another traditional version from Calgary in "Come A-Singing."

The text for Fowke's version was published in the Calgary Herald and discovered by Hugh Dempsey of the Glenbow Museum in the papers of Col. Gilbert E. Sanders, a former Mountie. Here is Fowke's version, published it in Western Folklore in 1964:

THE RED RIVER VALLEY (Fowke) 4/4

From this (F)valley they say (C7)you are (F)going;
(F) I shall (F)miss your bright (F)eyes and sweet (C7)smile,
(C)For a- (F)las you take (F)with you the (Bb)sunshine (Gm)
That has (C)brightened my (C7)pathway a-(F)while.

Curiously it was only a recent investigation last year into the history that turned up the first published lyrics. Credit should be given to Gus Meade whose book "Country Music Sources" pointed to "A Lady in Love," Wehman's Collection of Songs #24, October, 1889, p 17 as the first published source; still these lyrics were not public and remained unknown but to perhaps a few people. Folk researcher and friend John Garst followed up the lead and tracked down a copy of the song.

Here are the first published lyrics from Wehman's Collection, dated October 1889:

A LADY IN LOVE (excerpt)

Oh, they say from this valley you are going,
I shall miss your blue eye and bright smile;
And, alas! it will take all the sunshine
That has brightened my pathway for awhile.

The source is unknown. Did Kerrigan's "Mohawk Valley" published 7 years later come from this song? Since they circulated in the same geographic area there's a strong possibility.

The song likely had a Canadian or northern origin. One of the strongest clues are the lines from the first published version that are sung as the chorus today:

Then consider well ere you leave us,
Do not hasten to bid us adieu.

These words including the french (Canadian) word for goodbye (adieu) are one of the strongest arguements for a northern origin. It's likely the song spread after the 1870s to South Dakota much as reported by an early cowboy source Powder River Jack.

Curiously the first lyrics titled "Red River Valley," dating 1879 and 1885 in locations Nemha and Harlan in western Iowa have to my knowledge never been published. According to Fuld, The Book of World-Famous Music, p. 457: "A pencil manuscript of the words of The Red River valley bears the notation at the bottom 'Nemha 1879, Harlan 1885' and sets forth five stanzas. The University of Iowa, Iowas City, Iowa (Edwin Ford Piper Collection). Nemah and Harlan are towns in western Iowa."

On my request John Garst obtained copies of the two handwritten versions of Red River Valley from the Piper collection at the University of Iowa.

One of the first recordings done in 1925 was Carl Sprague's Cowboy's Love Song where he called the valley the "bright little valley" not naming a location. Even before Sprague's recording the song was being sung in the Appalachians by Bascom Lamar Lunsford and others. Lunsford first called the song the Laurel Valley and then when he recorded the song for Okeh in Asheville NC in 1925 it was the "Sherman Valley."

Shermans Dale in Perry County, Pennsylvania is the probable site of the Bright Sherman Valley. Published in the 1909 Bulletin: United States Geological Survey of 1899-1905, there was a Newport and Sherman Valley Railroad, a Sherman Creek, and naturally a Sherman Valley. Today the area is no longer known as the Sherman Valley.

The other claim is Sherman Texas which is in the Red River basin. Surely Goebel Reeves, who was from Sherman Texas named his version "Bright Sherman Valley" because he grew up there.

Looking at the first recordings I'd say Lunsford and others from the Appalachian Mountains probably were referring to Sherman Valley, Pennsylvania. We'll never know. One author claimed (with no documentation) the song was brought to Pennsylvania by the early settlers and disseminated from there.

Here's one of the early versions by Bascom Lamar Lunsford. First I'll give you a link where you can look at the sheet music from Lunsford: http://books.google.
com/books?id=sKlOYEg_5c8C&pg=PA185&lpg=PA185&dq=sherman+valley+
lunsford&source=web&ots=Q9vFN5srET&sig=U2jVw72wLw-juJOD2Fw5UtvIWuY&hl=en&sa=X&oi=book_result&resnum=5&ct=result

"Red River Valley" from Bascom Lamar Lunsford:
Volume V, pages 186-187 of The Frank C. Brown Collection of North Carolina Folklore has this excerpt: #260G "Red River Valley" Sung by Bascom Lamar Lunsford, of Turkey Creek, Buncombe County, probably in 1921. This is a second version by this singer. The text, however, is based on the second stanza of the A version. The recording is very poor and breaks up at the end of the stanza. The singer, upon inquiry, informed this editor that the chorus uses the same tune.

Lunsford, who was a folk collector and organized folk festivals, learned the song as Laurel Valley and after hearing it sung as Sherman Valley changed the name. This was the song Frank Walker of Columbia knew when he made the 1926 recording of Luther Clark and his Blue Ridge Highballers led by Charley LaPrade. As we saw in the earlier blog Walker had Hugh Cross and Riley Puckett recording the song in 1927 as the Red River Valley. After it became a hit the song became the Red River Valley on almost all subsequent recordings.

RED RIVER VALLEY  Gordon Collection:

It seems likely that the last 2-3 verses were additions to the original song. The Gordon Coll. is in the Archive of Folk Culture, Library of Congress.
The first six are similar to the version collected by Sandburg from Gilbert R. Combs; Sandburg also added the three final verses from the R. W. Gordon Coll. (The American Songbag, pp. 130-131).
 

RED RIVER VALLEY Sandburg/Gordon (Last. 3 verses from R. W. Gordon Coll.)

1. From this valley they say you are going,
We will miss your bright eyes and sweet smile,
For they say you are taking the sunshine
That brightens our pathway awhile.

Chorus: Come and sit by my side if you love me,
Do not hasten to bid me adieu,
But remember the Red River Valley
And the girl that has loved you so true.

2. For a long time I have been waiting
For those dear words you never would say,
But at last all my fond hopes have vanished,
For they say you are going away.

Chorus

3. Won't you think of the valley you're leaving?
Oh how lonely, how sad it will be.
Oh think of the fond heart you're breaking,
And the grief you are causing me to see?

Chorus

4. From this valley they say you are going;
When you go, may your darling go too?
Would you leave her behind unprotected
When she loves no other but you?

Chorus

5. I have promised you, darling, that never
Will a word from my lips cause you pain;
And my life,-- it will be yours forever
If you only will love me again.

Chorus

6. Must the past with its joys be blighted
By the future of sorrow and pain,
And the vows that were spoken be slighted?
Don't you think you can love me again?

Chorus

7. As you go to your home by the ocean,
May you never forget those sweet hours,
That we spent in the Red River Valley,
And the love we exchanged 'mid the flowers.

Chorus

8. There never could be such a longing
In the heart of a pure maiden's breast,
That dwells in the heart you are breaking
As I wait in my home in the West.

Chorus

9. And the dark maiden's prayer for her lover
To the Spirit that rules over the world;
May his pathway be ever in sunshine,
Is the prayer of the Red River girl.

Chorus