"Carve Dat Possum" is a minstrel song attributed to Sam Lucas in 1875. Very popular in its time,Johnson, Black Manhattan, p. 118: "One of the most popular of the minstrel songs of the seventies was 'Carve dat 'Possum,' written by Sam Lucas." it tells of hunting and preparing a possum to eat. The chorus: Carve dat possum, carve dat possum, children, Carve dat possum, carve him to de heart; Carve dat possum, carve dat possum, children, Carve dat possum, carve him to de heart.Lucas, "Carve Dat Possum".
The song, as published by Lucas, is in 2/4 time.
Although the song was first performed by Lucas, The Pacific Appeal (San Francisco, October 25, 1879) notes that "it was only after a long epistolary discussion that Henry Hart obtained a public acknowledgement that he was the genuine author."
References
Bibliography Johnson, James Weldon. Black Manhattan: Account of the Development of Harlem. New York: Alfred A Knopf (1930). Lucas, Sam. "Carve Dat Possum" (sheet music). Boston: John F. Perry & Co. (1875).
External links "Carve Dat Possum" Internet Archive—Peerless Quartet with Harry C. Browne (Columbia 2590). "Carve Dat Possum" Library of Congress. "Carve Dat Possum" Stephen Railton & the University of Virginia.