"I'm a Good Ol' Rebel" was first published as a poem locally in Maryland in 1898 but was published as a song nationwide in the April 4, 1914 edition of "Collier's Weekly". The song is anti-American in tone, expressing hatred towards the U.S. and its national symbols such as the U.S. Constitution and U.S. Declaration of Independence. It reflected a view held by some ex-Confederates who were reluctant to accept Reconstruction with the United States and an expression of the bitterness and anger they felt after the Confederacy had lost the American Civil War to the U.S. However, it is speculated that the song did not reflect Randolph's personal views and was intended "... to illustrate the irreconcilable spirit of the illiterate in some sections", as it had been sung and passed through oral tradition throughout Southern bars.