..".... composed by both Broadside writers and ordinary people who did not do it for money making reasons. "

True, but trivial. Almost a tautology. Without a definition of 'old', it's not useful.
People have created song-like noises since they became human, and the more interesting noises were copied and added to until recognizable patterns developed. Critics, collectors and researchers are a relatively new part of the process and limited by very sparse written records. Still, the desire to know will always make some of us try to trace origins.
Folk process.