Ginny's Gone to Ohio

DESCRIPTION: "Ginny's gone to Ohio, Ginny's gone away, Ginny's gone to Ohio, Ginny's gone away." "Ginny's a pretty gal, don't you know," "Ginny's gone, an' I'm goin' too, " Ginny's dressed in strings and rags"
AUTHOR: unknown (see NOTES)
EARLIEST DATE: 1967 (NorthCarolinaFolkloreJournal)
KEYWORDS: travel nonballad clothes beauty
FOUND IN: US(SE)
REFERENCES (2 citations):
NorthCarolinaFolkloreJournal, Philip Houston Kennedy, "An Unusual Work-Song Found in North Carolina: Ginnie’s Gone to Ohio," Vol. XV, No. 1 (May 1967), pp. 30-34, "Ginnie’s Gone to Ohio" (1 text, 1 tune)
DT, GINNYGON*
Roud #481
CROSS-REFERENCES:
cf. "Riley" (lyrics)
NOTES [234 words]: Although the Golden Ring recording calls this traditional, I wonder a little. Guy and Candie Carawan, Voices from the Mountains, 1975 (I use the 1982 Illini Books paperback), p. credits the words to Rich Kirby and Michael Kline, but their version has a number of protest verses about mining; I suspect Kirby and Kline are responsible only for some added words -- the more so since Carawan gives a 1971 copyright date, four years after the NorthCarolinaFolkloreJournal article! The only actual non-secondary printed version seems to be the NorthCarolinaFolkloreJournal from Carlie Tart and family (Carawan credits them with the tune and gives it a 1960 copyright date), which makes me wonder if it isn't a version of "Riley" somewhat adapted.
The NorthCarolinaFolkloreJournal article connects it with a piece found in the 1830s journal of Fanny Kemble:
Jenny shake her toe at me,
Jenny gone away.
Jenny shake her toe at me,
Jenny gone away.
Hurrah! Miss Susy, oh!
Jenny gone away.
Hurrah! Miss Susy, oh!
Jenny gone away.
Allowing that "Jennie" could easily turn to "Ginnie/Ginny," I don't really see much connection in the rest of this song.
Roud files it in with versions of "Tommy's Gone to Hilo," but if so, the genders have changed and other changes have been made. At minimum, it is a deliberate rewrite. Ultimately, unless we find more versions, I don't think we can say much about the origin. - RBW
Last updated in version 6.4
File: DTginnyg

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