Further notes on the song, since we seem to have none on record here:

A.L. Lloyd writes in his Folk Song in England,
"An impressive specimen of early strike balladry is "The coal-owner and the pitman's wife", which has entered on a lively second existence since a miner at Whiston, Lancs, unearthed it in 1951. Seemingly it was made at the time of the 1844 Durham strike by a collier, William Hornsby of Shotton Moor. ... In using a classical ballad form, the pitman-songmaker was not inspired by a romantic wish to revive the beauties of past folk song. In fact, no doubt involuntarily, his ballad emerges rather as a witty caricature of the lyric of former times. The tune belongs to the great family of "Henry Martin" and a score of ballads with 'derrydown' refrain..."

and these two items from this site (which doesn't offer details on the literature cited):

[1974:] According to Mr J.S. Bell of Whiston, Lancs., who sent most of these words to be published in 'Coal', this song was probably composed by a Shotton Moor collier, William Hornsby by name, during the great Durham strike of 1844. The tune came from Mr. J. Denison of Walker. The 'derry down' chorus indicates its antiquity - a relative of Henry Martin? Most songs with a 'derry down' refrain used to be fairly salacious, and it has been suggested that the words, now nonsense, originally had a sexual connotation. (Dallas,Toil 224)

[1975:] This [...] was one of the many songs to emerge from the bitter twenty-week strike of 1844 in the North-East. Many of them were composed by Primitive Methodists and members of other dissenting sects who also belonged to the miners' union. Song sheets, usually sold for a penny each, as well as being a source of much-needed money were also a means whereby the men's case could be put to the general public.
The pitman's wife mentions in the last verse [not included above] that she has been turned out of her home. This is a reference to the mass evictions made by Lord Londonderry and other coalowners. They threw strikers and their families out of their homes to make way for blacklegs. As a result, numerous roadside encampments sprang up. Putting a few blankets as a roof above their modest pieces of furniture, the evicted families tried in vain to keep out the cold and rain. Songs like this, however, did help to bolster morale. (Notes 'The Bonnie Pit Laddie')