2 Jenny left her baby when she went away, Jenny's gone away, Wanted to keep him, couldn't find a way, Jenny's gone away. 3 Jenny was young when her hair turned gray, Jenny's gone away, Jenny was a pretty girl in her day Jenny's gone away. 4 Jenny didn't want to go away, Jenny's gone away, Company took her house away, Jenny's gone away. 5 Jenny's man died in the Farmington Mine, Jenny's gone away, Company insurance didn't give her a dime, Jenny's gone away.
Peggy Seeger gives two possibilities as to origin. She heard it in England. Three of the above verses are hers.
Folk song collector Philip Kennedy in 1959 heard Carlie Tart sing a 3-verse song about Ginnie. He described it in "An Unusual Work-Song Found in North Carolina, "Ginnie Gone to Ohio," in North Carolina Folklore, vol. 15, no. 1, May, 1967, pp. 30-34. Kennedy cited the 'strings and rags' and 'pretty girl' verses.https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vbLhe6nEydU