We got this a number of times from singers we recorded, mainly from Irish Travellers.
Personally I have always found it extremely schmaltzy and over-sentimental - more akin to a Victorian tear-jerker than a traditional song; one that maybe wasn't long enough in the tradition to have the rough edges smoothed off.
I was interested to read Gavin Greig's note to it in 'Folk-Song of the North-East' (1907-11) which goes some way to confirming my opinion.
"This song, judging from the number of requests one sees for it in the public prints, must be pretty popular throughout the country. We have got three local records of it. They vary a good deal, showing that the song has been traditional for a while, although it cannot be very old. We have a record of the tune got from an elderly lady in Buchan."
Jim Carroll