""Judy Drownded" originated in St. Mary. A young girl, Judy, who was washing clothed in the river, was carried downstream by the swift current. Onlookers who were also washing clothes, loudly cried out: "Judy drownded!" However, everyone discovers, she was rescued. The 5th, 6th and 7th verses allude to a conversation between Judy and her mother."
From the collection Folk Songs of Jamaica, edited and arranged by Tom Morris, 1952, Oxford University Press. Used by permission in Jim Morse, coll., 1958, Folk Songs of the Caribbean, Bantam Books.