Hi Brian,

To respond to your queries. The Sharp Campbell texts are two line stanza, the standard 3 line stanza (repeat the 1st line), which is how I learned it and 4 line stanza (repeat the 1st line three times). The three line stanza is similar to standard 12 bar blues form. So in fact the ballad is lengthened fro m the older Gosport version because in the three line stanza there is a repeated line.

Here's a rough take of the three line stanza version I learned in Kentucky:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ASJjrxxCNmc

I also played it with Carrie Norris, Lily-Mae Ledford's granddaughter. See my early post on this thread for the you-tube link. It's similar but I learned mine before I played with Carrie.

"Guessed about right" is Appalachian or American. I'm having trouble locating version from New England, but the ballad is very well know in Kentucky, for example.

As far as how it got to the Appalachians we known that, in general, the ballad came to the Virginia colony which established its House of Burgesses in the 1620s. By 1700 a large number of English and Scottish immigrants resided along the James River and by 1720 there were around 100,000. The Hick's family (which married into the Harmon family several times), left the James River and went inland into North Carolina and one son, David settled in Watuaga County before the Revolutionary War. We know the ballad was part of the family because it was sung by Sam Harmon and his daughter (see Melinger Henry B)

B. "Little Mollie." Obtained from Mrs. Mary Tucker, Varnell, Georgia, February, 1929. Mrs. Tucker is the eldest daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Samuel Harmon, formerly of Cade's Cove, Tennessee.

1. "Little Mollie, little Mollie," said he,
"Will you degree[1], and get married to me?
I have a fair[2] off friend,
That we will go and see."

2. "Sweet Willie, sweet Willie," said she,
"I am afraid I am too young to get married to you."
"Little Mollie, oh, no, you are just right
For I have been digging at your grave all the best part of last night."

3. He led her over valleys and hollows so deep
Till, at last, poor little Mollie, so bitterly she did weep.
He led her up the mountain so high,
Until she came to her grave, and a spade a-laying by.

4. She threw her arms around him with a love hug and a fear.
"How can you kill a poor little girl, who has loved you so dear?"
"I have got no time to tarry, or fool here with you."
He pulled his hand out of his pocket, a sharp knife he drew.

5. He pierced her to the heart, oh! how the blood did flow!
And into her grave her dead body he threw.
He covered her up and went his way home;
Left nothing but the small birds to hear his sad moan.

6. As he was sailing all on his heart's delight,
The ship it was sinking, and nearly out of sight.
Up stepped little Mollie all in a gore of blood,
Saying that "A debt you owe the devil, and now you have it to pay."

1. agree.
2. far.

This version has the ship sinking gore of blood ending found in some extended Appalachian versions. It retains the broadside name "Molly" who visits William as a ghost as he is dying.

It seems to me that his version is early 1800s (guestimation) and retain elements of the broadside. My question is: could this and other version be based on an ur-ballad which was captured by the printed broadsides and reworked?

Certainly Sharp B is similar to or based on Gosport (posted earlier). At least a dozen Appalachian versions have "died distracted" or "too young to marry" which parallel the broadside tests.

It's possible but unlikely that the US print versions from NY, MA and MD traveled down to the Appalachians but that migration did happen.

I also believe that the Deming Broadside may have been derived from an early English broadside (possibly based on the ur-ballad) of the late 1700s which has since disappeared. This is evidenced by stanzas unique to Deming being found in Appalachia and also Nova Scotia.

Richie