...the well-known Yorkshireman. One set of Ponchartrain appears in Sam Henry's Songs of the People; but that was noted from a singer who had learned it in America. Beside the modern Planxty/Brady connection, I'd guess that the main reason why people often think it's an Irish song is that it's often sung to the tune also used for Lily of the West; but the book is still open on whether that song started in Ireland or England, anyway. The tune was earlier used for Caroline of Edinburgh Town (under which name the tune was prescribed on broadside sets of Lily published in the USA) and would be either Irish or Scottish in origin; at the moment I'm inclined to the latter.

We do have quite a few Ponchartrain threads, in which much of the same information (including what I've just said) tends to get posted.