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Home , Babylon (ballad), Child Ballads, Earl Brand, Edward (ballad), Fair Annie, Geordie (ballad)

A CHECKLIST OF CHILD VARIANTS FOUND IN SOUTHERN APPALACHIA

Thomas Burton and Ambrose Manning

The following checklist—drawn from a considerable number of major published and unpublished sources, as well as selected minor ones—is a representative inventory of variants of Child found in Southern Appalachia. It does not propose to be a definitive list. Nor does it overcome all the inherent limitations and problems confronting such an inventory; for example the difficulty in delineating “Southern Appalachia” (considered here as basically, but not exclusively, that area prescribed by the Appalachian Regional Commission) and the inability to consult the almost inexhaustible number of sources.

We also had to accept such realities as the following: some sources include only one variant of a ballad, whereas other sources include representative variants of all the ones collected; collections sometimes designate, sometimes not, the specific place where a variant was recorded or from whom, but not necessarily where it was learned originally or other critical details of dissemination; some informants are included in multiple collections, and their songs are easily tallied, mistakenly, more than once; duplications can occur through the circumstance of multiple collectors recording from different members of the same family or from different persons who learned the same specific matrix; a collector may include the same variants in multiple collections without specifying whether they have been previously published; the credibility of variants can be dubious relative to a number of factors, including editorial policy; and fragments, summaries, written copies, oral traditional status, authenticity of sources, as well as other matters pose questions that are sometimes unfathomable and ultimately subjective. Consequently, in any given collection we might for any number of reasons include all or some of the variants of one ballad and none of another.

We have attempted to use sound, consistent judgment in the inventory. We are aware, however, that if we were to begin anew, we might modify the criteria for inclusions. Nevertheless, even with the limitations and inherent problems of the compilation, we feel that the checklist is a reliable guide to the number of Child ballad variants found in Southern Appalachia.

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Originally published in the Tennessee Folklore Society Bulletin 58, no. 3 (1997): 102. Copyright © 1997 by the Tennessee Folklore Society. Burton-Manning Checklist of in Southern Appalachia

(Original Spreadsheet Produced by Anna Lee Gibson) James Taylor Adams Taylor James Anderson Geneva Anderson II Geneva Ballad & Collection Arnold Byron Burton/ Manning Frank C. Brown Raymond Burgin Michael Bush Celestin Cambiaine Isabel Gordon Carter Richard Chase Josiah Combs John H. Cox John H. Cox II Arthur Davis Arthur Davis (AKDII) Katherine Jackson French Patrick Gainer Mildred Eunice Haun Collection Mildred Haun Cocke Co. Ballads Emory Hamilton Mellinger Henry Matteson & Henry Dorothy Horne Maud Karpeles Powell McClure Collection Talitha Edwin Kirkland K. Mc Neil (WKM) W. K. Mc Neil (WKMII) W. Alton Morris John Jacob Niles Reine Ballad Collection Watt James Randolph Vance Jean Rithchie Jean Rithchie II Roberts Vanover Beth Roberts Collection Ward Leonard Leonard Roberts Art Rosenbaum Dorothy Scarborough Smith Ballad John F. Herbet Shellans Sutherland T. J. H. Warner Anne & Frank Williams Cratis

Child Ballad Title English Scottish English Scottish Variants JTA GA GAII BFMC BA B&M FCB RB B CC IGC RC JHC JC JCII AKD AKDII KJF PG MEH MEHII ELH MH MHII DH CS&K TPM K WKM WKMII AM JJN JWR VR JR JRII BR LWR LR AR DS JFS HS JHTS FW CDW Ballad Variants Variants No. Wisely 1 Expounded x 8 8 1 1 2 1 1 1 1 2 x 15 15 2 1 1 2 1 1 2 3 1 1 False Knight Upon 3 the Road x 10 10 1 1 1 1 2 1 1 1 1 & the 4 -Knight x 63 63 1 1 2 7 1 1 2 9 4 3 2 1 5 2 10 1 1 1 3 1 1 2 1 1 7 x 52 52 1 1 2 7 1 1 4 4 4 1 1 1 1 12 3 3 2 1 1 1 Fair Flower of 9 x 3 3 3 10 x 80 80 2 1 1 6 5 1 2 2 7 9 7 1 3 1 14 5 2 3 2 3 1 1 1 11 x 12 12 2 1 1 1 2 2 1 1 1 12 x 80 80 2 3 4 1 1 1 11 12 6 5 1 5 1 13 2 2 1 1 5 1 1 1 13 x 36 36 3 1 1 1 1 3 4 1 1 2 10 1 1 1 2 3 14 x 5 5 1 1 1 1 1 17 x 5 5 2 1 2 18 x 24 24 3 1 3 4 1 4 1 1 3 1 1 1 20 x 31 31 1 3 3 1 1 1 2 1 13 2 2 1 21 The Maid & the Palmer x 1 1 1 23 x 1 1 1 26 x 25 25 1 1 1 2 4 2 1 1 3 3 2 2 1 1 27 The Whummil Bore x 1 1 1 31 Marriage of x 1 1 1 37 Thomas Rymer x 1 1 1 38 Wee Wee Man x 1 1 1 40 Queen of Elfin Nourice x 1 1 1 43 The Broomfield Hill x 2 2 1 1 45 King John x 1 1 1 Capt. Wedderburn’s 46 Courtship x 23 23 3 1 1 2 1 1 13 1 49 The Twa Brothers x 43 43 1 1 1 2 7 5 4 1 1 1 13 1 1 1 1 1 1 51 Lizzie Wan x 2 2 1 1 53 x 77 77 1 1 1 3 5 2 2 3 4 7 3 8 1 4 2 12 5 1 3 1 1 1 5 1 54 The Cherry-Tree Carol x 25 25 1 1 1 2 3 1 1 3 1 6 2 1 1 1 56 Dives and Lazarus x 4 4 1 1 1 1 58 x 5 5 1 1 1 1 1 62 x 3 3 1 1 1 63 Child Waters x 1 1 1 65 x 7 7 2 2 2 1 68 x 83 83 2 1 1 12 1 1 1 2 5 6 4 1 8 1 14 4 1 1 9 3 1 3 1 Lord Thomas & Fair 73 Annet x 163 163 1 2 12 8 1 2 2 11 13 5 6 1 2 9 2 31 1 9 1 3 3 1 1 2 17 1 5 6 4 1 Fair Margaret & Sweet 74 William’s x 81 81 1 4 6 3 7 5 3 5 1 1 5 17 2 1 2 4 1 12 1 75 x 56 56 2 3 2 2 5 5 3 4 1 1 1 5 6 1 1 1 1 1 5 3 1 2 76 Lass of Roch Royal x 46 46 4 1 2 2 1 1 1 1 10 1 1 1 2 2 2 2 6 3 1 1 1 77 Sweet William’s Ghost x 1 1 1 78 x 8 8 1 1 1 3 2 79 Wife of Usher’s Well x 95 95 4 1 1 5 1 1 1 7 12 5 5 1 1 5 3 17 6 1 1 4 1 1 9 1 1 Little Musgrave & Lady 81 Barnard x 80 80 1 9 4 1 1 1 1 5 3 7 1 7 2 17 3 2 2 1 1 7 2 1 1 82 The Bonnie Birdy x 1 1 1 84 Bonny Barbara Allen x 295 295 9 9 5 1 36 31 7 1 1 1 12 27 8 6 1 5 8 5 1 16 24 2 1 1 1 60 1 9 2 3 1 85 x 75 75 2 1 7 6 1 1 3 5 5 4 1 1 3 3 1 1 6 6 2 1 3 6 5 1 87 x 2 2 1 1 90 Jellon Grame x 1 1 1 92 Bonny Bee Hom x 3 3 1 1 1 93 x 21 21 1 1 1 1 3 1 1 1 5 4 1 1 Maid Freed from the 95 Gallows x 98 98 2 2 1 1 6 7 1 1 1 2 1 7 11 3 1 1 4 5 1 11 8 2 1 3 1 1 8 3 1 1 99 Johnie Scot x 8 8 1 1 3 3 100 x 1 1 1 Bailiff’s Daughter of 105 Islington x 14 14 1 6 1 2 1 1 2 Knight & Shepherd’s 110 Daughter x 2 2 1 1 114 Johnie Cock x 2 2 1 1 & Guy of 118 Gisborne x 1 1 1 Robin Hood & the 119 Monk x 1 1 1 120 Robin Hood’s Death x 2 2 1 1 Robin Hood & the 121 Potter x 1 1 1 Robin Hood & Little 125 John x 2 2 1 1 Robin Hood & the 126 Tanner x 1 1 1 Bold Pedlar & th Bold 132 Bedlar x 1 1 1 138 Robin Hood & Allen x 2 2 1 1 Robin Hood Rescuing 140 3Squires x 3 3 1 1 1 Robin Hood Rescuing 141 Will Stutly x 1 1 1 155 x 70 70 1 1 1 5 1 1 3 13 10 4 6 1 2 10 1 1 3 3 3 156 Queen Eleanor’s x 1 1 1 The Hunting of the 162 Cheviot x 2 2 1 1 King Henry V’s 164 Conquest of France x 6 6 2 1 3 The Death of Queen 170 Jane x 5 5 2 1 1 1 173 x 8 8 1 2 2 1 2 The Bonnie Earl of 181 Murray x 1 1 1 The Bonnie House of 199 Airlie x 1 1 1 200 The Gypsy Laddie x 99 99 1 1 15 7 2 1 2 1 3 7 5 1 3 7 1 10 9 1 1 1 6 7 4 1 2 Bessy Bell and Mary 201 Gray x 4 4 1 1 1 1 204 Jamie Douglas x 2 2 1 1 209 x 19 19 1 1 1 4 1 1 1 6 1 1 1 210 Bonnie James Campbell x 5 5 1 2 1 1 214 The Braes o Yarrow x 4 4 1 1 2 221 Katharine Jaffray [sic] x 1 1 1 226 Lizie Lindsay x 1 1 1 240 The Rantin Laddie x 2 2 1 1 James Harris(Daemon 243 Lover) x 187 187 2 2 2 21 8 2 1 1 1 4 20 20 8 4 1 11 4 22 11 2 1 7 1 1 13 6 8 1 2 248 x 2 2 1 1 250 Henry Martyn x 7 7 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 267 Heir of Linne x 1 1 1 272 The Suffolk Miracle x 13 13 1 1 1 1 5 2 1 1 274 Our Goodman x 75 75 1 9 3 1 1 3 3 7 2 1 1 2 3 5 7 1 1 18 4 1 1 Get Up and Bar the 275 Door x 7 7 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 The Wife Wrapt in 277 Wether’s Skin x 52 52 2 1 3 4 1 1 1 1 3 5 6 5 1 1 1 5 3 2 1 1 3 1 The Farmer’s Curst 278 Wife x 54 54 1 4 3 3 2 3 1 4 5 1 2 1 7 10 2 1 1 1 1 1 279 x 2 2 1 1 283 The Crafty Farmer x 7 7 1 1 1 3 1 Sweet Trinity(Golden 286 Vanity) x 59 59 1 2 2 6 3 1 1 3 3 2 1 1 1 1 3 11 3 1 2 1 3 1 2 1 1 1 1 287 Captain Ward x 1 1 1 289 x 23 23 1 1 1 4 3 1 1 1 4 2 2 1 1 293 John of Hazelgreen x 15 15 9 1 1 1 1 2 295 x 25 25 2 5 1 1 1 11 2 1 1 The Trooper & the 299 Maid x 11 11 1 2 1 1 1 3 2 Count 59 41 1549 1023 2572

English Scottish Total Variants English Scottish Variants Variants Variants 30 24 14 17 10 189 152 31 16 12 1 7 52 28 148 251 131 92 50 14 11 101 66 3 3 368 3 157 51 15 1 101 43 2 7 21 10 215 12 3 79 29 4 26 11 7

100 Items Number of Child Ballads Found in Research 2573 Total Number of Variant Ballads Identified in Burton-Manning Study