The Maid of Richmond Ferry

Unknown



Near Richmond 'Flat there lives a maid
More fair than summer morn,
Who has completely turned my head,
And left me now forlorn:
This lass so neat, who smiles so sweet,
To wed is in no hurry;
Although she knows I languish for
The Maid of Richmond Ferry.

Now happy would this Digger be
To call this nymph his own !
If she should say, "my husband be,"
I'd live for her alone.
But this lovely lass, whom none surpass,
In love affairs does vary
So much, I've almost lost all hope
Of the Maid of Richmond ferry.

St.. Kilda is a charming spot,
And Collingwood is pretty,
Prahran and Windsor I admire,
And Hawthorne, for their beauty.
But Richmond is the spot most dear
For there I oft make merry
With lemonade, and ginger beer,
And the Maid of Richmond Ferry



From the collecting of Warren Fahey. Published in 1853 in the Armchair Magazine.

As best as I can discover, this song refers to one of the Burnley ferry services in Melbourne. On this basis, this post is illustrated with a picture entitled "Ferry paddling up the Yarra in Burnley (Richmond)"

I've set this piece to the tune commonly used for the Murrumbidgee Shearer.