An archive of the Thought for the Week - That Nantucket Limerick and What Followed

That Nantucket Limerick and What Followed

What Was in that Bucket?

I have always loved limericks. It is fun to make them up and it is fun to recite them. The problem with limericks is that many of them are not fit to recite in mixed company. However, there are many that are squeaky clean (or almost clean).

Probably the most famous limerick is the one about Nantucket. It originally appeared in the "Princeton Tiger." This led to several follow-ups that appeared in various newspapers. There are also a number of versions that are not fit to print. I won't include any of those.

I found these versions in a book entitled "A Treasury of the Familiar" by Ralph L. Woods and published by The MacMillan Company in 1943. I hope you enjoy these. I did add a version of my own. Perhaps you might try your hand at writing one. If you do, please send me a copy.

(Princeton Tiger)
There once was a man from Nantucket
Who kept all his cash in a bucket;
But his daughter, named Nan,
Ran away with a man,
And as for the bucket, Nantucket.

(Chicago Tribune)
But he followed the pair to Pawtucket--
The man and the girl with the bucket;
And he said to the man
He was welcome to Nan,
But as for the bucket, Pawtucket.

(New York Press)
Then the pair followed Pa to Manhasset
Where he still held the cash as an asset;
But Nan and the man
Stole the money and ran,
And as for the bucket, Manhasset.

(My Version)
They ran foul of the law in Pawonit
Where Pa and his wife once sat on it;
Now the lawyer he got
sweetened only his pot,
But as for the bucket, Pawonit.

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