“Miss Susie had a steamboat” (or Lucy, Mary and other names) is an old jump-rope song.
Nowadays the song is more widely associated with a clapping game.
It shares its tune with another popular jump rope song called “Miss Lucy had a baby”, that’s why they are very often confused with each other.
In “Miss Susie had a steamboat” each verse insinuates an inappropriate word or situation that will be revealed in the next sentence, but which will be replaced by an innocent expression. Thus the lyrics were subjected to many improvisations and different versions appeared over time.
“Miss Susie had a steamboat” Lyrics
Miss Susie had a steamboat,
The steamboat had a bell,
Miss Susie went to heaven,
The steamboat went to…
Hello Operator,
Please dial Number 9,
And if you disconnect me,
I’ll kick you from…
Behind the ‘frigerator,
There lay a piece of glass,
Miss Susie sat upon it,
And cut her little…
Ask me no more questions,
Tell me no more lies,
The boys are in the bathroom,
Pulling down their…
Flies are in the backyard,
The bees are in the park,
Miss Susie and her boyfriend are kissing
In the dark, dark dark
Miss Lucy had a steam boat
Version 2
Miss Lucy had a steam boat,
The steam boat had a bell, (Toot! Toot!)
Miss Lucy went to heaven,
And the steam boat went to
Hello operator, give me #9 and,
If you disconnect me, I will chop off your
Behind the refrigerator, there was a piece of glass,
Miss Lucy sat upon it, and broke her big fat
Ask me no more questions, tell me no more lies
The boys are in the bathroom, pulling down their
Flies are in the country, bees are in their hives
Miss Lucy and her boy friend
Are kissing in the D-A-R-K (spell out)
D-A-R-K
D-A-R-K
Dark! Dark! Dark!
“Mary had a steamboat”
Version 3
Mary had a steamboat
The steamboat had a bell
Mary went to Heaven
And the steamboat went Toot Toot