I boarded on a railroad car
In the early morning sun
I rode the rods till evening
And I laid me down again
All strangers there no friends to me
Till a dark girl toward me came
And I fell in love with a Creole girl
By the Lakes of Pontchartrain

I said my pretty Creole girl
My money here's no good
If it weren't for the alligators
I'd sleep out in the wood
You're welcome here kind stranger
Our house is very plain
But we've never turned a stranger out
To the banks of Pontchartrain

She took me into her mammy's house
And treated me right well
Oh the hair upon her shoulders
In jet black ringlets fell
To try to paint her beauty
I'm sure' twould be in vain
So handsome was my Creole girl
By the Lakes of Pontchartrain

I asked her if she'd marry me
She said that never could be
For she had got a lover
And he was out to sea
She said that she would wait for him
And true she would remain
Till he'd returned to his Creole girl
By the Lakes of Pontchartrain

So it's fare thee well, my bonny own girl
I never may see you more
But I'll ne'er forget your kindness
In the cottage by the shore
And at each social gathering
A flowing glass I will drain
And I'll drink a health to my Creole girl
By the Lakes of Pontchartrain