“i had never seen the poem”
Me neither. I thought it was Grandmother’s house.
http://www.hymnsandcarolsofchristmas.com/Hymns_and_Carols/over_the_river_grandfather.htm
Wondering why it was changed to “Grandmother’s House” too?
My mom used to sing this when we’d go to visit my grandfather at Christmas in a small town in Pennsylvania.
This gives a glimpse of what life was like in 1844—what people named their kids—and their dogs—what they ate for dessert, etc.
Over the river and through the woods to Grandmother’s house we ran
She wasn’t home, she liked to roam to Florida to get a good tan.