“Source: Retired educator/fiddle player Lefty Shafer told us that this was a popular song from one-room schoolhouse days in eastern Ohio of the 19th century.”
Polly, put the kettle on (3x)
We’ll all have tea.
Sukey, take it off again (3x)
They’ve all gone away.
Blow the fire and make the toast
Put the muffins down to roast
Blow the fire and make the toast
We’ll all have tea.
According to the ANNOTATED MOTHER GOOSE, in the mid 19th c. Polly was often used as a pet-name for Mary and Sukey was used for Susan. This was originally a popular country dance and song. “Polly put the kettle on and we’ll all have tea” became a much-repeated catch phrase around 1870. The 3rd stanza first appeared in print in 1858.