Green’s Dictionary of Slang

1. a cry of exultation after a victory, supposedly given as one stands on one leg and waves the other about.

1833		‘Firing Up The Chimney’ in Lummy Chaunter 80: Then Molly ask’d Jemmy his pistol to fire, [...] Up her foul flue and bring down the mire / With her heighho! / ’Twould be a rare go. / Sugar! sugar!
1867		H.L. Williams Ticket-of-Leave Man 15: While Mrs. Miles performs a very original pas seul, her liege lord expresses his extactic admiration by various ejaculations, and repeats the word ‘sugar’ with great emphasis.

2. (also sugar me!) a euph. for shit! excl. or bugger! excl.

1837		‘Midnight Mishaps’ in Bentley’s Misc. Aug. 203: Sugar me! You’re just agoing it nicely!
1848		‘Ned Buntline’ Mysteries and Miseries of N.Y. I 39: Oh – sugar, you know what I’m used to, what the deuce do you want to make out as if I was an angel for?
1883		San Antono Light (TX) 24 Nov. 1/3: The usual exclamation of ‘sugar!’ or something similar, from a hundred disgusted theological students.
1904		Sydney Sportsman (Surry Hills, NSW) 4 May 3/5: But sugar me if it [i.e. local rainfall] could beat Sydney’s record for the last three weeks.
1905		G.W. Peck Peck’s Bad Boy Abroad 453: Oh, sugar, no; you don’t need to go.
1932		C. McKay Gingertown 15: ‘Oh, shucks and sugar!’ he said.
1937		West Australian (Perth) 21 Aug. 5/5: ‘Aw, sugar!’ put in Tinny.
1969		B. Mason Awatea (1978) 30: What’s he blown a safe for? Oh, sugar.
1982		N. Keesing Lily on the Dustbin 24: She would never have said ‘Shit!’. She might have said ‘shite’, however which was considered allowable, or ‘sugar’ which was a widespread substitute.
1991		T. Delaney Where We Sported and Played 82: Sugar, now I’m rightly stuck.
2000		T. Blacker Kill Your Darlings 61: ‘Oh sugar.’ My wife sighed.