Green’s Dictionary of Slang

mispron. of, or euph. for God.

1830		Owl (NY) 10 July n.p.: Goramighty make de first man or woman.
1833		Ely’s Hawk & Buzzard (NY) Sept. 14 n.p.: Zounds! [...] By-stall cracky! Gory mighty!
1838		Crim.-Con. Gaz. 27 Oct. 79/3: Why goramighty bless his ebony chops.
1854		Thackeray Newcomes I 343: Gaw! how he did go down!
1910		H.G. Wells Hist. of Mr Polly (1946) 198: ‘Gaw!’ said Uncle Jim.
1910		Sun. Times (Perth) 20 Feb. 2nd sect. 17/7: When WILL local shows drop Gor Save as a hall emptier? There's nothing wrong with a quick, lively march to jig the audience out to their steak and-oysters.
1918		‘Sapper’ Human Touch 60: Gaw lumme!
1924		C.J. Dennis ‘A Holy War’ in Chisholm (1951) 76: Tryin’ to make that Gorfergotten crew / ’Olesome an’ sweet.
1926		Exeter & Plymouth Gaz. 8 May 3/5: Let’s see how you look in the King’s uniform! Gaw, I never see a chap look better in it.
1934		E. Raymond Child of Norman’s End (1967) 438: Gaw, I like that!
1935		S. Lewis It Can’t Happen Here 90: ‘Gaw! Every guy in the country with a bad case of the gimmes comes to see me!’ he growled.
1941		K. Tennant Battlers 164: Gawd! she’s a trimmer.
1956		R.T. Hopkins Banker Tells All 141: Gaw! Can’t I?
1968		J. O’Grady Gone Troppo (1969) 101: Gawstrike, now I seen every bloody thing.
1975		E. Torres Carlito’s Way 117: Yer mudder’s cunt, I thought, but I said, ‘Gawd, Your Honor, this is a slander’.
1981		W. Boyd Good Man in Africa 223: ‘Oh Gawd,’ Morgan groaned, exaggeratedly rolling his eyeballs.
1994		Indep. Mag. 6 Aug. 36: Gaw-dang! Big ole coyote!