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An amazing story of the human spirit and work ethic, yes, but was John Henry a real person? Most historians agree that he was, as thousands of African-Americans worked on the railroad, with hundreds perishing during the drilling of the Great Bend Tunnel .
Sep 14, 2023 · The Real John Henry. Historical research supports John Henry as a real person. He was one of thousands of African-American railroad workers. John Henry's job as a steel driver was also real. These men helped drill holes for the powder used for blasting tunnels. Steel drivers swung a nine pound hammer straight and strong all day everyday.
Folklorists have long thought John Henry to be mythical, but historian Scott Nelson has discovered that he was a real person—a nineteen-year-old from New Jersey who was convicted of theft in a Virginia court in 1866, sentenced to ten years in the penitentiary, and put to work building the C&O Railroad.
An African American freedman, he is said to have worked as a "steel-driving man"—a man tasked with hammering a steel drill into a rock to make holes for explosives to blast the rock in constructing a railroad tunnel. The story of John Henry is told in a classic blues folk song about his duel against a drilling machine, which exists in many ...
- 1840s or 1850s
- American folk hero
Jul 24, 2018 · According to legend, Henry was an African American railroad worker on the Chesapeake and Ohio Railroad, specifically working as a steel-driver. The work was hard, pounding steel into the ground and rock with a nine-pound hammer day after day, creating holes for dynamite to blast a path for the railroad.
Feb 28, 2006 · 2-28-06. John Henry real? Truth or tall tale, the John Henry story has been told for more than a hundred years. Many historians believe it is based, in part, on a real person and event...
Oct 18, 2006 · Historians have long speculated that the John Henry ballads, which began circulating in the 1870’s, referred to a real railroad worker, but Mr. Nelson, with extensive documentation in hand,...