The ballad "John Henry" is the most recorded folk song in American
history and John Henry-the mighty railroad man who could blast
through rock faster than a steam drill-is a towering figure in our
culture. But for over a century, no one knew who the original John
Henry was-or even if there was a real John Henry. In Steel Drivin'
Man, Scott Reynolds Nelson recounts the true story of the man
behind the iconic American hero, telling the poignant tale of a
young Virginia convict who died working on one of the most
dangerous enterprises of the time, the first rail route through the
Appalachian Mountains. Using census data, penitentiary reports, and
railroad company reports, Nelson reveals how John Henry, victimized
by Virginia's notorious Black Codes, was shipped to the infamous
Richmond Penitentiary to become prisoner number 497, and was forced
to labor on the mile-long Lewis Tunnel for the C&O railroad.
Nelson even confirms the legendary contest between John Henry and
the steam drill (there was indeed a steam drill used to dig the
Lewis Tunnel and the convicts in fact drilled faster). Equally
important, Nelson masterfully captures the life of the ballad of
John Henry, tracing the song's evolution from the first printed
score by blues legend W. C. Handy, to Carl Sandburg's use of the
ballad to become the first "folk singer," to the upbeat version by
Tennessee Ernie Ford. We see how the American Communist Party
appropriated the image of John Henry as the idealized American
worker, and even how John Henry became the precursor of such comic
book super heroes as Superman or Captain America. Attractively
illustrated with numerous images, Steel Drivin' Man offers a
marvelous portrait of a beloved folk song-and a true American
legend.
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