John Henry (folklore)
John Henry is an American folk hero. 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.
John Henry | |
|---|---|
Statue of John Henry outside the town of Talcott in Summers County, West Virginia | |
| Born | 1840s or 1850s |
| Occupation | Railroad worker |
| Known for | American folk hero |
The story of John Henry is told in a classic blues folk song about his duel against a drilling machine, which exists in many versions, and has been the subject of numerous stories, plays, books, and novels.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.