The historical accuracy of many of the aspects of the John Henry legend are subject to debate. The steam drill machine could drill but it could not shake the chippings away, so its bit could not drill further and frequently broke down. Then the shaker would begin rocking and rolling: wiggling and rotating the drill to optimize its bite. The contest involved John Henry as the hammerman working in partnership with a shaker, who would hold a chisel-like drill against mountain rock, while the hammerman struck a blow with a hammer. Various locations, including Big Bend Tunnel in West Virginia, Lewis Tunnel in Virginia, and Coosa Mountain Tunnel in Alabama, have been suggested as the site of the contest.
Legend Plaque celebrating the legend of John Henry ( Talcott, West Virginia)Īccording to legend, John Henry's prowess as a steel driver was measured in a race against a steam-powered rock drilling machine, a race that he won only to die in victory with a hammer in hand as his heart gave out from stress. 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. An African American freedman, he is said to have worked as a "steel-driving man"-a man tasked with hammering a steel drill into rock to make holes for explosives to blast the rock in constructing a railroad tunnel. Statue of John Henry outside the town of Talcott in Summers County, West Virginia
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