In the small, quiet town of Talcott lies the site of an American legend. People across the country are familiar with the ballad of John Henry, a song that tells of a man who could drive steel faster than a machine.
According to legend, John Henry was one of the many men working on the Great Bend Tunnel, part of C & O Railroad’s tunnel through the Appalachian Mountains. Henry supposedly worked as a steel driver. These men used large hammers to drive steel bars held by “shakers,” into the mountain. The holes created by the steel drivers were filled with explosives to clear out the rock.
The Great Bend Tunnel was built between 1870 and 1873. Around 1870, the steam drill began rising in popularity. The drill could do the job of both the steel driver and the shaker with incredible speed.
In the legend, a salesman brought a steam drill to the site at Big Bend Mountain, claiming it to be faster, better, and cheaper than the men. Henry set a challenge that he could drill more steel in a given time than the machine. So, a competition was set; Henry would face off against the drill to see which could drive more steel.
As the competition began, Henry took up two 10-pound hammers, one in each hand, and set to work. Working at a fevered pace, swinging both hammers in quick succession, legend states that Henry was able to drill 14 feet into the rock while the steam drill only managed nine.
Sadly, John Henry’s tale does not end in happiness. He pushed himself so hard that shortly after beating the steam drill, he passed away. One version of the legend gives exhaustion as the cause, while another states a “burst heart.”
The legend of John Henry has been circulating since the 1870s. It is among the likes of Paul Bunyan as a classic American folktale. Many have asked, “was John Henry an actual person?” Even more want to know if the battle between Henry and the steam drill took place.
Some proof exists that there was a person by that name who, worked on the tunnel. While widely believed to be a myth, historian Scott Reynolds Nelson says otherwise. It has long been speculated that the legend is based on an actual person, but Nelson kept digging until he found evidence.
Nelson discovered documentation of a young man named John William Henry. This John Henry was from New Jersey. He worked, in some capacity, for the Union Army at City Point, a landing near Petersburg V.a. This was in 1866, and Henry was 18 years old at the time. In April that year, Henry was supposedly caught stealing from a grocery store and was subsequently sentenced to 10 years in prison. He did his time in the Virginia State Penitentiary, where the warden is said to have “leased” prisoners to the railroad for 25 cents per day. Henry was one of the prisoners to be leased.
It is impossible to know with complete certainty if the figure Nelson resurrected from the past is indeed the subject of the John Henry legend. However, it is equally impossible to overlook the similarities between the two men. Both were young African American men who shared a name and worked for the C & O Railroad. Not to mention that John William Henry would have been working on the railroad around the same time the legend was born.
According to Nelson, if there was a showdown between man and machine, Henry could have won due to the early steam drills constantly breaking down. However, rather than passing away due to exhaustion, Nelson posits that Henry likely would have died from silicosis, a deadly lung disease that claimed the lives of many railroad workers. While the steam drills may have frequently broken down, they were adept at releasing clouds of silicon dust.
At the Great Bend Tunnel, there is a statue honoring this legendary figure. The John Henry Park also boasts other historical items. Talcott also is home to a John Henry museum and a yearly celebration called John Henry Days.
In a few short days, John Henry Days will be celebrating the 25th anniversary of the festival. This year is the festival’s first time back after a two-year hiatus caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. If you are in the area, stop by and enjoy the shopping and the music. Don’t forget about the parade!
