John Henry Popular Books
John Henry Biography & Facts
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. 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. Legend According to legend, John Henry's prowess as a steel driver was measured in a race against a steam-powered rock drill, a race that he won only to die in victory with a hammer in hand as his heart gave out from stress. 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. 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. Then the shaker would begin rocking and rolling: wiggling and rotating the drill to optimize its bite. 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. History The historical accuracy of many of the aspects of the John Henry legend are subject to debate. According to researcher Scott Reynolds Nelson, the actual John Henry was born in 1848 in New Jersey and died of silicosis and not due to exhaustion of work. Several locations have been put forth for the tunnel on which John Henry died. Big Bend Tunnel Sociologist, Guy B. Johnson, investigated the legend of John Henry in the late 1920s. He concluded that John Henry might have worked on the Chesapeake and Ohio Railway's (C&O Railway) Big Bend Tunnel but that "one can make out a case either for or against" it. That tunnel was built near Talcott, West Virginia, from 1870 to 1872 (according to Johnson's dating), and named for the big bend in the Greenbrier River nearby. Some versions of the song refer to the location of John Henry's death as "The Big Bend Tunnel on the C. & O." In 1927, Johnson visited the area and found one man who said he had seen it. This man, known as Neal Miller, told me in plain words how he had come to the tunnel with his father at 17, how he carried water and drills for the steel drivers, how he saw John Henry every day, and, finally, all about the contest between John Henry and the steam drill. "When the agent for the steam drill company brought the drill here," said Mr. Miller, "John Henry wanted to drive against it. He took a lot of pride in his work and he hated to see a machine take the work of men like him. "Well, they decided to hold a test to get an idea of how practical the steam drill was. The test went on all day and part of the next day. "John Henry won. He wouldn't rest enough, and he overdid. He took sick and died soon after that." Mr. Miller described the steam drill in detail. I made a sketch of it and later when I looked up pictures of the early steam drills, I found his description correct. I asked people about Mr. Miller's reputation, and they all said, "If Neal Miller said anything happened, it happened." When Johnson contacted Chief Engineer C. W. Johns of the C&O Railroad regarding Big Bend Tunnel, Johns replied that "no steam drills were ever used in this tunnel." When asked about documentation from the period, Johns replied that "all such papers have been destroyed by fire." Talcott holds a yearly festival named for Henry, and a statue and memorial plaque have been placed in John Henry Historical Park at the eastern end of the tunnel. Lewis Tunnel In the 2006 book Steel Drivin' Man: John Henry, the Untold Story of an American Legend, historian Scott Reynolds Nelson detailed his discovering documentation of a 19-year-old African-American man alternately referred to as John Henry, John W. Henry, or John William Henry in previously unexplored prison records of the Virginia Penitentiary. At the time, penitentiary inmates were hired out as laborers to various contractors, and this John Henry was notated as having headed the first group of prisoners to be assigned tunnel work. Nelson also discovered the C&O's tunneling records, which the company believed had been destroyed by fire. Henry, like many African Americans, might have come to Virginia to work on the clean-up of the battlefields after the Civil War. Arrested and tried for burglary, John Henry was in the first group of convicts released by the warden to work as leased labor on the C&O Railway.: 39 According to Nelson, objectionable conditions at the Virginia prison led the warden to believe that the prisoners, many of whom had been arrested on trivial charges, would be better clothed and fed if they were released as laborers to private contractors. (He subsequently changed his mind about this and became an opponent of the convict labor system.) In the C&O's tunneling records, Nelson found no evidence of a steam drill used in Big Bend Tunnel. The records Nelson found indicate that the contest took place 40 miles (64 km) away at the Lewis Tunnel, between Talcott and Millboro, Virginia, where prisoners did indeed work beside steam drills night and day. Nelson also argues that the verses of the ballad about John Henry being buried near "the white house," "in the sand," somewhere that locomotives roar, mean that Henry's body was buried in a ditch behind the so-called white house of the Virginia State Penitentiary, which photos from that time indicate was painted white, and where numerous unmarked graves have been found. Prison records for John William Henry stopped in 1873, suggesting that he was kept on the record books until it was clear that he was not coming back and had died. Nelson stresses that John Henry would have been representative of the many hundreds of convict laborers who were killed in unknown circumstances tunneling through the mountains or who died shortly afterwards of silicosis from dust created by the drills and blasting. In other media The tale of John Henry has been used as a symbol in many cultural movements, including labor movements and the Civil Rights Movement. Philosopher Jeanette Bickell said of the John Henry legend: John Henry is a symbol of physical strength and endurance, of exploited labor, of the dignity of a human being against the degradations of the machine age, and of racial pride and solidarity. During World War II his image was used in U.S. government propaganda as a symbol of social tolerance and diversity. Film In 1995, John Henry was portrayed in the movie Tall Tale by Roger Aaron Brown. A former slave, John Henry appears to a runaway farmer's son named Daniel to both protect him from ruffians (alongside fellow folk hero figures Daniel's father told his son about, Pecos Bill and Paul Bunyan) and impart life lesson wisdom t.... Discover the John Henry popular books. Find the top 100 most popular John Henry books.
Best Seller John Henry Books of 2024
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Mrs. Osmond
John BanvilleThe Booker Prizewinning author of The Sea continues the story of Isabel Archer, the young protagonist of Henry James’s beloved The Portrait of a Ladyin this masterful novel of betr...
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Hank and Jim
Scott Eyman“[A] remarkably absorbing, supremely entertaining joint biography” (The New York Times) from bestselling author Scott Eyman about the remarkable friendship of Henry Fonda and James...
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Safe People
Henry Cloud & John TownsendSafe People will help you discover why good people can get tangled in bad relationships, how to avoid repeating your own mistakes, and how to pick safe, healthy people for the frie...
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Cruel as the Grave
Sharon Kay PenmanApril 1193. England's King Richard Lionheart languishes in a German prison, and treason scents the air. Richard's younger brother, John, seizes Windsor Castle, and Dowager Queen El...
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The League of Wives
Heath Hardage Lee"With astonishing verve, The League of Wives persisted to speak truth to power to bring their POW/MIA husbands home from Vietnam. And with astonishing verve, Heath Hardage Lee has ...
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The Last Castle
Denise KiernanA New York Times bestseller with an "engaging narrative and array of detail” (The Wall Street Journal), the “intimate and sweeping” (Raleigh News & Observer) untold, true story...
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Truth in Advertising
John Kenney“F. Scott Fitzgerald said that there are no second acts in American lives. I have no idea what that means but I believe that in quoting him I appear far more intelligent than I am....
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King Lear
William ShakespeareThe authoritative edition of King Lear from The Folger Shakespeare Library, the trusted and widely used Shakespeare series for students and general readers.Shakespeare’s King Lear ...
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The Hunger Pains
The Harvard LampoonThe hilarious instant New York Times bestseller, The Hunger Pains is a loving parody of the dystopian YA novel and film, The Hunger Games.Winning means wealth, fame, and a life of ...
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Bored of the Rings
The Harvard LampoonFrom the legendary comedic scholars who illuminated the tour de force Twilight so brilliantly in the New York Times bestselling Nightlight comes The Hunger Pains, a hilarious sendu...
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The PEN O. Henry Prize Stories 2012
Laura FurmanThe PEN/O. Henry Prize Stories 2012 gathers twenty of the best short stories of the year, selected from thousands published in literary magazines. These remarkable stories exp...
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Friends and Enemies
Barbara AmielShockingly honest, richly detailed, and pulling no punches, Friends and Enemies traverses the highs and lows of Barbara Amiel's storied life in journalism and high societ...
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John Henry Days
Colson WhiteheadFrom the bestselling, twotime Pulitzer Prizewinning author of The Underground Railroad and The Nickel Boys, a novel that is "funny and wise and sumptuously written" (Jonathan ...
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The Man Who Killed Kennedy
Roger Stone & Mike Colapietro"We appreciate Roger Stone, he is one tough cookie." President TrumpThe sensational New York Times bestseller, now in paperback.Find out how and why LBJ had JFK assassinated.The M...
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Henry IV, Part 2
William ShakespeareHenry IV, Part 2 is the only Shakespeare play that is a “sequel,” in the modern sense, to an earlier play of his. Like most sequels, it repeats many elements from the previous work...
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Henry IV, Part 1
William ShakespeareThe authoritative edition of Henry IV from The Folger Shakespeare Library, the trusted and widely used Shakespeare series for students and general readers.Family relationships are ...
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John Henry
Roger McGuinnThis is a biographical story book. John Henry is an American folk hero and tall tale. He worked as a 'steeldriver'a man tasked with hammering a steel drill into rock to make holes ...
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The Reformation
Diarmaid MacCullochThe Reformation and CounterReformation represented the greatest upheaval in Western society since the collapse of the Roman Empire a millennium before. The consequences of those sh...
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It Ended Badly
Jennifer WrightA history of heartbreakreplete with beheadings, uprisings, creepy sex dolls, and celebrity gossipand its disastrously bad consequences throughout timeSpanning eras and cultures f...
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Agincourt
Juliet BarkerFrom a master historian comes an astonishing chronicle of life in medieval Europe and the battle that altered the course of an empire. Although almost six centuries old, the Battle...
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The Road to Camelot
Thomas OliphantA “provocative reconstruction of John F. Kennedy’s ‘fiveyear campaign’ for the White House” (The New Yorker), beginning with his bold, failed attempt to win the vice presidential n...
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Changes That Heal
Henry CloudA downtoearth plan to help us recover from the wounds of the past and grow more and more into the image of God.Many of us struggle with anxiety, loneliness, and feelings of inadequ...
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Empire of Shadows
George Black"George Black rediscovers the history and lore of one of the planet's most magnificent landscapes. Read Empire of Shadows, and you'll never think of our firstin many ways our great...
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Macbeth
William ShakespeareThe authoritative edition of Macbeth from The Folger Shakespeare Library, the trusted and widely used Shakespeare series for students and general readers.In 1603, James VI of Scotl...
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The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare
Damien LewisOne of the most remarkable stories in the history of Special Forces' operations Daily ExpressIn the bleak moments after defeat on mainland Europe in winter 1939, Winston Churchill...
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Works of John Henry Newman
John Henry Newman27 works of John Henry Newman Important figure in the religious history of England in the 19th century (18011890) This ebook presents a collection of 27 works of John Henry Newman....
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Once in a Great City
David Maraniss“A fascinating political, racial, economic, and cultural tapestry” (Detroit Free Press), Once in a Great City is a tour de force from David Maraniss about the quintessential Americ...
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Richard III
William ShakespeareThe authoritative edition of Richard III from The Folger Shakespeare Library, the trusted and widely used Shakespeare series for students and general readers.In Richard III, Shakes...
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The Merchant of Venice
William ShakespeareIn The Merchant of Venice, the path to marriage is hazardous. To win Portia, Bassanio must pass a test prescribed by her father’s will, choosing correctly among three caskets or ch...
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Henry V
William ShakespeareThe authoritative edition of Henry V from The Folger Shakespeare Library, the trusted and widely used Shakespeare series for students and general readers. Henry V is Shakespeare’s ...
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Wiseguy
Nicholas PileggiNicholas Pileggi’s vivid, unvarnished, journalistic chronicle of the life of Henry Hillthe workingclass Brooklyn kid who knew from age twelve that “to be a wiseguy was to own the w...
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Richard Nixon
John A. FarrellPULITZER PRIZE FINALIST From a prizewinning biographer comes the defining portrait of a man who led America in a time of turmoil and left us a darker age. We live today, John...
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A Philosophy of Walking
Frédéric Gros, John Howe & Clifford HarperThis “passionate affirmation of the simple life” explores how walking has influenced history’s greatest thinkersfrom Henry David Thoreau and John Muir to Gandhi and Nietzsche (Obse...
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John Henry
Carol OttolenghiThis beloved tale captures the story of John Henry, a man as big as a mountain, whose arms were like oak trees! Children will eagerly continue reading to see what lessons this famo...
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The Golden Retriever
John HenryThe Golden Retriever is simply THE book to have if you want to learn about one of the most popular dog breeds. Written from the perspective of a true Golden Retriever lover, you’ll...
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The Secret Book of Frida Kahlo
F. G. HaghenbeckOne of Mexico’s most celebrated new novelists, F. G. Haghenbeck offers a beautifully written reimagining of Frida Kahlo’s fascinating life and loves.When several notebooks wer...
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How to Have That Difficult Conversation
Henry Cloud & John TownsendFull of practical tips and howtos, this book will help you make your relationships better, deepen your intimacy with people you care for, and cultivate more love, understanding, an...
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Bonkers
Jennifer SaundersTHE HILARIOUS, TOUCHING LIFE STORY OF THE ICONIC COMEDIAN AND NATIONAL TREASURE 'Fabulous? Yes. Funny? Absolutely' Mail on SundayJennifer Saunders' comic creations have brought joy...
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Andrew Jackson
H. W. BrandsNATIONAL BESTSELLER From the twotime Pulitzer Prize finalist and New York Times bestselling author of The First American comes the first major singlevolume biograph...
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The Great Work of Your Life
Stephen CopeAn inspiring guide to finding your life’s purposewhat spiritual teachers call dharmathrough mindfulness and selfexploration. Stephen Cope says that in order to have a ...
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Serial Killers
Peter VronskyA comprehensive examination into the frightening true crime history of serial homicideincluding information on America’s most prolific serial killers such as:Jeffrey Dahmer Ted Bu...