John Henry "The Steel Driving Man"

I had been thinking about drawing characters in 19th Century folklore (Pecos Bill, Paul Bunyun, Iron John to come) and what better character to start this jump off than John Henry. Legend has it, John Henry went head to head (with two 9 pound hammers) and won against a steam drill, in a contest of man over machine (in a way it was a battle of man over machine for jobs), ending in numerous versions of his death and ending up being replaced by drills anyway. Some say he died of a heart attack after winning the contest, others have him being blown up in mines, brain aneurisms and just plain old being burned out, with a few having him living. There are lots of different stories of his origins, whether it be Georgia, Tennessee, Alabama, Mississippi, Virginia or Jamaica, the one constant was John Henry was a strong representation of the 19th Century working class. In Virginia lore he was a man of a kind heart, very strong, pleasant speech, yet a gambler, a roue', a drunkard and a fierce fighter, and was loved by all the negro women from the southern West Virginia line to the C&O Railroad.