The story of John Henry was taught to me as a child in school, like many other children in school. The story was told as a triumphant tale about a black man but today, I reread it because a comrade brought up an interesting point that John Henry died at the end.

In this article, they give the context of how a lot of Black people worked on the railroad and in the mines. The work conditions were terrible and the pay was very low. Here's a quote from the John Henry character: "If I can't beat this steam drill down, I'll die with this hammer in my hand!"

This is blatant work propaganda filled with scare tactics to get workers to literally work themselves to death.

https://www.nps.gov/neri/planyourvisit/the-legend-of-john-henry-talcott-wv.htm