John Henry, an American Legend is a 1965 children's picture book by American author and illustrator Ezra Jack Keats In this book, it shows that John Henry, a hard working miner tries to beat the steam drill.

In the end John Henry won the competition, but he also broke inside.

The workers are replaced by a steam drill, which causes their contracts for land to be voided.

John challenges the drill to a contest of speed to lay the rest of the tracks, and if he wins, the workers will still get the land.

He inevitably wins but the effort kills him, and he dies with his hammer in his hand, like he told his wife he would.