To understand American mythology we may have to view it from different perspectives.  Myths are usually stories told by our ancestors to explain some of the mysteries of life and nature that were not understood at the time.  For instance the mystery of the Grand Canyon might have been explained by the ancients as the simple excavation of a mighty God of the rivers.  With no other explanation available, the tribes might have accepted that as a logical conclusion.

Myths might also be stories built and expanded around actual people who, because of the exaggeration in the story telling, become legends.  The stories of their deeds are the myths, but actual person involved is far from being supernatural.

1. Johnny Appleseed

We might begin with the story of Johnny Appleseed.  The man’s real name was John Chapman who was one of the American frontier’s first nurserymen.  The image of John, through animated movies, leaves us with the impression that he roamed the frontier, planting apple trees randomly.  The truth is he planted nurseries and erected fences to keep animals out, then left the trees growing in the care of friends and neighbors who tended them and sold them on shares.

He was mostly a wanderer and a missionary for the Church of New Jerusalem who traveled the countryside preaching and sharing his thoughts with others.  

He was a generous person sharing the apple trees with others who wanted to start an orchard, and let them pay him in their own way, which sometimes meant not getting paid at all.  It has been written that he was a generous soul who would give his own shoes to someone needy, going barefoot himself even in the cold of winter.  I would guess that part of the narration about his life is purely myth, even though he might have been a truly generous and caring man.  There is the distinct possibility that he did give away his shoes to someone who needed them, but I doubt that he was actually left barefoot in the snow because of that generous act.  That is how the myth grows around the legend.

In any case, John Chapman was responsible for many of the apple trees that spread across the country.  But John Chapman was in reality just an ordinary man with an extraordinary purpose of his own choosing; and although he lived a very frugal life, at his death, he left a sizeable estate in land and nurseries to his sister.

2. John Henry

John Henry was born as a slave in the 1840’s but was set free after the Civil War.  He was a large man, over six feet tall and weighed more than two hundred pounds, nearly all muscle.  It has been said that he was the strongest, most powerful man in American history, and that is where the myth gets it start.

After receiving his freedom he began working as a steel-driver for the C&O railroad.  He drilled holes by hitting steel spikes into rock with his heavy hammer.  After each strike the spikes were turned, and hit again until the holes were drilled.  John was the best steel-driver on the railroad, an undisputed fact.

The railroad moved along smoothly until it came to the Big Bend Mountain which was well over a mile thick.  It was decided that they would not go around it, but would drill and blast their way directly through it.  The chore took over three years, and hundreds of men died in the process, but thanks to John Henry working tirelessly with his fourteen pound hammer, they succeeded.

Then the railroad heard about a steam-powered drill and that could out drill any man and John Henry viewed that as a challenge.  So a contest was planned between John and the steam-drill.  

On the appointed day, John Henry carried two twenty pound hammers, one in each hand and the man and machine squared off.  After about a half hour, John had drilled two seven foot holes for a total of fourteen feet and the machine had drilled only one nine-foot hole.  

The railroad men shouted and cheered at John’s victory, but suddenly the mighty man fell to the ground exhausted, and there he died.

The myth says that if you walk to the edge of the Big Ben tunnel you can sometimes hear the sound of two twenty pound hammers inside, drilling their way to victory over the machine.

There is a controversy as to whether a former slave named John Henry actually worked on the C&O at that time, and some think the name of John Henry represented a group of men, once slaves, who worked and toiled tirelessly to blast through that mountain.  

If the man did exist, and most think he did, then he is the legend.  The story about the race between man and machine is the myth, since there is no record of a steam-powered drill being available in that area at that time.  

3. Paul Bunyan

The story of Paul Bunyan and his faithful Blue Ox, Babe is a myth about am imaginary gigantic lumberjack who was the embodiment of the might and vitality needed to settle our frontier.  He stands as a symbol to hard work and the ability to overcome any obstacle.

One story relates the problems caused by a huge log jam on the Wisconsin River.  The jam was reported to be about two hundred feet high and backed up the river for over a mile.  The loggers tried everything they knew to break up the jam with no luck.  That’s when they decided to call Paul to help them.

After a few moments of thought and planning, Paul led Babe into the river in front of the jam and told the loggers to stand back.  He then began to pepper Babe with shot from his gun, which Babe mistook for bothersome flies, so he began swishing his tail back and forth until the river was so stirred up, the jam broke apart and the logs began to float downstream.

Paul has also been credited with digging the Grand Canyon just by dragging his ax behind him.  So, it remains a toss-up as to whether Paul, or the River Gods are responsible for this huge canyon, one of American’s most beautiful and wondrous marvels.  I think the lumberjacks would vote for Paul.

It is told that Paul Bunyan was actually invented as an advertising gimmick, but others say that the myth was given birth to in a story my James McGillivray.  

You can view larger-than-life statues of Paul and Babe all across the nation.  This is one myth that will live on for years to come regardless of its origin.

4. Deer Woman

The myth or legend of Deer Woman can be found all across the nation, but predominately in the central plains, and mostly in Oklahoma, Texas, and Arkansas.

Deer Woman was a Native American, some say from the Osage tribe, others from the Cherokee, and in our area she was known as a Poncan.  She was the most beautiful maiden ever to walk among the tribes, with large sad but restful eyes like those of a  white-tailed doe.  They say that the wisdom of the ages dwelled within her eyes.

The term Deer Woman, in today’s society would be in error, because she was barely out of her childhood and had not yet become a woman when her life ended tragically.

The stories are as varied as the locations in question, and even in this area of Oklahoma there are two different versions.

In Kay County Oklahoma, not far from Ponca City, there is a small river known as the Chikaskia.  The young girl was accustomed to roaming up and down the river banks in search of roots and berries, and her gentle nature was noted by the wild animals in that area, especially the deer who trusted her and often followed her.

But the deer were not the only creatures who had noticed her.  The first version of the story tells about three boys, the sons of white settlers in the area, who had noticed her and were completely taken by her beauty.  They had seen her on a few occasions, and had decided that they were going to stalk her, and have their way with her.

One unusually hot morning, she had removed her clothing and plunged into the river in a effort to cool herself, not realizing she was being watched.  

The boys were waiting for her when she exited the water, and they raped her repeatedly, then beat her unmercifully to the point of death so she could not identify them.  They left her lying on the river bank almost dead, and hurried away from the scene.  A white-tailed doe who had befriended her went to her side and tried to revive her.  Failing to do so, the animal laid beside her and they both died in the same instant.

The myth tells us that the two spirits merged at the moment of death and became one being.  They say that being roams the banks of the Chikaskia to this day, and it will sometimes hide in the brush along side the roads, where passersby can get a glimpse of the most beautiful face of a young girl with doleful eyes.  If you see her, do not stop.  It is said that those who have stopped, are never seen alive again.  Their bodies are discovered later, apparently trampled by wild animals with sharp hooves.  

Deer Woman is said to have the upper body of a beautiful young woman, but from the waist down she has a body like that of a deer with hooves as sharp as knives.

The second story tells us that she was killed by three Native American boys from a neighboring tribe, and that she sometimes shows up at the local pow-wows, or stomp dances still held today in this area.  She is said to be wearing long skirts that hide her legs, and only if you watch her closely can you see the dust her hooves stir up while she dances in a frenzy in the center of all the other dancers.

It is also said that she sometimes dances alone in a field near the pow-wow and tires to lure the male dancers to join her away from the others.  Those who have been warned about the treacherous creature keep their distance from her and those who are unaware often become her latest victim.

There is no proof that this young girl ever existed, but many believe she did.  They say the story of her death is also true, but the murderers were never identified.  From these accounts the myth of Deer Woman has grown and flourished, and even today we hear the younger generation repeating the story to each other and daring each other to spend a summer night on the Chikaskia River bank…alone!  Even a triple-dog-dare will not flush out many brave enough to do so.

Source:

http://en.wikipedia.org