Follow the Drinking Gourd 


Chorus:

Follow the drinking gourd!
Follow the drinking gourd.
For the old man is awaiting for to carry you to freedom
If you follow the drinking gourd.

Verse 1

When the sun comes back and the first quail calls,
Follow the drinking gourd,
For the old man is awaiting for to carry you to freedom
If you follow the drinking gourd.

Verse 2

The riverbank makes a very good road,
The dead trees will show you the way,
Left foot, peg foot traveling on,
Following the drinking gourd.

Verse 3

The river ends between two hills,
Follow the drinking gourd,
There's another river on the other side,
Follow the drinking gourd.

Verse 4

Where the great big river meets the little river,
Follow the drinking gourd,
The old man is awaiting for to carry you to freedom
If you follow the drinking gourd



Translation

When the sun comes back and the first quail calls,
Follow the drinking gourd.
For the old man is awaiting for to carry you to freedom,
If you follow the drinking gourd.

"When the sun comes back" indicates winter and spring. This is the time of year when the sun at noon gets higher in the sky each day.

Quail winter in the south and are migratory birds.

The Big Dipper is the drinking gourd.

Peg Leg Joe is the old man.

This verse of the song instructs slaves to flee in the winter and walk north, toward the Big Dipper, otherwise known as the drinking gourd. If they do this, the lyrics explains, they will meet someone who will help them on their journey.

The riverbank makes a very good road,
The dead trees show you the way,
Left foot, peg foot, traveling on
Follow the drinking gourd.

This stanza told the slaves that once they were on their way, they should follow the bank of the Tombigbee River. As they traveled, they should look for dead trees. On these trees they would find carvings of a peg foot and a left foot. The marks let the slaves know that they were still traveling along the Tombigbee, instead of one of the rivers that flowed into it in a north/south direction.

The river ends between two hills,
Follow the drinking gourd.
There's another river on the other side,
Follow the drinking gourd.

This verse explained that when the slaves reached the Tombigbee's headwaters, they should travel over the hills to the north. There they would find another river. This was the Tennessee. It was to be followed to the north.

Where the great big river meets the little river,
Follow the Drinking Gourd.
For the old man is a-waiting to carry you to freedom
If you follow the Drinking Gourd.

This last stanza let the slaves know to follow the Tennessee River to the point where it flowed into another river, (the Ohio.) There, on the north bank, they would meet a conductor of the Underground Railroad who would spirit them to freedom.

Transporting slaves across the Ohio River was much easier in the winter when the ice was thick. Many slaves gained their freedom by following the lyrics to this and other slave songs. Others were recaptured, punished and remained slaves all of their lives.