Where Does This Phrase Come From?

Where Does This Phrase Come From?

I admit that the phrase is obscure. A number of years ago, I heard a funny, wonderful song entitled "Jordan is a Hard Road to Travel". I was happy enough just to enjoy the music. But the odd thing about grief is that it makes me think about things more deeply than perhaps I should. The only serious line in this song was the constant refrain about Jordan. Since I had my own hard road to travel, I began to wonder, what is Jordan?

After doing a little research on the Web, I uncovered very little of use:

The phrase dates back at least to the Civil War. The following is a brief excerpt from the diary of Samuel Melvin, a Union Army soldier. This phrase is used, but the meaning is not clear.

Friday, May 27, 1864. Slept, or lay, very cold last night... Started about 6 o'clock from Lynchburg for Danville [Virginia], packed in some box cars. It is about 150 miles, and it took us 24 hours... What a painful night we passed! No sleep, no place to lie down nor scarcely to stand. No rations, and I think that Jordan is a hard road to travel.

I discovered that the song I heard was actually derived from an old minstrel tune by Daniel Decatur Emmett (1853). Still no clue about Jordan…

Finally, I found that Uncle Dave Macon (1870-1952) wrote the song that I had heard. Still no clue about Jordan.

So it was clear that I would have to dig deeper. My guess was that the phrase implied that reaching the Promised Land (in this context, freedom from slavery) was not an easy task. After more research, I found the names of three individuals who seemed as if they might be able to help. The wonderful thing about the Web is that you can accost perfect strangers and ask for their help. And often, they'll oblige. I am indebted to the following individuals who so generously offered me their insights:

I do not know the specifics of the terms, but I think you are right. Jordan refers to the line between freedom and slavery (generally the Jordan River).

James O. Horton
George Washington University.

The reference is probably to Jordan as the Promised Land for the children of Israel. It is an Old Testament motif that appeared in a great many African-American spirituals. For the enslaved, Jordan would have represented a life free from bondage and oppression. Less literally, Jordan also stood for spiritual freedom, freedom from the bondage of Satan and the heaviness of a godless life. For Jordan to be a hard road to travel suggests that getting to the Promised Land -- either an actual world of political freedom or a more figurative one of spiritual freedom -- is not easy, and requires much hard work.

Patrick Rael,
Bowdoin College

I had always assumed that, in this particular case, Mr. Gilbert was encouraging my great-great-grandfather to be steadfast in his anti-slavery views and to be determined to stay in Bloody Kansas where proslavery settlers were making things pretty "hot" for antislavery settlers. I believe it was a common expression for anyone with a cause who was facing adversity.

William Griffing
http://www.griffingweb.com