Stories about Paul Bunyan, the giant lumberjack with his blue ox, Babe, have been around since the 1830s. Today is his day!
The legend of Paul Bunyan may have actually originated in Canada – in fact, “Bonyenne” is a colloquial French-Canadian expression of astonishment the approximate equivalent of “good grief” or “my goodness” – but he was quickly adopted into American folklore, where tales of his prowess continued to grow. His stories were not written down until nearly a century after they began circulating, starting in 1910 by U.S. journalist James MacGillivray.

QUICK LINKS:
History of Paul Bunyan
Paul Bunyan stories and legends

Disney’s American Legends (1958) on DVD
(Stories of Paul Bunyan, Johnny Appleseed, John Henry, The Brave Engineer)

Paul Bunyan 20th Anniversary Edition (A Reading Rainbow Book)
by Steven Kellogg