Can you find the Big Dipper, Little Dipper and North Star, and do you know the song “follow the drinking gourd”?

20 comments

1. Yes to all of it. I don’t know if I could sing all of follow the drinking gourd but I know the song. I learned it as a kid. There’s a book about the song. If I remember it wasn’t just the straight up lyrics.

   Edit: [Here’s the book](https://books.google.com/books/about/Follow_the_Drinking_Gourd.html?id=4VH9gn8L74wC&printsec=frontcover&source=kp_read_button&hl=en&newbks=1&newbks_redir=0&gboemv=1#v=onepage&q&f=false). My mom also had the song on a compilation of folk songs and spirituals that she’d play for us as kids. This was back in cassette days.

2. I can identify those constellations, but I’ve never heard “follow the drinking gourd.” It might be a regional thing.

3. I know the tune and the refrain, but not the whole song.

4. I know about the song follow the drinkin gourd from books about the underground railroad my parents used to read to me

5. Yes

6. Yes to all three.

7. Never heard of that song, but yes I can find the north star and the big and little dipper.

8. I can find the constellations but am unfamiliar with the song.

9. I can find the them and a few more … Including Orion …
   I am sure I hearsd the sing but no I could not sing it …

10. Yes, yes and yes. Also yes, know Follow the Drinking Gourd. I am 60+ and knew all of that from about the age of 6 or 7 onwards.

11. Yes to the constellations and star. No to the song.

12. >Can you find the Big Dipper, Little Dipper

    Yes

    >North Star

    No

    >and do you know the song “follow the drinking gourd”?

    No

13. Never heard of the song.

    I can definitely find the big and Little Dipper and Polaris. Sometimes I have trouble making out the Little Dipper as it’s fairly faint, but Polaris is a blow torch so it, at least, is easy to find.

    Pedantic moment. The dippers are not constellation. Those are asterisms, and part of constellations. Big Dipper is in Ursa Major, and the Little Dipper in Ursa Minor. Other examples like the northern cross in Cygnus, the w formed in Cassiopeia, or the southern cross in Crux.

14. Yes to all of the above.

15. I can find those stars, and I’ve heard of the song.

16. Yes, Yes, Yes and what?

17. Yes to the stars and a partial yes to the song (all I got is an old man coming for to carry me to freedom, which sounds like a plan mate).

18. Yes to all stars/constellations. I know that “follow the drinking gourd” was related to the underground railroad, but did not know there was a song called that

19. Yes, yes, yes, and no.

20. >Big Dipper

    Yeah, it’s the “saddle” of the Great Bear

    >Little Dipper

    Yup

    >North Star

    Yeah, it’s the brightest star in the Little Dipper

    >do you know the song “follow the drinking gourd”?

    No, but I assume it’s related to the Underground Railroad, in which people would follow the North Star to get north.