“Low Bridge, Everybody Down” was written by Thomas S. Allen. It has also been called “Fifteen Years on the Erie Canal”, “Fifteen Miles on the Erie Canal”, “Erie Canal Song”, “Erie Barge Song”, and “Mule Named Sal.”
Mr. Allen (1876-1919) was an early part of Tin Pan Alley, and also a violinist and vaudeville composer. Lest one think he was anything like a one-hit wonder, in 1902 he wrote a tune called “Any Rags,” which topped whatever passed for the charts of the day.
The lyrics of “Low Bridge” are a reference to the middle decades of the nineteenth century when mule-drawn barges helped along the economic expansion of cites in upstate New York from Albany to Buffalo, roughly along the current path of what is now the New York State Thruway. As travelers would commonly ride on top of boats making that trip, a warning upon approaching low bridges to get down was wisely heeded.
Probably like a lot of people, I first heard Pete Seeger sing this one, though many others have taken a turn such as the Kingston Trio and Glen Yarborough. In 2006, Bruce Springsteen did a terrific version on his album “We Shall Overcome: The Seeger Sessions,” which is featured below. Seeger himself is the bonus track.