Po' Boy and Popeyes

[Baker, John]

        The Popeyes fast food chain has its own version of the origin of "po' boy," though they cautiously label it as "legend."  The following is on their placemats and also can be accessed on the web at http://www.popeyes.com/poboy.html#:

        >>The Legend of the Po' Boy Sandwich.

        The Po' Boy legend started in the 1920's in New Orleans when streetcar workers went on strike.  A local restaurant wanted to help these men out when they visited the restaurant and provide a lot of food for a small amount of money.  They took French bread and stuffed it with just about anything they could find.  They called the sandwich the "Poor Boy" for the men they were trying to help.  Through the years the name was shortened to "Po' Boy" which remains a New Orleans tradition today.  The Po' Boy has become a part of New Orleans heritage, and now a part of Popeyes heritage.<<

        Since, as Barry has found, the Browns already had a different account by 1937, the Popeyes story seems unlikely.


John Baker