The lyrics about Tom Dooley are about a young man who must hang in the dawn for the murder of Laura. Tom wrote the song about a condemned man who must die, telling his story to a married woman. Tom was a soldier, handsome and goodlooking, who had many women. However he favoured Laura and they eloped, Tom returning, Laura did not. They found Toms things next to Lauras, and her gloves. They arrested Tom who allegedly swore he had nothing to do with her death. Many thought him innocent. He was still sentenced to die and right before his death, he announced to the crowd come to see him swing-that he hoped it was a nice clean rope for he had washed his neck. He also laughed on the way to the gallows. His last words were: I never touched a hair on that girls neck! And then they unleashed the trap and he was dead.