Hobo
A hobo is a member of a distinctive sub-culture of homeless, travelling workers in the United States. Hobo culture was most popular during the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, and is particularly associated with the railroads, as hobos have the reputation for freighthopping—hitching free rides from place to place in the baggage cars of trains. Hobos generally apply the term hobo only to itinerant people who work. In contrast, they define a tramp as a itinerant person who does not work, and supports himself by other means e.g. begging or theft. A bum is a homeless person who neither travels nor works. Both are terms of derision within the hobo community. The population of hobos increased during times of economic trouble, and their numbers increased greatly during the Great Depression. With no work and no prospects at home, many decided to travel and try their luck elsewhere. Nowadays there are few railroad-riding hobos left, though there are still small numbers of them. Some itinerant individuals today travel by car rather than rail, but still identify themselves as hobos. Life as a hobo was a dangerous one. In addition to the problems of being itinerant poor far from home and support, and the hostile attitude of many train crews, the railroads employed their own security staff, often nicknamed bulls or dicks. These showed little mercy to hobos they found. If that wasn't enough, riding on a freight train is highly dangerous. One can easily fall under the wheels or get trapped between cars, or freeze to death in bad weather. When freezer cars were loaded at an ice factory, any hobo inside was likely to be killed. Hobos tended to band together for protection and formed an informal "brotherhood".
Hobo symbols
To cope with the difficulty of hobo life, hobos developed a system of symbols. Hobos would write these symbols with chalk or coal to provide directions, information, and warnings to other hobos. Some signs included "turn right here", "beware of hostile railroad police", "dangerous dog", "food available here", and so on. Naturally, hobo symbols would vary from place to place around the country.
Hobos in media
Fiction booksJames M. Cain: The Postman Always Rings TwiceJohn Steinbeck: Of Mice and MenUpton Sinclair: The Jungle (the part where Jurgis escapes from Chicago)
Nonfiction booksTed Conover: Rolling Nowhere Jack London: The RoadWoody Guthrie: Bound for GloryJack Black: You Can't WinJim Tully: Beggars of LifeEddie Joe Cotton: HoboWH Davies: The Autobiography of a SupertrampErrol Lincoln Uys: Riding th RailsTodd DePastino: Citizen Hobo : How a Century of Homelessness Shaped AmericaDr. Ben Reitman: Sister of the Road: The Autobiography of Boxcar BerthaAnonymous: Evasion
FilmsBound for Glory: 1976 biographical drama about the life of Woody GuthrieCatching Out: 2003 documentary about modern hobos IMDBDanger Lights: 1930 movie about a hobo who becomes a railroad engineerEmperor of the North (also known as Emperor of the North Pole): 1973 film starring Lee Marvin, Keith Carradine and Ernest BorgnineLong Gone: a 2003 documentaryRiding the Rails: 1997 documentary about Great Depression hobosWild Boys of the Road: 1933 drama about runaway youth, intended to scare kids away from hopping freights but had quite the opposite effect
SongsHard Travelin' by Woody GuthrieHobo's Lullaby by Woody GuthrieOnly a Hobo by Bob DylanHobo Blues by John Lee HookerThe Hobo by John Lee HookerI Am a Lonesome Hobo by Bob DylanHobo Bill by Cisco HoustonMysteries of a Hobo's Life by Cisco HoustonI Ain't Got No Home by Cisco HoustonBig Rock Candy Mountain by Harry McClintockKing of the Road by Roger Miller
See AlsoNational Hobo Convention, held in Britt, Iowa by the Hobo Foundation
External linksFran's Hobo Page, by Fran DeLorenzo. Includes hobo history and a glossary of hobo signs.Slackaction: Hobo Signs & Symbols
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