 or the
person that could not tolerate some bad conditions. They did what they had to do
to survive and this was not always the best of ways. A Hobo was in many ways a
good family man that ran astray and did not know how to compete in the world of
normal jobs, and especially when the ravages of war or the depression took away
their jobs, and threw them into the road. So there is a resourcefulness to the
idea of being a Hobo that says you will survive by doing what you have to do.
Hoboes were both loved
and hated by people. Maybe there is the "but for the grace of God, there goes I"
mentality, and back to the basic idea of human nature. People take care of each
other in the end. If the time really get bad, and there is a common bound of
misery, or poverty people can share, but they can also be cruel and mean. Life
is not always so good for the Hobo, you do not just fit in like the rest of the
people, and how do you ever get up to normal standards of the community by
getting a good shower, a clean bed and cloths when you are living in boxcars or
traveling for days, and the last meal you had was not remembered clearly.
Hobo is almost
exclusively used by the American culture and small amounts by the British,
Australian, or New Zealand cultures. Basically it is an American originated word
and adopted or utilized by other English speaking countries. It is part of
Americana and the world of being a rag muffin immigrant land where people had
traveled to for the dream of golden streets, and land of plenty, but there was
not always a way to live. The American dream although not achieved by the Hobo,
was still professed, and understood at it more essential end. Being a Hobo in
America was about the ability to claim the American dream in the end by saying,
I be Hobo, I be FREE
So the love of freedom
and the wonder or wanderlust of the Hobo as led them to explore the places the
rest of the world did not go and often did not want to go, but also help them to
understand real freedom.
I did no justice to the
Hobo, and I am just a traveler without a home. I appreciate their free spirit,
but also understand the loneliness, and possibly the life of a Hobo with no
future. There are lot of Hoboes in the world that neither can return to their
homes, do not remember how to return home, and when they do return, find they
must leave for the road calls, and they only feel complete when they are
March 14, 2004 - Mongolia
hoboes hobos hoboing
One who wanders randomly from place to place looking for temporary homes, and
Origination Unknown, but is folkloric now.
In the depression people would go to other cities to get, or search for a job.
by traveling in the cheapest way they could. Example: Jump in a train car.
They seem to "Never go home" again. Like the life of the wanderer, or rover.
A Hobo is a person that travels to work.
A tramp is a person that travels and won't work.
A bum is a person that will neither travel or work.
WORDS THAT HELP YOU TO UNDERSTAND THE
LINK TO HOBO DEFINITIONS
Hobo.org Please write
Andy... me. Webmaster. This is strange
A hobo in a sailboat
FAMOUS PERSONS RELATED TO HOBOES
BOOKS ON HOBOES
CODE OF THE ROAD
Xroads.virginia.edu Look at!
This is a real train hoppers newsletter send email to:
SIGNS LEFT BY HOBO'S
SIGNS TO HELP THEM COMMUNICATE
TERMS OR HOBO SLANG
REQUEST FOR THE FOLLOWING TYPES OF LINKS:
SUBMIT AT BOTTOM OF PAGE PLEASE !!!!
1. Hobo pictures
2. Norman Rockwell links to pictures
3. Information on the "Littlest hobo", a traveling dog show in 1970's
4. Author Dick Whittington - English Classic (Guy came to London to make his
5. Red Skelton
6. The word HOBO in other languages:
Italian: Vagabondo, or Giramondo
7. Links to hobos.
8. The Littlest Hobo - Television show about a dog.
THE LITTLEST HOBO
Well, here' s what I've learned about the Little Hobo:
The Littlest Hobo was a long running Canadian TV series about the
a dog named "London". The series ran from 1963-65 and then was remade into
another series in 1979-85.
Here's a good Web site about it:
Here's a short excerpt about the show and the dog:
The Littlest Ho