Hobo signs and symbols

Hoboes used signs, codes if you will to communicate with other hoboes arriving after them conveying the conditions of the town, the people and the availability of work, food and lodging.

Resourceful and itinerant, the hobos developed a secret language system, doomed to disappear, to leave clues for their fellow hobos. At the end of the 19th century in the United States, hobos crisscrossed the American territory from East to West, propelled by the expansion of the railways and driven by precariousness, often forced by times of crisis. Homeless workers, they set off in search of seasonal jobs provided by agriculture and the nascent industry of American capitalism, illegally hopping on trains. Vagrants were not welcome in most cities, and were regularly chased away by the police or dragged off trains. By , there were an estimated , hobos in the United States. Resourceful and penniless, they developed a language system inscribed near passing places, destined to disappear , to inform their fellows of the good and bad surprises they might encounter on the road, or simply to mark their passage.

Hobo signs and symbols

A hobo is a migratory worker or homeless vagabond—especially one who is penniless. The term originated in the Western probably Northwestern United States around Unlike "tramps"—who work only when they are forced to- and "bums" who do not work at all, "hobos" are itinerant workers. It is unclear exactly when hobos first appeared on the American railroading scene. With the end of the American Civil War in the s, many discharged veterans returning home began hopping freight trains. Others looking for work on the American frontier followed the railways west aboard freight trains in the late 19th century. To cope with the difficulty of such a lifestyle, hobos developed a system of symbols, or a code. Hobos would write this code 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. Edit this category.

But when steady work dried up, he did what hundreds of thousands did during the Great Depression : He hopped a freight train. One trait hobos have in common is that they travel and work. Gate-Post Language.

Hoboes have been leaving signs and symbols around the world for over a century. Symbols would signify to other hobos about good places to camp, where to get food, where the cops are alert, where to find work, etc. The reason for the hobo signs were twofold. Some hobos were illiterate and also by using symbols they could keep the meaning of their messages a secret from the general public. Hobo signs and hobo symbols have been guiding and informing hobos for over a century. Hobo Signs Hoboes have been leaving signs and symbols around the world for over a century. Hobo Signs History A history of hobo signs.

They were the nomadic workers who roamed the country at the start of the 20th century and through the Great Depression, taking work wherever they could and never spending too long in any one place. In their extensive travels, hobos learned to leave notes for each other, giving information on the best places to camp or find a meal, or dangers that lay ahead. This unique Hobo Code was known to the brotherhood of freight train riders and used by all to keep the community of traveling workers safe, fed and in work. First, a bit of history. Hobos traveled around for the sole purpose of finding work in every new town they visited, having usually been forced from their homes by the lack of jobs there. Because of their willingness to take the jobs that no one else wanted — and the fact that they followed a strict moral code — hobos were tolerated by some.

Hobo signs and symbols

Dry Town This symbol took the shape of an upside down cup and said that this town did not sell or allow alcohol. Don't try to buy it or even display it if you had it. Owlcation - All Things Hobo [alcohol, booze, liquor]. ANo1, The Rambler [alcohol, booze, liquor]. Terry Fox - Hobo Signs - Sign 27 [alcohol, booze, liquor]. Henry Dreyfuss - Symbol Sourcebook - Sign 33 [alcohol, booze, liquor]. An inverted dipper warns of impending temperance.

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During the depression of the s, Prohibition was also the law. The number of hoboes increased greatly during the Great Depression era of the s. Edit this category. Others seem to indicate no relationship between the meaning and the symbol. A symbol from the French system of hobo signs indicating that an authority figure lives at this location. It was a survival code. Knopf published View full post on Youtube. Today, signs of hobos can be found in places like bridges and overpasses written in permanent marker. Signs of Spring. This article talks about an X which stood for a cross saw and two, XX stood for considerable wood cutting. See all sources to the right. The good and bad dog symbols are discussed in the article. Some different signs mostly based on circles.

This week travel to the Big Rock Candy Mountain in safety and security with the aid of the secret language of hobos, tramps, and sometimes thieves of the 19th and 20th century.

JSTOR Havre, Montana. Hobos used chalk or charcoal to mark an immediate location. This file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 2. Kauia, Hawaii. June 5, Source Image A crumpled piece of paper found in the pocket of a French beggar turned out to be the "Rosetta Stone" of a mysterious hieroglyphic language. Aug 1, Symbols would signify to other hobos about good places to camp, where to get food, where the cops are alert, where to find work, etc. The use of monikers persists to this day, although since the rise of cell phones a moniker is more often used simply to "tag" a train car or location. Despite this preference for solitude, they still feel a certain camaraderie with their fellow hobos, an obligation to assist their brethren — thus, the creation of the signs and symbols. How a Pennsylvania man, with a knowledge of it, has been amusing himself. July 12, , p. Still, despite the inherent hazards, thousands of hobos in the Depression made "rail riding" their chosen form of transportation. Summary [ edit ] Description Hobo signs and symbols.