I owe hobos an apology. I have come to realize that I completely misunderstood what being a hobo meant.
I thought hobos simply rode the trains, from place to place, with no ambition and no real purpose. My mind was changed after stumbling upon an article from 1914 about a Hobo Convention. Yes! A Hobo Convention! I absolutely had to learn more about this convention and of course hobos.
It turns out, that in the mid-to-late 1800s, sixty-three hobos decided to create the Tourist Union #63 to avoid being prosecuted for vagrancy (pretty clever!). Being a member and carrying a union card for the Tourist Union #63 made them a legitimate organization and legal… as long as they were looking for work. The convention met yearly in Britt, Iowa, where dues were collected, new members were signed up, a hobo king and queen were elected, rules were made…etc. The hobos were surprisingly organized… at least compared to my preconceived notion.
At the hobo convention, a list of rules to live by was created, which to be quite frank, sound pretty good. These rules were basically as follows:
- ◊ to decide your own life don’t let anyone rule you
- respect the law
- ◊ be helpful
- ◊ don’t take advantage of others
- ◊ always try to find work and be productive
- ◊ seek out work that others don’t want as this will help you and others like you
- ◊ find a talent (craft)
- ◊ set a good example
- ◊ be as clean as one can be
- ◊ respect nature
- ◊ protect children as well as encourage runaways to return home
- ◊ don’t get stupid drunk (one of my favorites!)
I am sure there were hobos that did not follow this to the tee, but I must say I am impressed with their gumption.
Another important handout at the Hobo Convention, was a copy of symbols. These symbols were used to alert fellow hobos what to expect in a certain town, farm or area. The symbols were carved into fence posts, or trees along the roads.
Hobo Symbols/Codes let other hobos know such things as:
- ◊ beware of dog
- ◊ a judge lives here
- ◊ it’s a dry town
- ◊ will feed for work, etc.
These codes looked like simple markings to a non-hobo, but to a hobo, they spelled out if it was worth staying, if it was safe, or should they move along to a more receptive space.
I realize that this is only one side of the story. I did find an article about the “Hobo Problem” in Chicago, where crime was in issue; I’m sure that this was not the only city with a “hobo” problem.
That being said, I liked the hobos I learned about. They were migrant workers, traveling men and women, having fallen upon hard times and now looking for work in an often dangerous setting.
As defined by the Hobo Convention:
“a hobo wanders and works, a tramp wanders and dreams and a bum neither wanders nor works.”
I didn’t find any articles about hobos heading to Chesapeake Beach, however, who is to say that a few hardworking hobos didn’t make their way along the railway to the beach for some seasonal work?
Now, in case any of you are interested, while it is a bit harder to be a hobo in the same way as they existed 100 years ago, the yearly Hobo Convention still exists in Britt, Iowa, on the 2nd weekend in August. I’ll see you there!