Great Depression in the USA: Hobo codes

By: Dalton Clifford

What is The Hobo Code?• A system of symbols, a code, a

language developed by hoboes to communicate with each other• The symbols served as directions,

recommendations or warnings• Typically drawn using charcoal or

chalk on electricity poles or on houses to tell their fellow travelers about who lives inside• Codes are also typically found near

rail yards and other places hoboes camp to tell if it’s a safe place to stay

Use of The Hobo Code• Hoboes weren’t typically welcomed and were often illiterate• Being a hobo was difficult and dangerous• These codes helped keep the community of travelling workers safe,

fed and in work• These directed other hoboes to food, water or work- or away from

dangerous situations• Hoboes told each other when authorities were near and whether or

not they were welcome to a town• The purpose of code was not only to help hobos find what they

needed but to keep the lifestyle possible

What is a hobo?• Often described interchangeably as a

“Bum” or “Tramp” • Hobos are homeless people who travel

around finding work in every new town they visit, “Searchers of work”

• Committed to their work ethic• Usually have been forced from their

homes due to the lack of jobs their• During the depression they were

unconventionally aiding America in their quest for renewal of economic stability

• Trains were their primary source of transportation (riding the rails)

A “Bum” is a homeless person who an alcoholic or drug addict and avoids work

A “Tramp” is a homeless person that lives off donations or works when necessary

Great Depression in the USA• Began August of 1929• 13 million became unemployed • In 1933, 25% of all workers were

unemployed• 2 million homeless people

immigrating around the country• 25% of children were malnourished • Gross Domestic Profit fell about 30%• The Stock Market lost almost 90% of

its value• With millions of people unemployed,

the homeless population sky rocketed and lots of Americans became hoboes out of desperation for survival

Hoboes in Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe

Smokey “Lonesome” Phillips is an example of a hobo in Fried Green Tomatoes

• He came to the cafe looking for work to get a meal in return but eventually ended up becoming good friends with Idgie and Ruth

“There must have been ten or fifteen hoboes a day that showed up. But these boys weren’t afraid to do a little work for their grub. Not like the ones we’ve got today. They’d rake the yard or sweep the sidewalk.” (Flagg 328)

• There were many hoboes in this novel and Idgie and Ruth’s cafe was a prime example of a place where hoboes often went for work

Hobo Code in Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe“By now the name of the cafe was written on the walls of

hundreds of box cars from Seattle to Florida.” (Flagg 28)• The Hobo Code was used to tell other hoboes about how Idgie

and Ruth’s Cafe was a supporter of hoboes and was willing to provide meals in reward of work

• This proves how the Hobo Code works as the word got across the USA about Idgie and Ruth’s kindness

This symbol means: Kind lady lives here

Effectiveness of Hobo Codes in Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe “Things were specially bad that year, and at night the woods all

around Whistle Stop twinkled from the fires at the hobo camps, and there wasn’t a single man there that Idgie and Ruth had not fed at one time or another.” (Flagg 28)

• This proves how effective the hobo code can be as it resulted in numerous amounts of hoboes going to the cafe in search of work

• Hoboes knew they would get a meal in reward for work because of the multiple symbols other hoboes left on or near the house