By:

Hannah Weeks

Mary Short

A Day in the Life of a Great Depression Hobo

When hobos woke up in the morning they often awoke freezing because of the little blankets and supplies they had.

Hobos often began to drink alcohol, even early in the morning.

I can’t imagine sleeping outside in the freezing cold with barley any blankets or supplies to keep me warm.

7:00-11:00

Hobos spent some of their time during the day out on the street begging for money.

When they needed food or water, hobos often visited public soup kitchens that gave them food and a place to stay warm

Hobos often sold junk on the streets that they picked up at junk yards. Often the police would try to arrest them if they were out selling junk.

Selling things on the street would have been extremely frustrating for me since I’m sure you wouldn’t make very many sales in one day.

11:30-6:00

Hobos often “rode the rails” at night so they were not seen easily by the police

They often drunk and sung late into the nightHobos had their own songs and people

always complained that they sang too late, and too loud.

For us it’s hard to imagine having to ride the rails since we can just jump in our car to get around.

6:30-11:00

Hobos sometimes ate hobo stew, which consisted of different foods they found all mixed together

They also ate birds that they shot from the sky with slingshots

They always cooked over a fire because they didn’t have ovens

Eating birds seems disgusting for us, but for hobos birds were a luxury.

What they ate

For those of you that went to outdoor education, you have some idea what it is like to live like a hobo. Hobos lived in tents or slept outside during all kinds of weather, just like at outdoor ed. They also at foods like hobo stew.

It seems very hard to imagine, being a hobo, but when you really stop and think about you can realize what living as a hobo was like. It was never a pleasant way to live.

Relating to hobos

So now you know how hobos had to live during the great depression. We hope this presentation has showed you to appreciate the little things you have like taking a shower and having a warm place to sleep.

Next time you get ready to go to bed think about how it would have been to sleep outside or live your whole life out on the streets.

Appreciate what you have