During the late 19th century, poor men took to the mass rail network of the continental United States in a quest for work. These men, popularly referred to as ‘hobos’, led a mainly solitary life; after all, their fellow vagabonds were competition for the ever scarce jobs they were illegally hopping freight trains for.
Despite this, those undertaking the hobo lifestyle weren’t entirely lacking in commonality and soon a unique form of communication developed between the members of this transient economic underclass. The ‘Hobe Code’, as it would be dubbed, was a system of markings left by those in the community on walls in towns and villages to let future arrives know what to expect in a potentially dangerous new place.
Check out the signs below and get yourself ready to ride the rails:
