The Clinton County and the Boone County genealogical societies will have a combined meeting at the Lebanon Public Library on Tuesday, April 23 at 6:30 p.m. Amber Oldenburg will give a presentation entitled “Riding the Rails: Discovering the Hobos and Vagabonds in Your Family History.” Hobos, tramps, and vagabonds—collectively known as itinerant workers—constituted a population of close to 100,000 people. Altogether, they traveled and worked throughout the Midwest, Great Plains, and Mountain West between 1870 and 1940. This presentation will introduce attendees to the history of this subculture using documents like tramp ledgers, letters, and diaries as well as assist them with locating the hobos in their families and telling their stories.
Oldenburg is a genealogist, lecturer, and social media manager with a degree in family history research from Brigham Young University-Idaho. She currently serves as an online instructor in the family history research program at BYU-Idaho.
Join the Clinton County and the Boone County genealogical societies at 6 p.m. at the Lebanon Public Library for a half hour of socializing before the program begins. The meeting, which will be held in the large meeting room, is free and open to the public.
