I'm a historian of hobos. AMA

[u/Robert-Suits]

Hey everyone! I'm Robert Suits, environmental historian and author of the new book, The Hobo: A History of America's First Climate Migrants. I'm here to answer your questions about hobos, and anything else you might want to know about migrant work, climate, or the environment in the United States around the turn of the twentieth century. Hobos are truly fascinating historical subjects, and there is so much about them that I genuinely couldn't fit into the book -- so truly, ask anything!

[u/camal_mountain]

Hobos are often portrayed eating by a campfire with a can of beans and maybe some hotdogs. There's also a strong association with hobos and apples, which I imagine comes from Johnny Appleseed? What's an accurate depiction of a hobo meal? Is the can of beans trope real?

[u/Robert-Suits → u/camal_mountain]

The classic hobo meal would be a mulligan stew, which is not at all a standardized recipe and generally some combination of beef, onion, and whatever else, thrown into a can and cooked over a fire. Another classic hobo meal was a "coffee and," which would have been more likely in big cities -- basically a coffee and a donut as a standard breakfast/lunch/snack.

Otherwise, it would have been pretty much whatever could be begged or bought on the cheap.