On the Freights
4/11/1940
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The original caption for this photograph reads: Between Bakersfield and Fresno, California. On the Freights. Twenty years old and he has been hopping freight cars on the bum for two years. His home, which he has visited occasionally for two or three days at a time, is in Oakland, California. Here his father on Work Projects Administration, his mother who is engaged as a domestic when she can find work, and his married sister with her child live in a small house where there is a crowded and insecure atmosphere. His family is misinformed as to his activities and is not aware of his penchant for freight car travel. At one time he enrolled in the Civilian Conservation Corps, but he quit after six months because the army routine was distasteful to him, so he went back to hopping the freights. He is a complete hobo and is not seriously in search of employment. He has no desire to travel as a gentleman hitch-hiker. "I wouldn't thumb. Freights are a lot better."
This primary source comes from the Records of the National Youth Administration.
National Archives Identifier: 532072
Full Citation: Photograph 119-CAL-7; Between Bakersfield and Fresno, California. On the Freights. Twenty years old and he has been hopping freight cars on the bum for two years; 4/11/1940; Study of Youth Photographs, 1940 - 1940; Records of the National Youth Administration, Record Group 119; National Archives at College Park, College Park, MD. [Online Version, https://www.docsteach.org/documents/document/on-the-freights, May 5, 2024]Rights: Public Domain, Free of Known Copyright Restrictions. Learn more on our privacy and legal page.