"Steam Train Maury" Graham (June 3, 1917 – November 18, 2006) was best known as five-time holder of the title "King of the Hobos", and was later known as "Patriarch of the Hobos". Born to a broken home in Ohio, he was shunted from father to mother to aunt to married siblings. In 1931, at the age of 14, Graham began riding the rails as a hobo

Hobo

A hobo is a term which is often applied to a migratory worker or homeless vagabond, often penniless. The term originated in the Western—probably Northwestern—United States during the last decade of the 19th century. Unlike 'tramps', who work only when they are forced to, and 'bums', who do not...

 during the Great Depression

Great Depression

The Great Depression was a severe worldwide economic depression in the decade preceding World War II. The timing of the Great Depression varied across nations, but in most countries it started in about 1929 and lasted until the late 1930s or early 1940s...

. He settled in Toledo, Ohio

Toledo, Ohio

Toledo is the fourth most populous city in the U.S. state of Ohio and is the county seat of Lucas County. Toledo is in northwest Ohio, on the western end of Lake Erie, and borders the State of Michigan...

 with his wife Wanda in the late 1930s, and worked as a cement mason and founded a trade school for masons.
During World War II, he served in the military as a medical technician. In 1969 he returned to the hobo life for another eleven years, finally retiring in 1980.

Maury Graham adopted the nickname "Steam Train" in 1969, when the "Golden Spike Special" steam train came through Ohio, returning home from the 100th anniversary of the completion of the first US transcontinental railroad. He was one of the founding members of the National Hobo Foundation. He also helped established the Hobo Museum in Britt, Iowa

Britt, Iowa

Britt is a city in Hancock County, Iowa, United States, and is the home of the National Hobo Convention. The population was 2,052 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Britt is located at ....

.

Mr. Maurice Graham died due to complications from stroke at the Northcrest Nursing Home in Napoleon, Ohio

Napoleon, Ohio

As of the census of 2000, there were 9,318 people, 3,813 households, and 2,470 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,668.1 people per square mile . There were 4,066 housing units at an average density of 727.9 per square mile...

. He was 89.

Books

• Tales of the Iron Road: My Life as King of the Hobos. Marlowe & Co., 1989. Reprinted in 1992. ISBN 1-56924-916-4.

Tribute Songs

"The Last of the Hobo Kings" by Mary Gauthier, on the record Between Daylight and Dark, 2005 Lost Highway Records
"Steam Train Maury" by Chuck Williams, on the album "LIGHTNING IN A BOTTLE", 2010 Chuck Williams, www.chuckwilliamsmusic.com

Obituary

• http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio4/news/lastword_28dec2006.shtml Maurice W Graham Steam Train: Grand Patriarch of America’s Hobos who has died aged 89], [Last Word”, BBC radio], Friday 29 December 2006
• Hobo proud of travelling the rails, Toledo Blade, Toledo, Ohio.
• Steam Train Maury Graham Catches the Westbound, Catoctin Banner, Thurmont, MD
• Maurice Graham- 'King of the Hoboes' and masonry teacher, San Francisco Chronicle, Wednesday, November 22, 2006