Hotel de Gink was a series of self-service hotels created by and for homeless men. Jeff Davis conceived the idea and founded the first Hotel de Gink in Seattle in 1913. [1] The concept quickly spread across the country.
Hotel de Gink was a series of self-service hotels created by and for homeless men. Jeff Davis conceived the idea and founded the first Hotel de Gink in Seattle in 1913. [1] The concept quickly spread across the country.
Although the organization used the name "hotel" and was even a member of the International Hotel Alliance, in practice it was more like a homeless shelter. [2] Hotels De Gink were self-supporting, as residents contributed whatever money they could to support hotel operations. [3] The Hotels provided a range of services, including food, barbering, tailoring, and primitive medical care. [3] All services were provided by residents, who were expected to volunteer at the Hotel for at least two days per week in exchange for lodging. [4] The facilities were self-governing, with a group of residents deciding which applicants to admit. [5]
Residents slept on the floor on donated blankets. Local restaurants donated kitchen supplies and other businesses provided other large pieces of equipment necessary for daily operations. Upkeep and maintenance were provided by residents. [5]
The United States experienced a recession starting in 1913. [6] Productions and real income declined during this period and were not offset until the start of World War I increased demand. [7] During this time, there were high periods of unemployment and homelessness. [8] The Hotel de Gink existed to provide relief in these circumstances. [9]
Jeff Davis was a man from Cincinnati [10] called "the king of the hobos" and manager of the hotel. He believed in fostering self-sufficiency among the homeless. [11] He founded a "hobo cabaret" of homeless people with musical talent. [12]
Davis spread the model to other cities. [13] Davis opened branches in Tacoma, Washington and Portland, Oregon. Late in 1914, he approached the New York City government with an offer to open a new facility to accommodate the city's growing homeless population.
The New York City Hotel opened with an over-the-top gala on January 21, 1915. Davis, dubbed "King Jeff" for the night, was seated in a throne adorned with cabbage, carrot, onion and potato, an homage to mulligan stew. [14] The facility was only open during the winter. The New York branch closed shortly before America's entrance into the First World War. [15]
The Buffalo, NY location was opened in 1925 by then Mayor Frank X. Schwab. It closed in 1929 at the end of his term.
Although none of the Hotels are still in operation, the legacy survives. The term "Hotel de Gink" became slang for a short term less-than-desirable housing situation [16] and the United States armed forces informally adopted the name Hotel De Gink for transient officer housing. [17] [18] Hotel de Gink was also featured in popular culture. [19] In a larger sense, the Hotels proved the concept of self-service homeless services operated and maintained by residents. [1]
A tramp is a long-term homeless person who travels from place to place as a vagrant, traditionally walking all year round.
A hobo is a migrant worker in the United States. Hoboes, tramps, and bums are generally regarded as related, but distinct: a hobo travels and is willing to work; a tramp travels, but avoids work if possible; a bum neither travels nor works.
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A skid row, also called skid road, is an impoverished area, typically urban, in English-speaking North America whose inhabitants are mostly poor people "on the skids". This specifically refers to people who are poor or homeless, considered disreputable, downtrodden or forgotten by society. A skid row may be anything from an impoverished urban district to a red-light district to a gathering area for people experiencing homelessness or drug addiction. In general, skid row areas are inhabited or frequented by impoverished individuals and also people who are addicted to drugs. Urban areas considered skid rows are marked by high vagrancy, dilapidated buildings, and drug dens, as well as other features of urban blight. Used figuratively, the phrase may indicate the state of a poor person's life.
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"Mr. Bojangles" is a song written and originally recorded by American country music artist Jerry Jeff Walker for his 1968 album of the same title. It has since been recorded by other artists, including the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band in 1969.
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Nels Anderson was an early American sociologist who studied hobos, urban culture, and work culture.
Hobo News, alternately "Hobo" News, was an early 20th-century newspaper for homeless migrant workers (hobos). It was published in St. Louis, Missouri, and Cincinnati by the International Brotherhood Welfare Association (IBWA) and its founder James Eads How. Hobo News was important for legitimatizing the hobo identity and has been credited as a predecessor to the modern street newspaper movement.
The International Brotherhood Welfare Association (IBWA) was a mutual aid society for hobos founded in 1905–1906. It was the second largest after the Industrial Workers of the World (IWW). It was started by James Eads How who had inherited a fortune but chose to live a hobo life. IBWA was less radical than the IWW, focusing on education and cooperation rather than direct political action. It published the Hobo News, distributed through street sellers. The IBWA was centered in the midwest and had locals in about twenty cities including Baltimore, Buffalo, Philadelphia and San Francisco. The centers, called "Hobo Colleges," offered lodging, hot meals and education. They also became important meeting places for migrant workers during the winter months.
James Eads How (1874–1930) was an American organizer of the hobo community in the early 20th century. He was heir of a wealthy St. Louis family but chose to live as a hobo and to help the homeless migrant workers. The newspapers often referred to him as the "Millionaire Hobo".
In the United States, squatting occurs when a person enters land that does not belong to them without lawful permission and proceeds to act in the manner of an owner. Historically, squatting occurred during the settlement of the Midwest when colonial European settlers established land rights and during the California Gold Rush. There was squatting during the Great Depression in Hoovervilles and also during World War II. Shanty towns returned to the US after the Great Recession (2007–2009) and in the 2010s, there were increasing numbers of people occupying foreclosed homes using fraudulent documents. In some cases, a squatter may be able to obtain ownership of property through adverse possession.
Gink may refer to:
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