A Young Lad Met a Hobo and Became a Famous Wood Carver

Several months ago I received an email from a person named Bizzie asking hobo
questions.  I didn't know if it was a lady or a gentleman but over the course of
emailing back and forth we became good computer "pen pals".  Bizzie, a tour guide at
Warthers Museum in Dover, Ohio is a very nice lady.  

We took a side trip after Deep Lock Quarry Hobo Gathering to Warthers Museum to meet
Bizzie.  She took Hobo Santa and me with other folks on a tour guide.  Talk about
being surprised touring this museum.  This is the worlds best kept secret about a
great museum.  They do advertising but back in Missouri I had never heard of this
museum.  Hobo Santa and I were both overwhelmed seeing the crafts of Ernest "Mooney"
Warther.  It is in my books the best museum to visit.  Welcome to the world of
Ernest and Freida Warther is the greeting on the Warther brochure.  The gardens are
beautiful.  Freida collected 73,000 buttons and they are very well displayed. 
Mooney was a collector of 5,000 Indian arrowheads also is displayed using patterns. 


Now comes the big part.a young man and his knife...first making wooden pliers with
only ten cuts with his knife not using any glue.  He learned this talent meeting a
hobo for only a short visit.  Mooney has a photographic mind.  Smithsonian
Institution appraised his works as "Priceless works of art".     

Mooney at the age of five herding cattle found a pocket knife.  His mother did not
take the knife away from him and he began to whittle and later did carvings.  His
works are unbelievable.  What a talent!  He carved on wood the history of steam
engines from the beginning to the famous railroad locomotives including the "U.P.
Big Boy".  Each model carved is to perfect scale of the original.  No detail is left
out.  One of my favorites is the "Lincoln Funeral Train".  The train has lights
inside and you can see the coffin including President Lincoln head inside the
coffin.  Mooney carved the Lincoln Funeral Train at the age of 80.  It is eight feet
in length and took one year to create. 

Other carvings are the "Empire State Express" and the "General".   He carved the
locomotive that Casey Jones was the engineer on the Illinois Central Railroad.  

His mother was unsatisfied with her knife.  Mooney made her a new knife that was
perfect for her.  The neighbors liked her knife he had made and requested him to
make them knives and thus a household knife business was born.  Today Mooney knives
are sent all over the world.  I event came back to Missouri with a few Mooney
knives.  Okay hobos remember when I hosted the hobo gathering at Sedalia, MO and
Kabar, Hobo Spike, and Baloney Kid was making hobo stew at my house and complained
about my poor set of knives.  I was okay with them but even old Hobo Santa
complained.  Well that day is over because I now have Warther knives the best in the
world.  An interesting fact about the knife business and the museum most of the
employees are second, third, and fourth generations of the Warther family.  You can
learn about Warthers Museum by going to the website http://www.warthers.com 

Let's go back to "Hobo Bizzie".  I got so excited telling you about Warthers I need
to tell you more about "Hobo Bizzie", Mark Warther, and "Sadie the Rail Lady".  It
was my pleasure to officially dub Jeanie the moniker of "Hobo Bizzie".  It was
because of her interest about hobos I learned about Warthers and got to take a tour
there.  She is a wonderful tour guide.  I used a walking stick that Big Skip carved
a spirit face in and gave her the walking stick.

I met Mark Warther who demonstrated Grandpa Mooney trait of making wooden pliers
with only ten cuts with his knife.  Wow.unlivable!  They open and close too.  "Sadie
the Rail Lady" made an appearance at Deep Lock Quarry Hobo Gathering asking many
questions about hobos to hobos there.  She interviewed "Big Skip" and "Collinwood
Kid".  Warthers has a hobo dinner where information is shared about hobos.  This is
why "Hobo Bizzie" and "Sadie" are interested in learning about hobos.  Hobo Santa
made "Hobo Bizzie", Mark, and Sadie all a money fist necklace.   I have given the
moniker of "Ten-Cut" to Mark Warther because following in Grandpa Warther's foot
steps demonstrating this unique carving.  

Mark was telling me his Grandfather was friends with two famous hobos.  Steam Train
Maury Graham and Boxcar Willie.  Both hobos had visited him at his museum several
times.  

One of the things I like to do is send post cards to the youth across America as I
travel.  I now write to over 50 kids on a regular basis.  Mooney sent post cards
too.  He took a thin piece of wood the size of a post card as he traveled.  He
didn't write his post cards but carved them.  His carving was better than my
penmanship.  He sent the wood post cards for two-cents back during the depression
era.  

I hope each of you that read this Mama Jo's Hobo Tracks about Ernest "Mooney"
Warther will someday find the time to visit the remarkable Warther Museum and take a
tour with my special friend, "Hobo Bizzie". While there I hope you meet "Ten-Cut"
and "Sadie the Rail Lady".

Hoboically, Mama Jo - 2003 National Hobo Queen."Hobo Tracks"