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City of the Rails podcast artwork
Society & Culture

City of the Rails

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Latest episodes

  • Living By The Tracks — E10

    March 15, 2023 · 1 hr 1 min

    Danelle visits with a kindred spirit, and reckons with the past. Ruby and Danelle finally talk about it. Kiwi weighs in and looks back on Profane Sass. Danelle pursues several new leads. Plus CC Rider, a Western bar, and a road dog named…

  • Fire in New Orleans — E9

    March 8, 2023 · 50 min

    When a fire takes the lives of Ruby’s friends, Danelle realizes no one else will tell their stories. A reporting trip to New Orleans with Ruby presents Danelle with an opportunity to get closer, and get new answers. Members of hobo band…

  • All The Livelong Day — E8

    March 1, 2023 · 52 min

    When the boss wants you gone, it’s only a matter of time, and this rolls out extra nastily on the railroad. In this episode, the story of Nickie Jackson, and how she was hounded by the railroad. Danelle digs deeper and Ruby tells her about…

  • Cops & Robbers — E7

    February 23, 2023 · 54 min

    Danelle heads to El Paso, Texas to get the lowdown on the rail cops – the private police with federal powers who report only to the railroads. In a border town, rail cops are the most powerful entities, but is that such a good thing? One…

  • Whistle Stop

    February 22, 2023 · 3 min

    We'll be right back. Thanks for all the love! Danelle's playlist of modern hobo music here: https://tinyurl.com/hobomusic See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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  • The Comfort Offensive — E6

    February 15, 2023 · 50 min

    Ruby is coming home for Christmas, and Danelle has a plan to try to get her to stay — before she has to move out of her apartment. Danelle meets Cary Westcott, who walked through hell trying to find his daughter on the rails, and managed…

  • Tramp Town, USA — E5

    February 8, 2023 · 39 min

    Danelle heads to Colton, CA, a freight crossroads where anything that can happen to a hobo usually does, and has questions for the cops. Danelle gets news about her book deal, and uncovers Colton’s creation by some of the Wild West’s most…

  • Riding the Dragon — E4

    February 1, 2023 · 39 min

    Danelle sneaks into a railyard with a hobo, and finds out what it really takes to hop a train. Riders show her what she’s missing, and Danelle finds out about a secret hobo guidebook that helps insiders get around. And Danelle gets a…

  • The Fiercest Females On Earth — E3

    January 25, 2023 · 44 min

    Danelle heads to Montana to meet the legendary CC Rider, who shows her how a woman survives life on the rails. Modern hobos weigh in, CC gets spiritual, and Danelle appreciates how a woman like Ruby will need smarts – and allies – to get…

  • The Yard — E2

    January 18, 2023 · 42 min

    Danelle goes where every hobo winds up at some point. Engineers and conductors show her around the train yard, how it works and why it’s so deadly. Danelle learns how railroads shaped our country, giving us times zones, for a start. The…

  • I've Gone and Made a Fool of Everyone — E1

    January 18, 2023 · 40 min

    When her daughter Ruby skips town to hop trains, Danelle follows her into the train yard. Yes, there still are hobos, and they live in a secret city filled with unforgettable characters. Train hopping photographer Mike Brodie shows her how…

  • Introducing: City of the Rails

    January 11, 2023 · 3 min

    When journalist Danelle Morton’s daughter skips town to hop trains, Morton follows her into the train yard, and across America. In City of the Rails, the listener shadows Morton as she travels the country trying to understand what drew her…

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About the show

When journalist Danelle Morton’s daughter skips town to hop trains, she follows her into the train yard, and across America. Join Danelle as she travels the country to understand what drew her daughter into the hidden world of the railroads. Her guides are the rail cops, train engineers, and hobos she meets along the way, each of them with their own extraordinary tales of the beauty and brutality of the rails. A mother/daughter story unfolds across a landscape of vast open spaces and filthy backstreets, as Morton learns how railroads shaped the modern world - from creating our time zones and QR codes, to the first lobbyists and unions. The story of the rails is the story of America, and through 10 episodes, Morton reckons with our history, and her family history, as she tries what she can to bring her daughter home.