PHOTO PROVIDED Luther “The Jet” Gette strikes a pose beside the old Milwaukee Road boxcar signed by many hobos and rail riders at the Hobo’s Convention in Britt, Iowa, August, 2000.

LOCK HAVEN — The Hobo King, Philipsburg’s Luther Gette, recently visited Lock Haven to speak at a free event hosted by the Clinton County Historical Society.

Gette stopped by the Lock Haven Poorman Gallery in late May to regale the community with tales of his storied travels from freight-hopping around the country and bits of local history.

Luther “the Jet,” who is known for his songs and poems about his freight-riding experiences, was first proclaimed King of the Hoboes at the National Hobo Convention in Britt, Iowa — where he is a regular performer — in 1995 and again in 2024.

Following a stint in the Army and earning his Ph.D. in French literature at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, he was drawn back to the rails, which he once hopped as a kid growing up in Pennsylvania.

Gette’s travels have ranged from short trips to transcontinental journeys, and the people and experiences he encountered along the way are reflected in the stories, songs and poems he shared during his presentation.

“I sing songs, and I tell lies, basically,” he said with a laugh. “Stories from the old days.”

Gette told The Express that his talk highlighted a range of local history, including the Bald Eagle Cross Cut — a canal connecting the West Branch Canal through Lock Haven to Flemington on Bald Eagle Creek — as well as the Beech Creek Railroad.

“I talked about the hobo life in general, riding the freight trains and getting along the best way I knew how,” Gette said.

During his presentation, Gette performed several canal songs and presented the historical society with a map of the Bald Eagle and Spring Creek Navigation Company’s canal system.

“I had a wonderful time down there,” Gette said, praising the venue. “Everyone was very communicative and responsive, so we had a good time talking back and forth.”

During the event, the Clinton County Historical Society sold bricks to be installed in the sidewalk of the nearby Heisey Museum on Water Street.

“The Clinton County Historical Society is a very active and responsive historical group,” he said. “They don’t just sit around; they are proactive.”

The Clinton County Historical Society’s mission is to collect, preserve and share the history of the county.