Reading the book “Down and Out, On the Road” by Kenneth Kusmer has shown me how far back homelessness goes in America. This book covers the entire period from the colonial era to the late twentieth century. You learn through this book that homelessness has been present in America for over two hundred years! To begin with the fact that a lot of these homeless people are immigrants however, there is a lot of diversity and global immigration. All of these homeless people can include disabled, mentally ill, orphans, and even freed blacks. It is hard to think back to the day when just steamboats were being invented and there was still homelessness going on. Through Kusmer’s text, you get a better understanding of how people become homeless and how charities and public authorities deal with this problem of being homeless. You even learn about all the diverse ways that homeless people deal with in class, ethnic, and racial groups. It was interesting to learn during the Industrial Revolution it was a major turning point for everyone in human history. During this time, three main types of transportation were produced which indluded waterways with steamboats, roads, and railroads. However, they were more likely to travel on foot due to the lack of safety on trains, the cost of steamboats, and hostility. It is depressing to think that at such a big time when advancements in technology are first being made but so many people never had the opportunity to use these advancements in their everyday life due to their homelessness. This time was when major changes in agriculture, manufacturing, mining, transport, and technology changed.