Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture, General Research and Reference Division

The Negro in the Cities of the North (New York, The Charity Organization Society, 1905)

Many southern migrants pouring into the railroad stations in Detroit, Chicago, New York, or Philadelphia, had the addresses of family members or friends who had preceded them, and had settled in the black sections of the northern towns. Those who came without knowing anyone were generally steered to theses areas by self-appointed helpers who roamed the stations in search of newcomers to assist in exchange for a fee.