ALLEN COUNTY, Ind. (WANE) -- It was a different era altogether when Grabill’s beloved "hobo," Otto Snyder, lived in a small shack on the east side of the railroad tracks. Born in 1882 in Ohio, Snyder arrived on a freight train in the 1940s, but didn’t permanently set down his knapsack until later, preferring to disappear every now and then. It may be hard to imagine now, but Snyder became part of the fabric of this small town so much so that parents would send their kids down to play checkers with “Ott,” said Joanna Sauder who knew Snyder and shared her recollections with WANE. In the winter, “Ott” taught the kids to skate on the small ponds in the area.  They were amazed he could skate backwards. Margaret Schrock (left) and Joanne SauderNew headstone arranged by the Grabill Historical SocietyEast side of the Grabill railroad intersection where the Hobo's shack was He kept warm in the winter with a woodburning stove the town gave him along with “a pittance” for street work. “He was frequently seen here in town, pushing his little wooden cart and always had a scoop shovel in the cart and he was trudging down the streets, sweeping the streets, cleaning catch basins. In the winter, he would be moving snow off the sidewalks,” Sauder recalled.  “He was just part of this little village in those years.” Local mothers would send meals down to him. Sauder’s mother-in-law told her that Otto showed up at her door once requesting a needle and thread to repair some of his clothing. When he died in 1963, his greatest wish was to have a respectable funeral. Residents found cash hidden among his belongings for just that purpose. The local Chamber of Commerce arranged for Snyder's funeral service. An organ played, a local clergy man gave a meditation and Otto was transported to the Leo Cemetery in a Cadillac hearse, Sauder wrote in the East Allen Courier this week. But it was an unmarked grave. Sauder and members of the Grabill Historical Society determined that raising money for a headstone would be an appropriate “act of kindness,” part of the 200 acts of kindness that Allen County Bicentennial Commission is gathering, Margaret Schrock, fellow historical society member said Friday. “He was a very private person. We really don’t know where he came from,” Sauder said. “Why he came here – we don’t know the pain that he may have experienced, or, possibly caused, by jumping on a railroad and becoming a hobo. “ The historical society was able to identify him through census records, but no details were found, she said. One thing Otto insisted upon was that he be called a hobo, not a bum or a tramp. “Hobos work, tramps and bums don’t.” If someone were to call him a tramp, Snyder became violent, Sauder said. Saving those few dollars toward his own funeral showed that he wanted to be remembered, Sauder said. Those who still remember Otto thought a headstone was “something we could still do.” The headstone will be dedicated Saturday at 10 a.m. at the Leo Cemetery.