The 1958 feature
The Littlest Hobo was released as a feature in 1958, and London received a formal on-screen credit.
Research & Sources
How we build the story.
The method behind the archive, what the evidence can support, and where important questions remain open.
The working record
Evidence is compared, not simply collected.
A structured historical database is the project’s working evidence record.
It brings together contemporary reporting, formal production records, Eisenmann’s books and recollections, photographs and captions, later journalism, and first-hand memories. Each can answer a different kind of question. Repetition by the same author, even across several books or interviews, is not independent corroboration.
Three evidence levels
Clear labels for what we know.
These labels keep a readable story connected to the strength and limits of its evidence.
The Miracle of the Lamb
It is believed that The Miracle of the Lamb was another name Eisenmann used for the original 1958 film The Littlest Hobo. It may have been an informal or working title, although the surviving production records do not confirm that.
London’s beginnings
The original London’s exact acquisition and birth chronology cannot yet be fixed securely from the surviving evidence.
Our editorial principle
Where the evidence is strong, we make a conclusion.
The site presents the best-supported reconstruction, explains why it is the best fit, identifies uncertainty that matters, and invites better evidence. An open question stays open; it does not prevent us from saying what the record most strongly supports.
Eisenmann’s evidence
His account, in his own terms.
Eisenmann’s books and recollections are primary evidence for what he said, believed and remembered. They are not automatically independent proof of a dog’s cognition or motives, an exact chronology, or a production detail.
Dog identity
A name is not an identity.
Names such as London, Thorn, Toro and Lance were repeated across eras. A shared name or a similar appearance does not show that two references describe the same dog. Identity claims need support from the source, date and surrounding context.
Sources prioritised
The records we value most.
This is a working list, not a complete source catalogue. Records are assessed for what they can actually establish, their date, origin and independence from one another.
- Contemporary newspapers and magazines
- Formal film and television records
- Kennel-club and pedigree records
- Dated or captioned photographs
- Archives and correspondence
- Eisenmann’s books and recollections
- First-hand memories
Corrections & contributions
Help improve the record.
Corrections, memories, photographs, documents, dog identifications, production material, and information about rights or provenance are all welcome.
contact@thehobostory.orgA living resource
This research layer will grow.
Deeper source notes, chronology, individual dog records and pages for unresolved questions will be added over time. That is intentional: the archive is a living historical resource, not a claim that every answer is already complete.