Were Lawn Jockeys Used as Underground Railroad Symbols? | Snopes.com --> --> Snopes Now available in the app store! Open Log in to activate your ad-free access. It looks like you might have a Snopes membership! Log in to enjoy your ad-free experience. Log In From Snopes You're browsing with fewer ads for the next 24 hours, thanks to our sponsor . Learn more → --> --> Fact Check Were Lawn Jockeys Used as Underground Railroad Symbols? A viral Facebook post described these common lawn ornaments as symbolic aids to escaping slaves on the Underground Railroad. Dan Evon Published Jan. 27, 2016 Image courtesy of Shutterstock Claim: Black lawn jockey figures were used to aid escaping slaves on the Underground Railroad. Rating: Unproven About this rating The black lawn jockey is typically thought of as a piece of racist memorabilia, but a viral Facebook post in January 2016 sought to reverse that image by claiming that these miniature statues were actually used to aid slaves traveling on the Underground Railroad and were therefore the least racist items that could be displayed in front of a home: A lot of people don't know the real meaning behind these statues, so they vandalize them, bitch about them being racist, etc. During the US slave era, the image of a black 'footman' with a lantern signified the home was a stop on the Underground Railroad. These are largely a northern thing, and weren't commonly found in the South until after WWII when northerners moved there and brought this custom with them. The clothing of the statue was also coded. A striped jockey's shirt meant that this was a place to swap horses, while a footman in a tailed coat meant overnight lodgings/food, and a blue sailor's waistcoat meant the homeowner could take you to a port and get you on a ship to Canada. I always laugh when I hear folks talk about how racist these are, because honestly, the cats who had them were likely the LEAST racist. Later, these came back into popularity after WWII, and th