History Characters / HellOnWheels

* KangarooCourt: If having one member of the group serve as the sole witness while the verdict being at least partially determined by the group leader’s will isn’t unfair, this troper doesn’t know what is. Their trials are even referred to as this by Louise Ellison.

* BadassBaritone: He has a fairly deep voice.

* AuthorityEqualsAsskicking: Fights for his Railroad with tooth and nail.

* NonActionGuy: While literally every living being in the railroad (Including [[AuthorityEqualsAsskicking Thomas Durant]] and [[ActionGirl Lilly Bell]]) grabs a weapon to fight the Sioux, Hanna screams and hides.

%%* AsskickingEqualsAuthority

* MyGodWhatHaveIDone: Once he realizes just [[KillEmAll what]] [[RapePillageAndBurn he]] summoned when he asked for [[AxCrazy Major Bendix]]'s help.

* [[OnlyKnownByTheirNickname Known Mostly By His Nickname]]: The Swede, even though he's Norwegian. Zig-zagged in Season 2, where everyone just calls him Mr. Gunderson.

* [[DatingCatwoman Dating Batman:]] Campbell, the cold, authoritarian KnightTemplar governor, enters into a heated sexual affair with the warm, progressive-minded IntrepidReporter, Louise Ellison.

* [[OnlyKnownByTheirNickname Known Mostly By His Nickname]]: Everyone calls him "Doc" or HeyYou.

* CarryABigStick: Well not a "big" stick, but his WeaponOfChoice is a police baton and he can surely wreak some havoc with it.

* [[GuileHero}}ine: Lily is clever enough to impress [[TheChessmaster Durant]], and is matches him in knowledge of economics and psychology. [[spoiler: A fitting example being when she escaped a murder attempt by convicing the assassin to side with her.]]

* DeterminedHomesteadersWife: ''Was'' this, until her husband died in the first episode. She then spends the rest of the show as a DeterminedWidow
* [[GuileHero Guile Heroine]]: Lily is clever enough to impress [[TheChessmaster Durant]], and is matches him in knowledge of economics and psychology. [[spoiler: A fitting example being when she escaped a murder attempt by convicing the assassin to side with her.]]

* AwesomeMcCoolname: His first name is the Norse god of thunder, his last name ''sounds'' like thunder, and he has a TheMagnificent title.

* [[spoiler:ActionGirl]]:[[spoiler: counts as this working on the railroad.]]

* [[spoiler:DamselInDistress]]: [[spoiler: becomes this when Chang and his company men chase after her once Chang learns her secret.]]

* [[spoiler:GenderReveal]]
* [[spoiler:HugeGuyTinyGirl]]:[[spoiler:with Cullen.]]
* [[spoiler:SecretRelationship]]:[[spoiler:with Cullen.]]
* [[spoiler:SheCleansUpNicely]]:[[spoiler:when not in disguise as Fong.]]
* [[spoiler:SweetPollyOliver]]:[[spoiler: disguises herself as a man in order to escape being the bride of a rebel leader from the Taiping Rebellion.She also mentions that if found, she will be made a prostitute by the Sze Yup.]]
* TroubledBackstoryFlashback: [[spoiler: We see her transformation into Fong happen during a flashback; her village is in the process of being burned down/attacked by Taiping rebels while she disguises herself.]]
* [[spoiler:YouKilledMyFather]]:[[spoiler:Tries to attack Chang after her father is fatally shot but Cullen stops her.]]

* CorruptHick: Despite being a northerner and an Immigrant, he fits this trope to a T. When he's not out being the Hanging Judge, he's shaking down businesses and bribing officials to look the other way while he robs his employer.

* NiceHat: Bohannon has a minor obsession with hats, and he always grabs a hold of one.

%%* NiceHat

* DashinglyDapperDerby: His NiceHat.

* Sadist: Just wants to watch the world burn and enjoys watching other people suffer, particularly Bohannon.

* AsskickingEqualsAuthority
* BadassBeard: Since the first season.

* AFatherToHisMen: Becomes this when he becomes Head Engineer.
* FireForgedFriends: With Elam eventually

* BadassLongcoat

* BaldOfEvil: In the second half of season 2.

* BadassMustache: A true gentleman's one.

* StuffedInTheFridge: [[spoiler: She is murdered by the Swede not because of her brilliant mind or her plot to overthrow Durante, he even admits she never did a single thing wrong to him, but simply because her death would make Bohannon bummed out.]]

* CoveredInScars: After [[spoiler: the bear attack.]]
* DroppedABridgeOnHim: [[spoiler: After going half a season thinking he got eaten by a bear, we finally discover he survived the attack, but the injuries he sustained likely left him with PTSD. This combined with the fact that he apparently developed amnesia after being rescued, nursed back to health and converted by the Comanches. He later returns to Cheyenne, clearly deranged and attempting to sell three women as if they were slaves. After repeated attempts to get through to him, a fight escalates between him and Bohannon, and ends when Bohannon shoots Elam.]]

* SanitySlippage: After he becomes [[spoiler: "Bear Killer."]]

* SocialClimber: a recently freed slave, Elam sees the signs of a future, career, money, and status as possibilities for him for the first time. His aspirations to make something of himself frequently conflict with his fellow black companions as well as how he looks down on Eva.

* CharacterDeath: [[spoiler: choked by The Swede]]
* CruelAndUnusualDeath: [[spoiler: Graphically choked by The Swede.]]

* NotSoDifferent: Sean had a burning hatred for the Swede and his way of doing business, but after the Swede is down, he ends up conducting business with the same methods. He does not realize the similarity.

* NotSoDifferent: The episode "Bleeding Kansas" seems to suggest she is this to her father. [[spoiler: In the end, they both die as murderers.]]

* NotSoDifferent: He often describes how similar he and Bohannon are in terms of their murderous tendencies and their propensity for spreading death wherever they go. Whenever Bohannon tries to condemn him, Gundersen often describes how Bohannon is little better is in acts.

!!Sidney Snow

* FamousLastWords: [[spoiler: "Behold...your legacy."]]

* FamousLastWords: [[spoiler: "Father, forgive me"]]

* FamousLastWords: [[spoiler: "[[FauxAffablyEvil I wish you...a good day.]]"]]
** Subverted in that he survives.

* FaceDeathWithDignity: [[spoiler: He recovers from his VillainousBreakdown and dies mocking Bohannon for being a "negro lover".]]

* KilledMidSentence: [[spoiler: Fergurson doesn't let him finish his last racist rant.]]

* LipstickLesbian[=/=]AmbiguouslyBi: She got shipped out west at least partly to keep her away from her boss' daughter but she didn't seem to mind when Bohannon kissed her either. She didn't really respond but that could have been just because she was shocked and surprised.
** In season four, she begins an affair with Governor John Campbell so it's likely she just swings both ways.

* GoOutWithASmile: [[spoiler: He dies with a wide grin on his face.]]

* LastNameBasis: His given name is never mentioned. * OneManArmy: On two separate occasions Chang was able to defeat multiple opponents using martial arts alone all by himself. It is mentioned he once killed 15 men during a battle.

* LastNameBasis: His given name is never mentioned. * OneManArmy: On two separate occasions Chang was able to defeat multiple opponents using martial arts alone all by himself. It is mentioned he once killed 15 men during a battle.

* LastNameBasis: His given name is never mentioned.

* YourCheatingHeart: [[spoiler: Cheats on Toole]]

* TheNarrator: From time to time.

* SuddenlySexuality: [[spoiler: With no clear implications beforehand, Heckard admits to having been in love with another man. It’s unknown, however, if he would qualify as gay or bisexual (given his apparent pass at Naomi in 'Chicken Hill').]]