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Newspaper Articles and Documents – Read first hand accounts about orphan trains, as recorded in newspapers and letters. Orphan Train Rider Stories – Read about how specific children ended up on the train and who they grew up to be. Read common complaints against orphan trains.Įnd of an Era – Find out what happened to orphan trains and why we don’t have them today. Opposition to the Orphan Trains – Not everyone thought orphan trains were such a good idea. The Orphan Train Experience – Learn what it was like to be an orphan train rider.Ĭhildren of Color on the Orphan Train – Learn about the unique experiences of people of color on the orphan trains. Placing Organizations – Read about the first orphan trains and the major organizations that placed children out by train. Learn about living and working conditions and why child homelessness was such a big concern. To learn more about the Orphan Train program, please contact the Children’s Aid archives department: or call. Need for the Orphan Trains – Life in New York City in the 1800s was tough. Although it had its pitfalls, Orphan Trains and other Childrens Aid initiatives led to a host of child welfare reforms, including child labor laws, adoption, and the establishment of foster care services. Finally, in 1929, amidst growing objections and changing welfare systems, the orphan train movement came to an end.įAQs – All your basic questions, answered! Short and simple. Other organizations quickly adopted Brace’s system, and for nearly 80 years, children migrated across the country to find new homes. He devised a system whereby disadvantaged children would be sent to rural communities, traveling by train and with a Society Agent, where they could be taken in by families who would teach them good morals and provide for their needs.
#The orphan train full
Brace recognized the inadequacy of New York’s welfare institutions, and, at the same time, saw the Western states as places full of opportunity. The orphan train movement was started by Charles Loring Brace and his organization, the Children’s Aid Society. Between 18, an estimated 250,000 orphaned, abandoned, or homeless children were transported to rural communities across the country in hopes of providing a better life for them.
