The Orphan Trains
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The Orphan Train was a social experiment that transported children from crowded coastal cities of the United States to the country's Midwest for adoption. The orphan trains ran between 1854 and 1929, relocating an estimated 200,000 orphaned, abandoned, or homeless children. Many of the children were not orphans but “surrendered” by parents too impoverished to keep them. At the time the orphan train movement began, it was estimated that 3,000 vagrant children were living on the streets of New York City.
Two charity institutions, The Children’s Aid Society (established by Charles Loring Brace) and The New York Foundling Hospital, a Catholic organization, determined to help these children. The two institutions developed a program that placed homeless city children into homes throughout the country. The children were transported to their new homes on trains which were eventually labeled “orphan trains.” This period of mass relocation of children in the United States is widely recognized as the beginning of documented foster care in America. |
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History Charles Loring Brace believed that institutional care stunted and destroyed children. In his view, only work, education and a strong family life could help them develop into self-reliant citizens. Brace knew that American pioneers could use help settling the American West, so he arranged to send the orphaned children to pioneer families. "In every American community, especially in a western one, there are many spare places at the table of life," Brace wrote. "They have enough for themselves and the stranger too." The children were encouraged to break completely with their past. They would typically arrive in a town where local community leaders had assembled interested townspeople. The townspeople would inspect the children and after brief interviews with the ones they wanted, take them home. After a trial period, some children became indentured servants to their host families, while most were adopted, formally or informally, as family members. Between 1854 and 1929, more than 200,000 children rode the “Orphan Train” to new lives. The Orphan Train Heritage Society maintains an archive of riders' stories. The National Orphan Train Museum in Concordia, Kansas maintains records and also houses a research facility. Two famous former orphan train riders are Governor John Green Brady of Alaska, and Governor Andrew Burke North Dakota. |
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Controversy
The program was controversial. In its early days some abolitionists viewed it as a form of slavery, while some pro-slavery advocates saw it as part of the abolitionist movement, since the labor provided by the children helped made slaves unnecessary. |
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Research
The National Orphan Train Museum and Research Center is located in Concordia, Kansas. The Museum and Research Center is dedicated to the preservation of the stories and artifacts of those who were part of the Orphan Train Movement from 1854-1929. The research center is located at the restored Union Pacific Railroad Depot in Concordia and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
Services offered by the museum include rider research, educational material, and a collection of photos and other memorabilia.
The National Orphan Train Museum and Research Center is located in Concordia, Kansas. The Museum and Research Center is dedicated to the preservation of the stories and artifacts of those who were part of the Orphan Train Movement from 1854-1929. The research center is located at the restored Union Pacific Railroad Depot in Concordia and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
Services offered by the museum include rider research, educational material, and a collection of photos and other memorabilia.
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Links to additional information about the Orphan Trains:
Children’s Aid Society http://www.childrensaidsociety.org/about/history Orphan Train Musical http://orphantrainmusical.com National Orphan Train Museum and Research Center - Concordia, KS http://orphantraindepot.org Kansas Collection Articles: Orphan Trains of Kansas http://www.kancoll.org/articles/orphans/ The American Experience: The Orphan Trains http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex/orphan/ Humanities Magazine http://www.neh.gov/humanities/2007/novemberdecember/feature/lost-children-riders-the-orphan-train OzarksWatch Video Magazine, Ozarks Public Television http://video.optv.org/video/1392981043/ |
Agents always accompanied orphans on the trains.
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