The Orphan Train Experience
The Ride Children Did Not Expect by Nahja L.
What was the Orphan Train?
Imagine: One morning you wake up to find strangers in your home telling you that you have to come with them. Nervously, you then are forced to leave your home and you see train waiting for you. You come to realize that you weren't the only person your age to be taken from their home. This how it was through the years of 1854 to 1929 in New York City, New York.
Kids awaiting to reach their destination, a new home in the west.
This was a sample advertisement to find a perfect child that would be for the family that wanted him/her.
Charles Loring Brace: the founder behind the idea of the orphan train. He is now considered the father of the foster care system.
The Reasoning Behind It
During these harsh times after the war, there were many children on the streets. They had faced problems such as hunger, poverty, and violence within homes. Some families became very torn. This is what Brace loathed. He took children that were consistently on the streets from their horrible homes to move to anther one and start a new life.