Children In The Great Depression

Orphan trains and Carlisle and the ways people from the past undermined the minorities and children of America. The film "The orphan Trains" tells us the story of children who were taken from the streets of New York City and put on trains to rural America. A traffic in immigrant children were developed and droves of them teamed the streets of New York (A People's History of the United States 1492-present, 260). The streets of NYC were dirty, overcrowded, and dangerous. Just as street gangs had female auxiliaries, they also had farm leagues for children (These are the Good Old Days, 19). During the time of the late 1800's and early 1900's many people were trying to help children. Progressive reformers, often called

Contrary to its name, the Orphan Train riders included not only orphans, but also children with only one parent, children that were given up because their family was too big, and runaways. These children often underwent parental death, abandonment, or prostitution. Still other orphans were immigrant children. They suffered from the overpopulation of New York and lack of job availability. Even the jobs they could get did not pay enough for them to survive. Many of the orphans turned to selling small items such as newspapers or matches to survive on the streets. These children often formed gangs to protect themselves from the sometimes violent world of street life in New York City. Police, after finding some of these gangs,

Orphan Train children had a social citizenship. They had the right to live life according to societies’ standards. They had a minimum of economic welfare and security, with being sent to new homes where they wouldn’t be homeless and anymore, and they went to families where they could get an education and healthcare. Lastly, according to Foundation for Human

Multiple states are struggling with finding homes for kids. “In Georgia and Tennessee, child welfare workers fight to find homes for the increasing number of children in care. In Texas, the lack of foster parents result in some children from foster care sleeping in child welfare offices.” (“The Foster Care Crisis: The Shortage of Foster Parents in America.”) These are just

What it was like riding the orphan trains changed with time. Some of the first orphan trains were a little better than the cattle cars with seats and bathrooms. Later on in time, as more money became available, the riders were able to ride in better cars. The last orphan train riders rode in Pullman cars ( which were also known as sleeping cars).

Orphan Children living in the 1800s were living on overcrowded streets of cities. Over 30,000 abandoned kids were placed into new families throughout Canada and the United States using what were called ‘orphan trains’ . This movement was one of the first documented for foster care in America. The Orphan Train Movement was a supervised welfare program that operated between 1854 and 1929. These kids faced many obstacles, a rough childhood, and their family life could be torn apart or challenging for them.

Since the 1950s, the United States and other countries started a new way in the de-institutionalize the care of vulnerable children which is, close down orphanages in favour of substitute care and accelerated adoption. Besides, western countries started to give up their children without placing them for adoption, and thus, the need to operate large orphanages has decreased. These issues have resulted in a dramatic reduction of local orphans available for adoption, requiring many adoptive parents to orphanages in the Third World.

An issue like this affects the whole world, whether people realize it or not. If orphans have no one to look after them, sometimes they can become scared or upset- or even violent and reckless.

“The Orphan Trains were a series of social service programs the relocated poor and homeless city children” (McClure). More than 200,000 children traveled by train from the east coast to seek new homes and better lives in the almost every state in the United States. A good amount of train riders were not full orphans. Most had parents or a parent that could not afford to take care of them and gave them up to save them from poverty and to give them a better life. Most of the time the train rides lasted several days “Once they got on the train, most children never heard or saw from their birth families ever again” (McClure). The kids felt scared but knew it was for the better. Before the trains reached the cities they would put fliers all over the town they were going to, to advertise that the children were coming so the families knew. When the trains would arrive the children would stand outside in a line and the families would come look at them and inspect them from head to toe. The children would often sing songs or say poem to make them look better and more educated. The families would look at their teeth and feel their arms and legs treating them like animals, to make sure they are healthy. If a family wanted you then you would go with them. If nobody wanted you at that stop you would load back up on the train and head to the next stop. Some of the children adopted were

(Kahan, 2006) Notice to birthparents was not required, and it is estimated that approximately half the children transported to the west were not actually orphans. (Pfeffer, 2002) Brace was a missionary who wished to remove children of poor Catholic families, and place them in Protestant farming families. (Pfeffer, 2002) The orphan train placements served as a foster care system, without payment to the foster families, and were a cost effective way to manage poor children, in contrast to institutionalizing those who could not live at home. (Kahan, 2006)

4. the Refuge period was between 1824-1899 when delinquent or neglected children were placed in a home for training and discipline. (Seiter, pg. 237)

Some children left home. They might have wanted to not burden their families, or didn’t like their dull, poor type of living. Some left for an adventure, or they left because they didn’t like how they had to work to earn such small pay. Many of the children rode boxcars to travel. A boxcar is a section of a train.

During the 18 and 1900’s it was an encumbrance to care for children, The Orphan Train Movement took a stand by giving children nourishing homes and liberties. Immediately after changing protection and government acts it gave parents the relief of their child having a more successful life than they were born into. Many legacies are still alive today from The orphan Movement including, The Children’s Aid Society, modern day orphanages, and the reformed lives of 150,000 children. At the end of the civil war many parents were not in the position to care for a child. Orphanages became more of reformatory than a comfortable protection.

Orphanages in the 1900s Orphanages back then were defined as kids without parents. A lot of the kids with single parents were neglected. The orphans felt sad because they think about their parents. The kids were abandoned or their homes were over crowded. Some kids were left on their own.

Many different programs were implemented for orphans throughout history. In 1656 colony’s appointed orphan masters to oversee care for the orphans within their community. The Poor Law of 1661 limits public aid people who lived in poverty were neglected assistance unless they qualified. No able-bodied citizen was allowed assistance those who weren’t able bodied consisted of the ill, the infirm, the elderly, and children. After the Poor law of 1661 was developed, another poor law was passed, requiring provided assistance to legal residents. Then following the ministry act was implemented empowering residents to support ministers as well as for poor relief through taxes. Churchwardens were then placed in charge for distributing aid to the poor