The Orphan Train Movement Essay

The change in transportation led to social changes as well. Due to the construction of railroads in the urban areas there was more settlement in places where transportation was available such as New York. Due to the increase in transportation, white plantation owners increased their need for slave labor on the cotton farms as well as stricter slave code policies were increased in the South. Due to the advanced railroad system Americans are able to move westward very easily. All the migrants were in search for a new life and quick riches. In 1848-1855 Americans moved west because of the California Gold Rush. The gold rush attracted Chinese migrants to the western United States. Some migrants planned to take advantage of the public lands that the federal government was selling in order to

Children were orphaned everyday, and many of the older orphaned children were forced to take care of the younger orphaned. In order for the children to survive, they needed to make themselves useful. Small children would crawl through narrow openings and smuggle food into the ghettos for their friends and families. They did this with great risk, because if they were caught they would be punished severely. Jerry Koenig continues, “The only way you could survive was by supplementing your diet with the things bought through the black market. But you can imagine that if the sellers were risking their lives to obtain these things, then the price is going to be extremely high” (Remembering: Voices of the Holocaust).

After Alexander died in a duel in 1804, Eliza joined the Society for the Relief of Poor Widows with Small Children. After learning about charity work and how to run an organization, Eliza and one of her friends founded the Orphan Asylum Society in 1806. Eliza was the second director, or the vice-president for 15 years. Then, in 1821, she became the Directress and served for another 12 years before she died. In between working at Orphan Asylum Society, Eliza also founded the first private orphanage of New York, which is still around today. Anyone can visit it, and see Eliza’s own legacy. In the early 1800’s, there were many poor people and few rich people, but the few that were rich lived in splendors and the many that were poor lived in poverty. Eliza grew up having everything she wanted, and so it took Eliza a while to realize the state at which the majority of the population of America was

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

During the 1900s, America’s children went to school and played. Children spent their summer in the sun by doing outside activities like swimming as well as reading books and enjoying an ice cream break. However, as recently as the early years of this century, there were many poor children that did not live the same lifestyle. These children did not have time to play because they spent their days in factories, coalmines, and in fields. Over two million children in America under the age of 16 had jobs that consisted of twelve hours without stopping. Many children were forced to work because many came from poor families who needed the extra help. The brutal conditions of working long hours and unsafe environments lead some individuals to

As a consequence of the industrialisation in Britain, the mobilisation of masses started. Working class families migrated from other cities seeking for job opportunities and a better life. However, industrialised cities became affected by this and soon became overcrowded. Working class families used to dwell in tenements in rather poor sanitary conditions due to the lack of hygiene and artificial feeding in children. Children and their parents struggled to cope with freezing temperatures during the winter since they could not afford to pay

In the late 1800s , America became the land of new opportunities and new beginnings and New York City became the first landmark for immigrants. New York City was home to Ellis Island, the area in which migrants were to be handed for freedom to enter the nation. Living in New York City gave work and availability to ports. In time the city gave the chance to outsider's to construct groups with individuals from their nation , they were classified as new and old settlers. Old outsiders included Germans, Irish and, English. The new outsiders incorporated those from Italy, Russia, Poland and Austria-Hungary. In 1875, the New York City populace was a little 1 million individuals contrasted with the 3,5 million it held when the new century

“The Sisters of Charity of Cincinnati is an apostolic Catholic community of women religious that exists to carry out the Gospel of Jesus Christ through service and prayer in the world” (qtd. in “About the Sisters of Charity”). The Sisters are led by their mission statement to be “[u]rged by the love of Christ and in the spirit of [their] founder, Elizabeth Ann Seton, [the] Sisters of Charity of Cincinnati strive to live Gospel values. [They] choose to act justly, to build loving relationships, to share [their] resources with those in need, and to care for all creation” (qtd. in “Mission Statement”). Through this mission, they dedicate themselves to “the education of children, care of orphans, the poor and the sick” (qtd. in “Sisters of Charity Cincinnati”). These values are exemplified in numerous ways but specifically have been shown with the creation of educational institutions, orphanages, and their selflessness during the civil war.

Between 1854 and 1929 the United States was engaged in an ambitious, and ultimately controversial, social experiment to rescue poor and homeless children, the Orphan Train Movement. The Orphan Trains operated prior to the federal government’s involvement in child protection and child welfare. While they operated, Orphan Trains moved approximately 200,000 children from cities like New York and Boston to the American West to be adopted. Many of these

The Orphan Train movement provided many children with homes during a very difficult time. Many of these children were loved and treated very well, but many were not. Many children were separated from parents and siblings for the remainder of their

During the Pre-Civil War era in America, many Africans become enslaved. They were taken from their homes in Africa, packed densely onto ships and transported across the Atlantic to Southern America. White Americans bought these Africans, including children, to work on crop plantations or do housework. ("Africans Arrive in North America") Countless slaves tried to escape the southern slave states to the anti-slavery northern states. A number of slaves even went as far as Canada to be free of the harsh environment they were forced into (Burton 125). These slaves used a network of secret routes and houses called the Underground Railroad. During this time, not all white folks agreed with enslaving other human beings so a group of

During the 1900s, most African Americans in the United States lived in the southern states. However, many began to move into northern and midwestern states. The reasons they were moving varied from family to family. In some cases, they were searching for better jobs with higher wages such as: meat packing plants, automobile factories, steel mills, or working for the railroads. Others were searching for better education opportunities or hoping to escape the racism and violence that African Americans were experiencing in the South. This movement, known as the Great Migration, was one of the largest, fastest movements of people moving from one part of a nation to another.

At the same time, as we learned in class, America’s population grew because of labor mobility. People began to migrate from rural to urban areas, and from Europe to North America, in search of better economic opportunities, and to improve their lives. The job market became more and more competitive Hubert Gutman’s “Work, Culture, and Society in Industrializing America 1815-1919” sheds light on the struggle of farmers and tradesmen who were forced into unskilled labor positions during the industrial revolution and the many new immigrants that were finding their way to America Gutman states, “A factory worker in New

A great majority of the poor immigrant was neglected in the town of Packingtown, Chicago. The children were allowed to rummage through

Throughout our lives we move from one story to the next. Whether we are listeners, readers or writers “we live our lives immersed in stories.’ From the many stories we encounter, both fiction and non-fiction, the orphan figure stands out as one of the most prominent figures in literature. Orphan figures have prevailed in the literary arena for centuries, from ancient poetry, folktales, and myths to modern day novels. This constant reoccurrence of the orphan figure in literature emphasizes the need to understand the significance attached to it. However, according to the editors of Bastardy and its Comparative History literatures great interest on the orphan figure is poorly reflected in literary criticism. It is further