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| Source: The Orphan Trains (PBS), http://www-tc.pbs.org/wgbh/amex/orphan/images/boysontrain.gif |
I was unaware of this particular bit
of history until I stumbled across Orphan Train Riders to Iowa.
Children 'placed out' during the
Orphan Train Era (1853-1929) and their descendants have particular research
problems. We hope to educate you a bit on this subject and help you
further your research on any ancestors you may have that came to Iowa on one of
the infamous Orphan Trains.
The Orphan Train Movement was
a supervised welfare program that transported orphaned and homeless children
from crowded Eastern cities of the United States
to foster homes located largely in rural areas of the Midwest .
The orphan trains operated between 1853 and 1929, relocating about 250,000
orphaned, abandoned, or homeless children ... This relocation of children ended
in the 1920s with the beginning of organized foster care in America
This effort met with mixed success – some children became enslaved, abused or rejected and others went on to great achievements. Regardless of where this “new” life took these children, many never saw birth family members again.
Those relocated on
the Orphan Trains also present interesting and challenging genealogical
research issues. Older children might
have remembered/retained information about their birth family. What of younger children?
Learn more about
this era via:
- Orphan Trains of Kansas – The
- The Orphan Trains -- PBS (American Experience)
- Orphan Trains – YouTube (Kate Berman)
- The Orphan Train HD – YouTube (Jason Wilmot)
- National Orphan Train Complex
- Guide to the Records of the Children’s Aid Society (NYC) 1836-2006 – The New-York Historical Society (search on Orphan Train)
- Orphan Trains – Cyndi’s List
Are there Orphan Train children in your family tree? Please share their story!
Were you able to determine birth parents?
Did you use DNA testing as a tool?
What research resources did you find most helpful?
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