Genealogy Chat

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http://www.britainschildmigrants.com/

new site now online, there will be a child migrant exhibition beginning in Australia in November 2010 which will come to England next year.

Just to say I found my two girls were sent out to Canada in 1901 I got in touch with Dr Barnados and although they would not tell me too much they did send me some wonderful Photos of them ,and I have managed to find their marriages and children. One lived to be 101 quite an achievement wonder how .long she would have lived in the slums of the East End .
They also told me that if the Father had died the children were considered Orphans? even if the Mother was alive.

Nudge for future ref.


Dee xx

If you have read all the earlier comments you will see children as late as 1975 were sent away

Nudge ..

This account of the Austaralian part is interesting

http://www.apho.gov.au/library/Pubs/BN/sp/ChildMigrants.htm_toc2457025531

I think I have got it right !

i see at last that the British and Canadian and Australian Governments are going to apologise to the Home children for their actions in deporting them !!
Apparently the practice was still going on up to the 1960,s.

Having since posted about my Aunt in 2004 i am in contact with the descendant of another Home Child who is related in my dads side of the family, This lad was in Barnardos and his son has got his dads file, it seems that when a child was signed into Barnardos then the parents forfeited their parental rights and Barnardos then had Carte Blanche to make any decision on the child.
So thats why kids were sent without their parents knowledge

nudge

nudge

Just reading www.infed.org /thinkers/barnardo.html#emigration.

It states destitute and orphaned children has a long history in Britain-with around 130,000 children being shipped off to various parts of the Empire over some 350 years.

The first group was arguably sent in 1618 to Richmond Virginia USA; the last sent to Australia in 1967

The advantages to the authorities. In the late 19th century it cost 12 pounds a year to look after a child in an institution. To send one overseas was a one- off payment of 15 pounds (abridged)

Another site says over 200,000 children were sent overseas.

Australia
The first group of children were sent with convicts in 1788 on the first fleet

nudge

My Grandmothers brother was sent to Canada as a home child. I contacted Action for Children and they have been very helpful. They are allowing me to view his records from the childrens home he was in before being sent to Canada which should happen in August this year. They are quite rightly giving priority to adults who which to view their own records from when they were in a childrens home.
I am really excited about seeing his records hopefully some of the questions I have will be answered.
It took quite a lot of searching to find the childrens home but managed to locate him when I was able to see the 1911 census.
I first tried to find him in Coventry as his daughter who lives in Canada believed he was in a childrens home there. It was only after I found him in a home in Hampshire that I realised her father actually had said to her that 'he had been sent to Coventry' a phrase that would mean nothing to a Canadian. My great Uncle had many relatives living around him at the time so his records should make for very interesting reading !
Elaine

nudge

how terrible thease children were treated and we are supposed to be the civilised nation
sally

I think some of today's Social Services Departments are continuing with the spirit of this scheme.

This is very interesting. I worked in an old Victorian school some years ago. In a cupboard was the original Headmaster's Day Book. Entries included children not attending today due to gathering crops/picking potatoes etc.

One entry mentioned that a large number of children had been shipped away to Canada and would not be attending the school in future. It was a wonderful book and should have been in the local Archives, not stuck in a cupboard in the school.

Dianne xx

nudging for later
Thank you.

nudged up for the benefit of newer members

Thanks so much for this nudge - just what I needed.


Jac XX