Orphan Trains Research Paper

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Recommended: The foster care system and its effects

Emilie Carr
Dr. McMillan
CASTU401-02
6 September 2017 Essay 1: The Orphan Trains The Orphan Trains were trains that took orphaned children from New York, a lot of whom were immigrants, and transported them to foster families all around rural America so that they would be off the streets and could live better lives. Some of the children that were brought onto the trains were not orphans, but were children who lived in extreme poverty as their parents were not able to properly care and provide for them. This initiative began in 1853 by the Children’s Aid Society, a private, child welfare nonprofit in New York City, formed by Charles Loring Brace. Brace saw the Orphan Trains as a solution because of the number of children who were living …show more content…

Their journey west generally took about three to four days and the agents, who were relocating the children, comforted them by singing to them and giving them hand bibles. A lot of brothers and sisters were separated during relocation because they would not all go to the same state, and if they did go to the same state, the foster families would not take in all of them. For children, or anyone for that matter, abandoning somewhere that you know of as home, as well as abandoning your family (if you were not orphaned), has the potential to be traumatizing, and is extremely scary. Even so, the agents comforting them most likely had an immensely positive impact during their journey. When they arrived to the different rural states, they would stand on a stage in front of families where the families would decide which child they wanted based on their appearance and their temperament. This could also be viewed as traumatizing due to children being examined by people that they don’t know and potentially feeling unwanted and not good

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