In A Family for Merry, a novella I wrote that appeared in Orphan Train Brides with Jacquie Rogers, I wrote about the orphan trains. The orphan trains were real. They ran between 1854 and 1929. They were an imperfect solution to a huge problem. Children in New York City were often left orphaned because many people there, especially migrants and poor people, had a high mortality rate. Children might be placed in an orphanage, or they might just be left to make their way as best they could on the streets. These children stole to eat and often fell prey to sexual predators or people who offered a slightly better life, stealing and sharing lodging, for which the adult ring leader took most of the gains from their theft. The life expectancy of these children was shockingly low.
There were no real laws protecting children. Some well-intentioned people decided that children would be better off in the country where they could find homes, have a roof over their heads, go to school, and grow up safe. Children were rounded up and loaded on trains headed west. First, riders were sent out and posted that the orphan trains were coming, and children needed homes. People didn’t have to adopt the children, although some did. Whether adopted or not, adults were supposed to feed, clothe, and educate the children.
For some children, this worked out wonderfully. For others, not so much. Committees were formed in each town that were supposed to vet the people who took the children in. However, some people viewed the children as slave labor. Others tried to care for them, but got overwhelmed by the reality of how damaged some of the children were emotionally. Some of the children ran away.
The first orphan train ran in 1854. The last one went in 1929. After that, views on what was good for children, and how much they should have to work to earn their keep, changed.
There is a National Orphan Train Complex in Concordia, KS, where descendants of orphan train riders and others interested in the orphan trains can find information.
