British Home Children Project, want to join? [closed]

Question

This is a long time coming. I have been wanting to put this project together for a year or two.

The British Home Children Project is a sub project of the United Kingdom and the Canadian History Project (as Members Join, it will also be associated with Australia, New Zealand, and South Africa Projects). The Mission of the project is to add and improve profiles of all British Home Children. Project members take primary responsibility for relevant profiles or family groups and work on merging duplicates, cleaning up profiles, adding sources, removing incorrect information and offer research assistance as needed.

Have family ties to one of Australia's, Canada's, New Zealand's or South Africa's British Home Children? Then join in - post an answer below and we will get you badged and on your way!

Who they are, "From the late 1860s right up to 1948, over 100,000 children of all ages were emigrated (from Britain) right across Canada to be used as indentured farm workers and domestics. Believed by Canadians to be orphans, only two percent truly were. These children were sent to Canada by over 50 organizations including the well-known and still working charities: Barnardo’s,  The Salvation Army and Quarrier’s, to name a few." - British Home Children in Canada

Agnes Smith was a home child who married into my spouses family. This bit of Canadian History touches so many families. What about the rest?

Canadian British Home Children Sub-Project Page

Mags

Comments

Hello,

I am new to WikiTree and new to geneology research, but I am eager to work with a group who could help me learn more. This particular group is of interest to me because my husband's grandfather came to Canada at age 15 from Barnardos Homes as a part of the program.

Please let me know how I can help.

Camen

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Could you please add me to the group. My GG Mary Bennet Smith was brought to Canada in 1892 from Quarrier's Orphan Homes of Scotland to Fairknowe Home in Brockville, Ontario and then on to a peach farm in Alliston, Ontario.

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Great to have you join Angel! Mags

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My great grandfather was a British home child aka barnardo boy can I help?

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Hey Lisa,

Thanks for jumping in! The Pages for the British home children are all open, so you don't need to be added to any of the trusted lists.

Mags

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DO YOU KNOW HOW I GO ABOUT GETTING THE BADGE AND HOW CAN I PUT THE PROJECT ON HIS PROFILE?

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Hey Lisa,

Where did your Home Child land? Canada? Australia?

You can add the sticker to the profile by following the instructions on the project page. If you tell me your Home Child profile ID I'd gladly add them for you.

Mags

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Hi he landed in Canada. In Quebec. Came on the Dominion in summer of 1903. This is his profile iD: Jones-69209 (ChriztopChr Jones Sr. ) If you could add it I'd be very greatful

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id like the project badge my great grandfather was a british home child

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Hey Lyssa,

Looks like you have the sticker now, which is what you need for the British Home Children Project. It also automatically added you to the category, Children Transported to Canada.

Mags

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I would like to be added to this group.  I believe my great grandfather, Walter Charles Adams was a BHC, brought to Canada in 1902.  At least 3 of his sisters may have also been as they were in Barnardo's care and there are few records of them after 1900.

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Great Stephen - visit the project page for more information. Add your grandfather and your Aunts. Have you worked on finding their information?

Here is a link directly to the project resources to help you.

Good luck!

Mags

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Thank you, I know a great deal about my great grandfather and very little about his sisters, but I am actively researching this topic.

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I am new to all this. My grandfather (Charles Molloy-901)came over from England in 1908 as an orphan.  I've been pulling my hair out trying to find information about him as the dates just don't match up. He always said he was born July 7, 1894.  Boat records say 1897. His military records (which I know without a doubt are his from his signature says November 1897 Middlesex, England. But there are no records that I can find for a Charles Molloy born in 1897 in England.

Answer 1

I suppose there will also need to be sub projects for those Home Children that were sent to Australia and New Zealand as well.

There is an excellent book on the subject written by a social worker from Nottingham, England who discovered and broke the Home children scandal in the British media. She also worked on reuniting those home children in Australia with their parents and families back in the UK.

The book is called Empty Cradles, written by Margaret Humphreys.It was a brilliant book - very emotional and her story is quite scandalous!! Even as late as the 1990s, Margaret was still receiving death threats from those in the British government and the churches (catholic church in particular) who do not want everyone to know just how poorly they treated the children back then.

https://www.amazon.com/Empty-Cradles-Margaret-Humphreys/dp/055214164X

The book has also been made into a movie - called Oranges and Sunshine - which was just as emotional as the book was. I enjoyed them both.

Comments

Yes Robynne, want to take on the Australian or New Zealand Sub Projects? :-)

Mags

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Am I allowed to? I've been here for less than a month you know!!!

Am only 3 days short of my one month anniversary!!

But still - I'm not sure that I have enough experience. Do I??

And if I did want to take it on, what would I need to do?

I certainly do sympathise with those home children that were ripped apart from their families and sent to the other side of the world...

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Robynne,

As a Project Coordinator you would work on stuff when you can. I have everything set-up so all you have to do is work on finding and adding resources, helping new project members and work towards finding the British Home children in your Sub-Project's Geographical Area..

Of course I am here to help you every step of the way. Send me a PM and we can talk further about it.

Mags

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I  was just going to add

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Margaret_Humphreys

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Children were sent to Fairbridge Farm in Western Australia. I have an aunt whose parents were both 'Fairbridge children'. I think there was a documentary called Leaving Liverpool (or something similar) about these children. Australia is now offering redress to those who were abused while in state care - so the real story of how these children were treated is coming out.

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Morning Nan!

I did a presentaiotn last week about WikiTree's Home children Project. during the presentation we had someone from near Fairbridge Farm make a comment about this farm and a bit of informaiotn about it.

Thanks for adding your two cents here too. Yes it is important that we tell these childrens stories.

Mags

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Morning Mags.

Just to follow up on my previous comment regarding Fairbridge, the register of children who were sent to Pinjarra was relocated (after being missing for many years). It is now held at the State Library of Western Australia and would be an excellent resource for anyone following up on this group of Home Children.

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Hey Nan,

On the Project Page you will find the team leads for Austrailia and New Zealand sub-projects. Please reach out to them with this information.

Mags

Answer 2

Mags, good for you in pursuing this!!

I didn't even know about this episode in history ... well, duh!  What a good effort you're going after.

I may come back to you at a later time, but, right now I'm trying to work on the Grosse Ile stuff and that just puts me over the edge of depression.  I keep trying to work on it but it's only a couple profiles a month and then I have to quit ... I know, suck it up!  lol

Anyway, kudos to you for starting this up ...

Comments

Oh Bob. You will get none of that "buck-up man" thing from me. I can't imagine the stories and history you are looking at from Cholera to Typus and all the people trying to escape only to end up at Gros Ile. There's another rich yet tragic Story from our past.

No, kudos for you for keeping at it. Thank you.

Mags

Answer 3

Sign me up. I have a few Home Children among my cousins. This is a great way to link them up.

Comments

Hey Aaron,

What part of the world? Glad to have you add your Home Children. and have you join the project!

Mags

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Canada.

Answer 4

I've come across an early 1870s account of childen going from London to Canada in Mystic London by Charles Maurice Davies. Chapter 3 most relevant though 1 and 2 give some background. Available free at http://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/25619

Regards, Tim

Comments

Thanks for that, Tim. Mags is a little busy right now with the source-a-thon and the 101 other things she does around here, but any help and information given, is appreciated

I'm responding because I am a project coordinator for those Home children who were sent to Australia and NZ.

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Thanks Tim! I'll look it over and try to integrate it into the British Home Children Canada. Thanks Robynne for answering too! You can coordinate the entire Project if you'd like! :0 Mags

Answer 5

My great-grandfather, Walter Gear (1857 - ??) was a BHC. He came to Canada with one of the first groups on the SS Prussian in 1871 with Mrs McPherson or Rye. I would very much like to join this project. He is gear-224.

Comments

Janet apologies for not getting back to you. I will chase this up ASAP.

Answer 6

I don't know much at all about the British Home Children so forgive me if my question is confusing at all.

My great-grandmother, Annie, was adopted several times in her life. She was born in 1915 and lived in London, Ontario, Canada while she was growing up. She didn't know anything about her family or her parents, and finding info about where she came from has been somewhat difficult. All that we know is that her last name at birth was Hodgkins.

I did come across a record for a birth registry that lists a child with the same name who was born in the same year in Liverpool, England, but can't say for sure if it is her because of the time of the registry -- I don't even know the time limit for birth registrations now let alone back then. 

Is it possible that she could be one of the children who ended up in Stratford, Ontario, which is a little less than an hour away from London where she grew up? If so, what would be the best way to continue my search for information about great grandmother, given the circumstances?

Sorry for the novel!

Comments

I dont think they sent babies across the water in ships - most of the children they sent were at least walking and toilet trained, so they would have been at least 3 years old.

Also anyone born on Canada is not a British Home child since they would have been a Canadian Citizen.

You might also want to consider a DNA test to see if your DNA matches anyone eles on GEDmatch and then you can start getting some ideas of where to look.

Other than that, I can only suggest that you keep looking in Canada.

And it is probably not a good thing to assume that she was born in England just because you can't find her in Ontario.

Do you know any of the other families she was living with?

Have you checked Quebec? A lot of english speaking families were rasied in Quebec back then.

And don't for get the Maritimes as well - especially Nova Scotia. Lots of immigrants arrived in Halifax before and after WW1.

Good luck in your search.

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Hey Shirley,

Thanks for your question! Working with Home Children is hard but very rewarding when everything clicks into place. Fortunately there is good documentation for the children brought over from the Orphanages, like Bernardo's. There could also be some Ships lists from which to work.

Here is the British Home Children Site to look through.

Also Library Archives Canada has information to help in your search.

I am not sure about very young children being transported - the ones I have researched were not infants.

A tantalizing birth registry is just that, tantalizing until it can be proven. If you don't have strong evidence for this being the birth of your Annie, you might want to remove the Location and add a Research Notes section to the profile biography to show the pros and cons of the information you found and your theory as to why you think it might be right or wrong. This way other researchers can follow your research theories and help out if they come across something to add.

For so many of the children the path they took once they arrived at their destination is the hardest part to know. My Home Child's brother took off once his ship landed and has completely disappeared. The situations they grew up in once they were here? Most were treated as less than servants.

I know Robin mentioned DNA in her answer, DNA might be the only way to track down this lineage. If you need help with that we can get you rolling in that direction.

Try looking through the information in the links I posted and shout if you need further help,

Mags

Answer 7

Hello,

I would like to join this group.  My grandfather was a British Home Child.  He was Richard james Webster.  I also have several others in my tree.

 

Plus, on your home page you have Barnardos as Bernardos.

Comments

Thanks for the spell check. Can you be more specific where it is? Or go ahead and correct the miss-spelling please? I blame it on my typing. :-) Add your profiles and categories and sources and information and...

Mags

Answer 8

My great grandfather was a British home child came on the dominion ship in 1903 can I join

Comments

Absolutely! Start by adding your Home Child Profiles and research and notes and information.

Mags

Answer 9

For anyone who is interested, I have come across a website for Canadian BHC children and a free PDF that gives details on the life of BHC boys (Well one boy in particular)  and the lies that the Barnardos and other childrens orgnaizations told to keep these children seperate and away from their families.

Clearly noone ever thought that these kids will grow up and have children and grandchildern of their own and it is human nature to want to know where you come from.

The website is -- https://canadianbritishhomechildren.weebly.com/

The free PDF (Story/biography) is by Perry Snow and is called Niether Waif nor Stray.

https://canadianbritishhomechildren.weebly.com/uploads/3/9/3/2/3932259/2017_waif_update.pdf

This makes me so mad at any childrens aid society for doing so much damage to these children. How can ANYONE possibly believe and accept that was (And IS) OK to abduct children from England and send them to Canada  and Australia, and to a lesser extent to New Zealand and Rhodesia (Now Zimbabwe). It is NOT OK.

Comments

Day late and dollar short Robynne. I added the link to the resource information on the Canadian BHC sub-project page. TY.

Mags

Answer 10

I just added Bryant-4094 & Bryant-4095 to the British Home Children sent to Canada. They were my first cousins once removed.

Answer 11

Not sure if I'm doing this the right way at all! Would love to get involved in the BHC project. Not sure if I've even added the tag properly! Early days, hopefully it will fall into place soon ;) Thank you.

Answer 12

Good luck with the project. Many have/had a horror story to tell.

Answer 13

Another good source of information for Canadian BHC is

[https://bifhsgo.ca/cstm_upsAndDowns.php?page=1&nr=50&scl=sna Barnardo's Ups and Downs Magazine].  The Ups and Downs magazine was published from August 1895 to December 1949 in Toronto.

You can search the editions by last name and see if your BHC relative submitted articles or pictures.  They also have investigation summaries for some children in their database.

Answer 14

I would like to join and help with the British Home Child project. My great grandmother was a British Home Child who came to Canada in 1897 along with her 3 sisters. They were sent through the Liverpool Sheltering Home run by Mrs Louisa Birt.

Comments

Great Tracy!

Check the project page for more information. Once you are done with your Grand and your great aunts, there might be more children to ad. :-)

Thanks for jumping in!

Mags

Answer 15

Hi all , in doing the profiles for the Tumbarumba Cemetery I have found a Dr Bernardos child buried there. [[Amos-1927|Frederick Richard Amos]] .He was travelling with another child Alfred Charles Amos who I assume to be his brother(no profile as yet).Can someone cleverer than me add him to the project please?

Comments

Done! Mags

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Thanks Mags

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You are very welcome! Mags

Answer 16

Mags have you seen this announcement from yesterday - Feb 20th?

https://www.facebook.com/groups/Britishhomechildren/files/

File name - BHCARAFeb20.pdf

Released today in Canada and the UK – our official statement regarding the ex-gratia payment. Please share, please download and forward to the medial outlets in your city. We need to be heard!

February 20, 2019
UK Government Announces Ex-Gratia Payments for Canadian Child Migrants
British Home Children Advocacy & Research Association Reacts to UK Government Ex-Gratia
Cash Payments to Child Migrants in Canada

Comments

thank-you for posting this.

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Thanks for posting this Robynne! Mags

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My mother pointed out that it is only applicable to child migrants alive at March 2018, wouldn't this rule out most BHC??

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YES which is how the govt will get out of paying this out!!

The Govt clearly cannot be trusted!!

They may talk the talk - but they are NOT walking the walk!!!

Answer 17

Hi Mags —
I've just added a bio and photo to my great grandfather's profile, Canadian British Home Child James Henry Gray (1872-1955).

Gray-18429

I was sent his entire Barnardo's packet of information in 2017 and shared the info with my Gray family in Canada. I also collaborated with Canadian Gray family researchers Barry Smith and D. Caldwell on their book, The Grays — Home Children - Not Forgotten on Blurb.com and it's quite good, loaded with photos, charts and tons of info on James Henry's branch.

Two of James' sisters, Alice Ellen and Mary Ann were also Canadian BHCs in domestic service in Ontario and are on the Hazelbrae monument there. I'll contribute to their profiles as well.

At the moment, I can't take on any volunteer work in the BHC Project and Canadian subgroup, but I just wanted him added to your profiles and be added to your project list. I'd be glad to clean up his profile to conform more to your suggested format. I'd like to add a badge as well.

Thanks!

— Holly Bird

Comments

Thanks so much - just working your BHC profile is volunteering H. Glad to have you contribute! Mags

Answer 18

Hi Mags,

Let me start out with: I haven't found any British Home Children in my family, but, while doing some research for my neighbor, I found that his mother and her siblings came to Canada from the Liverpool Sheltering Home and were dispersed through the Knowlton Receiving Home. I think that including them in the British Home Children project will inspire me to create proper biographies for them. I would like very much to be part of this project.

Thanks,  David

Comments

Just great David! Add yourself to the participants on the Project page and start connecting your family. Think about how you might contribute, like adding other children as profiles on WikiTree who came to Canada in the same way as your Home Child - Liverpool Sheltering Home and were dispersed through the Knowlton Receiving Home.

Mags

Answer 19

I would like to join the project please,

I have a great uncle who was sent to canada via Barnados. He did return to England as an adult. I've just started working on his profile.

Many thanks Becky

Comments

Great and welcome! Work your profile and then figure out how you can help - possibly adding others with similar routes or home origins, etc. Add yourself to the participant list and your area of knowledge.

Mags

Answer 20

I would like to join the South African British Home Children group to help out. None of our South African family were from this group.

Thank you

Comments

Great! Work your profile and then figure out how you can help - possibly adding others with similar routes or home origins, etc. Add yourself to the participant list and your area of knowledge.

Rhodesia needs some love too...

Mags