British Home Children
A Brief History
By the mid-1860s, Britain was facing a growing problem: thousands of orphaned and pauper children were living on the dirty, dangerous streets of major urban centres like London and Glasgow. There was limited government assistance during this period, so various religious and philanthropic organizations were founded to care for these children. Several early founders include Maria Rye, Annie Macpherson, Thomas Barnardo, and William Quarrier.
Within a short time, the institutions reached capacity and a new solution to the problem needed to be found. It was decided that destitute children would be sent to British colonies, such as Canada and Australia, and so the emigration program began. Children ranging in age from infancy to 18 years were chosen to participate, though some older than that were sent as well. It was the goal of the sending organizations to have younger children adopted and older children hired out to work as domestic servants and farm labourers.
The first recorded group of children to arrive in Canada came with Maria Rye in 1869. By the 1880s, religious organizations such as the Church of England Waifs and Strays Society and the Catholic Emigration Association were also sending children to Canada. Over 50 sending organizations participated in the emigration program during the eight decades that it was active.
When children arrived in Canada, they would be sent to distribution homes, then to placements throughout the country. While some were treated well by their placement families, many were overworked, underfed, and abused. A number of children ran away or were given new placements. Some also committed suicide.
When World War I and II broke out, thousands of British Home Children enlisted. For some, it was an escape from brutal employers or a chance to see their homes again. Many made the ultimate sacrifice for their adopted country, and a number of them earned honours for their actions overseas.
The emigration program ended in 1948, having been cut back significantly since the late 1930s. Although it had been born of good intentions, it left many children with trauma that can still be felt generations later. The stigma attached to these children was overwhelming and it led many to hide their experiences. Because of this, the story of the British Home Children has been largely forgotten by the public, despite being an integral part of Canadian history.
Considerable efforts have been made to bring awareness to the history of British Home Children in Canada. David and Kay Lorente founded Home Children Canada in 1991. The British Isles Family History Society of Greater Ottawa (BIFHSGO) began indexing the names of home children from passenger lists in 1998—a database that is now hosted by Library and Archives Canada. In 2000, a registry of these children was started by Perry Snow, whose father was a home child. In 2011, Karen Mahoney and Sandra Joyce began the British Home Child Group International, and the British Home Children Advocacy and Research Association (BHCARA) was founded by Lori Oschefski the following year. BHCARA took over Perry Snow's registry in 2013 and the group has since expanded it; as of 2021, there are over 83,000 entries. In 2021, BHCARA became a non-profit organization by the name of Home Children Canada—a tribute to David Lorente, who passed away in 2020. A local group, the Ontario East British Home Child Family (OEBHCF), was formed in 2011 and incorporated in 2014.
Within a short time, the institutions reached capacity and a new solution to the problem needed to be found. It was decided that destitute children would be sent to British colonies, such as Canada and Australia, and so the emigration program began. Children ranging in age from infancy to 18 years were chosen to participate, though some older than that were sent as well. It was the goal of the sending organizations to have younger children adopted and older children hired out to work as domestic servants and farm labourers.
The first recorded group of children to arrive in Canada came with Maria Rye in 1869. By the 1880s, religious organizations such as the Church of England Waifs and Strays Society and the Catholic Emigration Association were also sending children to Canada. Over 50 sending organizations participated in the emigration program during the eight decades that it was active.
When children arrived in Canada, they would be sent to distribution homes, then to placements throughout the country. While some were treated well by their placement families, many were overworked, underfed, and abused. A number of children ran away or were given new placements. Some also committed suicide.
When World War I and II broke out, thousands of British Home Children enlisted. For some, it was an escape from brutal employers or a chance to see their homes again. Many made the ultimate sacrifice for their adopted country, and a number of them earned honours for their actions overseas.
The emigration program ended in 1948, having been cut back significantly since the late 1930s. Although it had been born of good intentions, it left many children with trauma that can still be felt generations later. The stigma attached to these children was overwhelming and it led many to hide their experiences. Because of this, the story of the British Home Children has been largely forgotten by the public, despite being an integral part of Canadian history.
Considerable efforts have been made to bring awareness to the history of British Home Children in Canada. David and Kay Lorente founded Home Children Canada in 1991. The British Isles Family History Society of Greater Ottawa (BIFHSGO) began indexing the names of home children from passenger lists in 1998—a database that is now hosted by Library and Archives Canada. In 2000, a registry of these children was started by Perry Snow, whose father was a home child. In 2011, Karen Mahoney and Sandra Joyce began the British Home Child Group International, and the British Home Children Advocacy and Research Association (BHCARA) was founded by Lori Oschefski the following year. BHCARA took over Perry Snow's registry in 2013 and the group has since expanded it; as of 2021, there are over 83,000 entries. In 2021, BHCARA became a non-profit organization by the name of Home Children Canada—a tribute to David Lorente, who passed away in 2020. A local group, the Ontario East British Home Child Family (OEBHCF), was formed in 2011 and incorporated in 2014.
Database of British Home Children in North Dundas
Records show that British Home Children were in North Dundas as early as 1881, though they may have arrived earlier. It is estimated that more than 300 home children came to the area. A number of them were placed here as children and remained in the district, while others moved here as adults or are buried in local cemeteries.
In the fall of 2019, Chesterville and District Historical Society's then president, Ashley Harper, began compiling a list of British Home Children with connections to the Township of North Dundas, which consists of the historic townships of Winchester and Mountain. What started as a small personal project has now grown into a crowd-sourced research tool for the community.
Below is a list of local home children who have been found so far. An Excel sheet with details about these children, including their birth, marriage, death, and burial information, placements, spouses, etc. can be downloaded here:
In the fall of 2019, Chesterville and District Historical Society's then president, Ashley Harper, began compiling a list of British Home Children with connections to the Township of North Dundas, which consists of the historic townships of Winchester and Mountain. What started as a small personal project has now grown into a crowd-sourced research tool for the community.
Below is a list of local home children who have been found so far. An Excel sheet with details about these children, including their birth, marriage, death, and burial information, placements, spouses, etc. can be downloaded here:
British Home Children in North Dundas |
Last updated: 06 Dec 2021, 5:40 pm
Please note that this project is a work in progress and will be updated as more information is found. Contributions and corrections to the list are welcome and can be emailed to Ashley Harper at [email protected].
Abraham, Thomas James
Addison, William Ainslie, Jessie Dodds Aitchison, Matthew N. Aldridge, William Alexander, Beatrice Carlisle Allan, Alexander Clarke Allan, Janet Allen, Edith Mary Allen, Lillian May Allen, Thomas D. Anderson, Charles William Scott Anderson, Jeanie Andrews, George Andrews, Joseph Appleby, Ed Armstrong, Ernest Armstrong, George Frederick Armstrong, John Arrel, John Artus, Harold Sidney Atkinson, Ernest Rowland Backler, John William Baker, Alfred Richard "Fred" Baker, William Baldwin, Harold Barber, John Barnes, Frederick George Barrett, Richard Baulch, Frederick Thomas Behan, John Belcher, Dennis Bell, Agnes Bell, Elizabeth Margaret Bell, Frederick George K. Bennett, James Bentley, John Henry Bergen, Frederick George Beswick, William Biven, Joseph Black, Margaret Blackman, Arthur Ernest Bloom, Joseph Blower, Eric Bowles, Alfred Robert Henry Bowman, Edward Charles Bowman, James Bowness, William Boyd, Alexander John Boyle, Janet "Jennie" Bracewell, Thomas Bradford, George Brand, Charles Bremner, Robina Ferguson Brennan, Joseph Brill-Edwards, Ernest Victor Brown, Douglas Sterling M. Brown, Henry James Brown, Margaret Buchan, John Buckley, John William Frank Budner, Bessie Bullard, Harriet Susannah Burrage, Richard Bush, Ethel Butler, William A. Byrne, Mary Ellen Calder, Peter D. G. Campbell, James M. Canty, John Chambers, Florence Gertrude Childs, Edmund William Clark, James Clarke, Cyril George Clarke, John Clarke, Joseph Classon, Charles William Cleator, Walter John Clinton, Catherine Hutchison/ Kathleen Marjory Clow, Henry Patrick Coleman, Walter Bodycote Collins, Michael Colls, Clifford Cooke, David Corbet, Michael Cottage, Norman Harold Coulby, Francis Dixon Cowan, Sarah J. Crabtree, Arthur Henry Craig, David Heron Craig, Lizzie |
Crawford, Annie Patterson
Crawford, William Fleming (Rev.) Crook, Lucy May Crosbie, James Cross, Ernest Walter Cull, Freda Berneisa Cullen, Mary Cusick, Edward Daniel, Arthur Davis, Joseph A. Denyer, Mary E. Devereaux, Robert Dickson, John Leslie Donohue, Mary Ann Donovan, Denis Donovan, Timothy Dorman, Bert Harrison Douglas, Hamish Douglas, Kate Dowsett, Grace Dryden, George Duffield, Bernard Duncan, Alexander Henry Duncan, Thomas Dunn, James Durant, James Dutton, Margaret Ann "Annie" Dwyer, Bernard Eccles, Alexander Gordon Emery, John Empson, George Empson, John Robert Endersby, Arthur John Evans, Robert Fairfirth/Fairforth, Henrietta Farmiloe, Charles Farmiloe, Frederick W. Farmiloe, Linda (adopted surname Summers) Faulds, Alexander Filshie, James Taylor Fish, John Fisher, Leslie Rowland Fleet, Christopher Fleming, Thomas Hanley Franks, Alfred Freeman, James Gaituir, John Gaituir, Julian Gilligan, Edward Goodhead, Lizzie Graham, Agnes Gow Graham, James Murray Graham, Sarah Darling Hall, John Frederick Hamill, Alfred Hammond, Ellen Hammond, Peter Stephen Harrington, John Hastings, Matthew Metcalf Hollands, Arthur Sidney Holt, Joseph Robert Holt, Margaret Hughes, Olive (adopted surname Coventry) Hutchinson, John James Ilett, Nettie Doris or Doris Monica Jamieson, Jane Johnson, Timothy Johnstone, Andrew Keill, George Keill, William Keir, Agnes Keir, Margaret Graham Keir, Mary Kyle, Mary Lambert, Harriet Lambert, Margaret Lambert, Mary Elizabeth Lawrence, Walter Charles B. Layzell, George Leach, Martha Lewis, Richard William Lindsay, Charles Timothy Longman, Augustus James MacFarlane, Helen Gordon MacKesey, George Mackin, Edward Marchant, William Ewart McBride, Jonathan McBride, Sarah McBride, William |
McCaig, William James
McDade, Helen McGregor, James William McKearney, Agnes McKenzie, Dolina “Ina” McLean, Maria Corkindale McLean, Marion Thorburn McMurtie, Robert McQueen, Jessie Mead, John Mead, William Edward Frederick Micklewright, Arthur Frank Micklewright, Ellen Olive "Nellie" Mills, Edward Milne, James Milne, Joseph Milnes, Horace Montgomery, Alexander Morrison, Christina Thomas (adopted surname Armstrong) Morrison, Frederick William (adopted surname Armstrong) Morrison, Jessie McMillan Mundy, Edward Robert Mundy, Reginald James Murdoch, Flora Murphy, Mary Jane Murphy, Sidney Nelson, Charles Nelson, William Neville, James Newton, William Thomas Norris, George Ogilvie, Henry Archman "Harry" Owen, Frank Oxford, Frederick William Oxford, George Page, Patrick Paterson, Jane Penman, Betsy Sneddon Penman, Joseph Sneddon Pielow, Henry Pielow, Samuel Pink, Catherine Mary/Kathleen Pink, Murdina “Ina” Quirk/Clayton, James Ramsbottom, Clara Raybould, Lillian Gertrude Reid, William Reilly, Ella Cecilia Remnant, Violet Reoch, John Reoch, Robert Wilson Rigby, Thomas Riley, Thomas Rixon, Lydia Roberts, George T. Robertson, Charles Rowley, Robert Russell, May/Mae Eleanor Schweppe, Edmund Thomas (also used surname Wilson) Sheehan, Alexander Smith, Belinda Stirratt, David Stevens, Frederick Lawrence Stevens, Mildred Taylor, Annie Isabella Thomson, Jessie Swan Inglis Tillman, William George Torrington, Gwendolyn Tyres, William Henry Walker, Jesse Walker, Mary Wardlaw, Walter Warren, Sarah A. Waters, Susan Watson, William Wedlock, Mary White, Susan White, Warwick Henry White, William Williams, Arthur Williams, Maud (adopted surname Hummel) Williamson, Grace Williamson, John Williamson, Robert Wilson, James Wood, Joseph Andrew Wright, James Shore |
Resources
Databases/Research Tools:
Library and Archives Canada Database (website)
Home Children Canada (BHCARA) Registry (website)
Home Children Canada's First World War Casualties Database (website)
Home Children Canada's Second World War/Korean War/Boer War Enlistments and Casualties Database (website)
Juvenile Inspection Report Cards on Canadiana (website)
Barnardo's Ups and Downs Magazine (1895-1903) on Canadiana (website)
History/Information:
British Home Child Group International (website)
British Home Children in Canada (part of BHCARA) (website)
British Isles Family History Society of Greater Ottawa (BHC webpage)
Home Children Canada (formerly British Home Children Advocacy and Research Association) (website)
Library and Archives Canada (BHC webpage)
Ontario East British Home Child Family (website)
Veteran's Affairs (BHC webpage)
Facebook Groups:
BHCARA Facebook Group (here)
Ontario East British Home Child Family Facebook Group (here)
Virtual Cemeteries on Find A Grave:
British Home Children Virtual Cemetery (here)
Chesterville and District British Home Children Virtual Cemetery (here)
SDG British Home Children Virtual Cemetery (here)
Library and Archives Canada Database (website)
Home Children Canada (BHCARA) Registry (website)
Home Children Canada's First World War Casualties Database (website)
Home Children Canada's Second World War/Korean War/Boer War Enlistments and Casualties Database (website)
Juvenile Inspection Report Cards on Canadiana (website)
Barnardo's Ups and Downs Magazine (1895-1903) on Canadiana (website)
History/Information:
British Home Child Group International (website)
British Home Children in Canada (part of BHCARA) (website)
British Isles Family History Society of Greater Ottawa (BHC webpage)
Home Children Canada (formerly British Home Children Advocacy and Research Association) (website)
Library and Archives Canada (BHC webpage)
Ontario East British Home Child Family (website)
Veteran's Affairs (BHC webpage)
Facebook Groups:
BHCARA Facebook Group (here)
Ontario East British Home Child Family Facebook Group (here)
Virtual Cemeteries on Find A Grave:
British Home Children Virtual Cemetery (here)
Chesterville and District British Home Children Virtual Cemetery (here)
SDG British Home Children Virtual Cemetery (here)