Come on Ride the Orphan Train!

My mom called me into the living room for this rather odd choice for a holiday feature on CNN: an interview with a gentleman who, as a young boy, was one of the many children shipped west from New York on the Orphan Train.

The Orphan Train was a social welfare organization, which from 1854-1929 took immigrant orphans off the streets of New York and relocated them to the west to work for wealthy families. Sometimes, there was a happy ending: the children were taken out of a toxic environment to a rural community where they thrived. But my impression is that, more often than not, the children were essentially slaves to their adoptive families. In fact, some argued that the Train would be a cure for slaves, since families who adopted an orphan would no long be in need of a black slaves. Children were carted out in front of wealthy families who selected the ones they wanted to take home.

The worst part is that many of the children were not actually orphans; the society did not extensively check into the backgrounds of the orphans they received. I read one story of a boy who was caught up in following a marching band and was separated from his mother; he was scooped up by Orphan Train workers and never saw his family again.

So watch the CNN special and let your heart be warmed. But also remember the children who never saw their families again.



Further Reading: The Battle for Christmas