Types of Orphanage Care

The word 'orphan' comes from old Latin and Greek words meaning bereaved. When a child was referred to as being in a state of bereavement, it was assumed that both parents were dead. Orphanages were formed to house and care for these bereaved children, or 'orphans' as they came to be known. For more than 150 years societies have been trying to figure out a solution for these bereaving children. Here have been the many different forms of 'orphanage' solutions. Also be sure to visit Dr. Richard McKenzie's site and view his evaluation on orphanages entitled, Orphanage Alumni: How they have done and How they evaluate their experience.

Orphan Trains

Between 1850-1930, Orphan trains carried about 150,000 children from New York and a few other eastern U.S. cities to the mid-west for adoption or placement. This was considered by some to be the more romantic alternative to the overcrowded city orphanages. It was also the most popular method of adoption in the rural west. Not all placements were successful, but many 'orphan riders' felt they were very fortunate.

Orphan train derailed

In 1993, orphan riders held a reunion in Arkansas to share their stories. Granbury, Texas also holds the Texas Orphan Train Annual Reunion. More recently, the July 4, 1996 issue of the local weekly paper The Van Alstyne Leader carried an article on two orphan train children by local historian Julie Morris of Texas.

There is also The Orphan Train Heritage Society of America which has information on 3,000 children who rode the trains and plans to build a research center in Springdale, Arkansas to help riders and descendants find each other. You can write them at 4912 Trout Farm Road, Springdale, AR. 72762. Phone number is (501) 756-2780 and their fax is (501) 756-0769.

I would like to graciously thank Juanita Hazelton of the Van Alstyne Public Library, Texas, for providing information on Orphan Trains for us.

Children's Villages

These were the Austrian equivalent of orphanages or institutional care. They were developed by Hermann Gmeiner and attempted to mimick home and family life. A typical village consisted of 10-16 cottages each headed by a mother who cares for a group of 8-9 children ranging in age from infancy to adolescent. The village father or Dorfleiter provides the only paternal model and nurturing. Circa unknown.

Foster Homes

These controversial models stemmed from the belief that parentless children of all ages would do better in private homes in a family environment. Orphanages were decreasing in numbers as fewer private and public funds were available; yet, the orphan population was on the increase. It is the most widely practised orphan care in North America today but the success of them is reviewed by politicians again and again as the quality of foster parenting varies.

Church Orphanages

As the name suggests, these were orphanages funded and operated by a church. Often the orphans resided in the basement or attached rectory of the church, or in another building owned by the church. Within the classification of 'church orphanages' there seems to be a great deal of difference in the level of care, education, nurturing and success from religion to religion. Many Catholic orphanages hold a tarnished reputation with tales of abuse such as at Mount Cashel in Newfoundland. Priests, brothers, and nuns were the primary role models that filled the boots of teacher, caregiver and parent. Methodist orphanages considered Idle hands are the devils workshop and taught their residents many different survival-labour skills. They were often staffed by secular members of the community who did the cooking, teaching and in some rural areas, farming. Church Orphanages have been under attack since their inception as outlined in History of Orphanages. Between 1950-1970 most church-operated orphanages phased out.

The big question for many seems to be, “They no longer exist but what happened to their records?” In most cases, their records are held with a neighbouring parish that still exists or the regional archdiocese. To determine which it might be takes patience, a letter-writing campaign and persistence.

State Orphanages

Still being researched.

Foundling Hospitals

A version of the original orphanage. Created in France and Italy as early as the 7th or 8th centuries to deal with the amount of abandoned children. Hospitals offered primitive institutional care as their name implies. Britain reestablished foundling hospitals in 1552 with Christ's Hospital and began accepting any abandoned or orphaned children. However, by the mid-1600s they succumbed to religious pressure and would only accept legitimate children. This left bastard children, which was also the majority of orphaned children, without a place for care. Foundling Hospitals gave way to the warehouse-style orphanages criticized in the Dickensian era that developed a century later during the industrial age.

Group Homes

Still being researched.

Asylums

The very word 'asylum' conjures up ugly images. Despite this, it traditionally means a 'place of refuge.' The first American foundling hospital was St. Vincent's Infant Asylum in Baltimore. Roman Catholic nuns founded the asylum in 1856. Many others infant asylums followed supported by other religious denominations and by private charities. In the 19th and 20th centuries, asylums more often refer to a place for the mentally ill. Two large asylums in Saint John, New Brunswick and Toronto, Ontario reinforced the link of 'asylums' to the 'insane.' Family historians should be sure to check references to asylums as they often include orphanages.