The British Home Children of PEI
Have you ever heard of the Home Children? The children sent to Canada from Britain?
It isn't really something Island history focuses on. But it is an important aspect of our history.
So in 1826, a London, England police magistrate by the name of Robert Chambers told a British Parliament committee on emigration that London had too many poor children as a result of chronic poverty on the east-end of the city. He recommended that some of the poor, orphaned, or abandoned children be sent to Canada.
British Parliament did not take him up on his idea. But, four decades later people like Annie, Rachel, and Louisa Macpherson (sisters), and Maria Rye, and Thomas John Bernardo were poised to start sending children to Canada. The three sisters sent about 14,000 children to Canada and Bernardo sent about 30,000!
Between 1869 and the late 1930's, over 100,000 British children were sent to Canada. The people behind the emigrations were motivated by social and economic forces, religious and philanthropic beliefs. They believed these orphaned, abandoned, and/or poor children would have a better life in Canada - better air quality, build strong morals, learn the value of hard work, that type of thing.
I can already see some of you thinking, Yeah, this is going to go well or Wow these people were naive! And you would be right.
Many families welcomed them - as a cheap form of labour.
That is not to say some were not treated well. There were adoptions and some were treated like a member of the family. Which is great and, ideally, what the people who sent the children over envisioned happening.
It was also a hard transition, to go from crowded streets to empty countryside, not to mention what their first experiences with Canadian winters was like - after all, they would have only had experience with British winters.
These poor, orphaned, or abandoned children would be sent to Canada (most were between 8-16 but there were many 4-7-year-olds). Sometimes these children were sent by their family who was too poor to care for them. Canada was marketed to them as a safe place for their children where they could build a better life than what they had in England. But, siblings were separated, children were over-worked, they felt isolated and alone, some ran away, some disappeared, others committed suicide. Others, when the First World War broke out, enlisted just to get back to the "old country" and find the remaining members of their family (obviously, they lied about their ages).
When they arrived in Canada, they would be taken to receiving homes. In Ontario, some of these homes were located in Belleville, Stratford, Niagara-on-the-Lake, and Toronto. Advertisements would sometimes be put in newspapers to let people know that another shipment of children would be coming.
In most cases, these children were not adopted but rather were indentured servants. In return for their labour, the farmer/family was supposed to provide lodging, an allowance was to be placed in a trust for when the children matured, and the child was to receive an education. These conditions were rarely met.
There were also many cases of abuse and children deemed "unsuitable" - too small, slow, or difficult - were often returned to the receiving home. As a result, some were shipped from farm to farm.
With a lack of oversight, these children were victims of adults naive ideas.
The good news is some younger children, too young to do manual labour, were often treated as another child in the family. But, most children were not of these ages.
These emigrations ramped up after the First World War because Canada lost so many young men. By this time, it was mostly those over the age of 14 being sent to Canada. But some younger ones were sent.
While there were many groups opposed to the child emigration programs and recognized the programs many flaws, it, unfortunately, wasn't these arguments that caused the emigration of children to Canada to stop. It was the Great Depression.
About 10% of Canadians are descendants of these Home Children. Many do not know it.
The PEI Connection
And how does this relate to PEI? Well, as some of you may know, Home Children were sent to PEI.
According to Sara Underwood, an Island writer writing a book on the British Home Children of PEI, about 190 children came to PEI, many through the Middlemore Children's Emigration Home in Birmingham, UK.
Middlemore Children's Emigration Home was opened in 1872 by John Throgmorton Middlemore and his first group of children went to Canada in 1873, about one year later. By 1875, he had opened the Guthrie Home, a receiving home, in London, Ontario. The Guthrie Home closed in 1890 but he continued to settle children in Ontario through Annie Macpherson's receiving home in Stratford, Ontario.
In 1885, Middlemore started settling childing in New Brunswick. Then in 1893, he began bringing children to Halifax and settling them in all three Atlantic provinces. In 1897, he opened his Middlemore Home at Fairview Station near Halifax. This home operated until 1932.
The eastern part of the Island is where many of these children sent to PEI ended-up as farm labourers or servants. Underwood also adds that if you have an ancestor that came from Britain during this rather large time period, 1869 to the late 1930's, that could be a clue as to how they got here. And how they were treated.
The average age of the Home Children sent to PEI was 10 years old and two-thirds were boys.
Her book, Awful Kind, is set to come out on September 28 (British Home Child Day). Personally, I will be picking up a copy.
More Information
There are a few websites and resources you can check out for more info on Home Children if you are interested in seeing the names of who came over.
If you want to see a list of the Home Children sent to PEI, check out the PEI Home Children website.
If you want a more extensive list, you can check out the Library and Archives Canada website at the following links:
Home Children Records
Home Children, 1869-1932
Home Children - Board of Guardians
I couldn't find any specific examples of PEI Home Children, but I am sure Underwood's book will have many.
I want to thank my aunt, Betty MacKenzie, for the idea for this blog post and I hope you enjoyed it. If you have any ideas for a post, let me know!
Sources:
Bagnell, Kenneth. "British Home Children." Historica Canada. March 24, 2015. https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/immigrant-children/
"Children's (Middlemore) Emigration Homes, Birmingham, Warwickshire." Children's Homes. http://www.childrenshomes.org.uk/BirminghamMiddlemore/
"Home Children, 1869-1932." Library and Archives Canada. https://www.bac-lac.gc.ca/eng/discover/immigration/immigration-records/home-children-1869-1930/Pages/home-children.aspx
MacKay, Cody. "Island writer searching for more information on British Home Children." CBC News. February 18, 2018. https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/prince-edward-island/pei-british-home-children-1.4538982
"Middlemore Homes." Library and Archives Canada. https://www.bac-lac.gc.ca/eng/discover/immigration/immigration-records/home-children-1869-1930/home-children-guide/Pages/middlemore-homes.aspx
It isn't really something Island history focuses on. But it is an important aspect of our history.
So in 1826, a London, England police magistrate by the name of Robert Chambers told a British Parliament committee on emigration that London had too many poor children as a result of chronic poverty on the east-end of the city. He recommended that some of the poor, orphaned, or abandoned children be sent to Canada.
British Parliament did not take him up on his idea. But, four decades later people like Annie, Rachel, and Louisa Macpherson (sisters), and Maria Rye, and Thomas John Bernardo were poised to start sending children to Canada. The three sisters sent about 14,000 children to Canada and Bernardo sent about 30,000!
 |
| British Immigrant Children from Bernardo's home, New Brunswick. (Image Source: Library and Archives Canada) |
Between 1869 and the late 1930's, over 100,000 British children were sent to Canada. The people behind the emigrations were motivated by social and economic forces, religious and philanthropic beliefs. They believed these orphaned, abandoned, and/or poor children would have a better life in Canada - better air quality, build strong morals, learn the value of hard work, that type of thing.
I can already see some of you thinking, Yeah, this is going to go well or Wow these people were naive! And you would be right.
Many families welcomed them - as a cheap form of labour.
That is not to say some were not treated well. There were adoptions and some were treated like a member of the family. Which is great and, ideally, what the people who sent the children over envisioned happening.
It was also a hard transition, to go from crowded streets to empty countryside, not to mention what their first experiences with Canadian winters was like - after all, they would have only had experience with British winters.
 |
| Image Source: CBC News |
These poor, orphaned, or abandoned children would be sent to Canada (most were between 8-16 but there were many 4-7-year-olds). Sometimes these children were sent by their family who was too poor to care for them. Canada was marketed to them as a safe place for their children where they could build a better life than what they had in England. But, siblings were separated, children were over-worked, they felt isolated and alone, some ran away, some disappeared, others committed suicide. Others, when the First World War broke out, enlisted just to get back to the "old country" and find the remaining members of their family (obviously, they lied about their ages).
When they arrived in Canada, they would be taken to receiving homes. In Ontario, some of these homes were located in Belleville, Stratford, Niagara-on-the-Lake, and Toronto. Advertisements would sometimes be put in newspapers to let people know that another shipment of children would be coming.
In most cases, these children were not adopted but rather were indentured servants. In return for their labour, the farmer/family was supposed to provide lodging, an allowance was to be placed in a trust for when the children matured, and the child was to receive an education. These conditions were rarely met.
There were also many cases of abuse and children deemed "unsuitable" - too small, slow, or difficult - were often returned to the receiving home. As a result, some were shipped from farm to farm.
With a lack of oversight, these children were victims of adults naive ideas.
The good news is some younger children, too young to do manual labour, were often treated as another child in the family. But, most children were not of these ages.
These emigrations ramped up after the First World War because Canada lost so many young men. By this time, it was mostly those over the age of 14 being sent to Canada. But some younger ones were sent.
While there were many groups opposed to the child emigration programs and recognized the programs many flaws, it, unfortunately, wasn't these arguments that caused the emigration of children to Canada to stop. It was the Great Depression.
About 10% of Canadians are descendants of these Home Children. Many do not know it.
The PEI Connection
And how does this relate to PEI? Well, as some of you may know, Home Children were sent to PEI.
According to Sara Underwood, an Island writer writing a book on the British Home Children of PEI, about 190 children came to PEI, many through the Middlemore Children's Emigration Home in Birmingham, UK.
Middlemore Children's Emigration Home was opened in 1872 by John Throgmorton Middlemore and his first group of children went to Canada in 1873, about one year later. By 1875, he had opened the Guthrie Home, a receiving home, in London, Ontario. The Guthrie Home closed in 1890 but he continued to settle children in Ontario through Annie Macpherson's receiving home in Stratford, Ontario.
In 1885, Middlemore started settling childing in New Brunswick. Then in 1893, he began bringing children to Halifax and settling them in all three Atlantic provinces. In 1897, he opened his Middlemore Home at Fairview Station near Halifax. This home operated until 1932.
The eastern part of the Island is where many of these children sent to PEI ended-up as farm labourers or servants. Underwood also adds that if you have an ancestor that came from Britain during this rather large time period, 1869 to the late 1930's, that could be a clue as to how they got here. And how they were treated.
The average age of the Home Children sent to PEI was 10 years old and two-thirds were boys.
Her book, Awful Kind, is set to come out on September 28 (British Home Child Day). Personally, I will be picking up a copy.
More Information
There are a few websites and resources you can check out for more info on Home Children if you are interested in seeing the names of who came over.
If you want to see a list of the Home Children sent to PEI, check out the PEI Home Children website.
If you want a more extensive list, you can check out the Library and Archives Canada website at the following links:
Home Children Records
Home Children, 1869-1932
Home Children - Board of Guardians
I couldn't find any specific examples of PEI Home Children, but I am sure Underwood's book will have many.
I want to thank my aunt, Betty MacKenzie, for the idea for this blog post and I hope you enjoyed it. If you have any ideas for a post, let me know!
Sources:
Bagnell, Kenneth. "British Home Children." Historica Canada. March 24, 2015. https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/immigrant-children/
"Children's (Middlemore) Emigration Homes, Birmingham, Warwickshire." Children's Homes. http://www.childrenshomes.org.uk/BirminghamMiddlemore/
"Home Children, 1869-1932." Library and Archives Canada. https://www.bac-lac.gc.ca/eng/discover/immigration/immigration-records/home-children-1869-1930/Pages/home-children.aspx
MacKay, Cody. "Island writer searching for more information on British Home Children." CBC News. February 18, 2018. https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/prince-edward-island/pei-british-home-children-1.4538982
"Middlemore Homes." Library and Archives Canada. https://www.bac-lac.gc.ca/eng/discover/immigration/immigration-records/home-children-1869-1930/home-children-guide/Pages/middlemore-homes.aspx
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