ONTARIO EAST BRITISH HOME CHILD FAMILY
______________________________________________________________________________________________________________
SEPTEMBER 28TH
NATIONALLY RECOGNIZED AS
BRITISH HOME CHILD DAY
A LITTLE BACKGROUND There were some 100,000 British Home Children who were sent to Canada from the United Kingdom and Ireland during the period of 1870 to the mid 1930s. A large number of these children were relocated to rural communities in Canada through some 50 different emigration / immigration agencies. Most worked as indentured domestic servants or farm workers, with the largest number eventually residing in Ontario. These young children, young ladies, and young men became productive members of Canadian society. David Lorente, a founding member of Home Children Canada, has worked tirelessly to promote recognition of these children who were brought to Canada. Many other organizations, one of which is the Ontario East British Home Child Family, are continuing the efforts. Ontario East British Home Child Family’s mission is to give a voice to all British Home children who walked silently among us. OEBHCF are interested in any information that you may have on British Home Children and would welcome any opportunity to hear any stories or view any artifacts. Please refer to our contact information button at the top. Dedicated Volunteers Working To:
SOW THE SEEDS, REAP THE STORIES Sunflowers are readily started from seed, grow almost anywhere, are easily maintained, and are considered by many to be happy plants. These points have helped endear Sunflowers to school children and their teachers, who find the flower useful as hands-on teaching aids. The Sunflower, with this close association to children, has been adopted by the Ontario East British Home Child Family. British Home Children, like Sunflower seeds, were scattered throughout Canada leaving countless stories behind, many that will never be told. Ontario East British Home Child Family works to tell the stories of these children who walked silently among us. 
Aultsville Train Station British Home Child Museum Ontario East British Home Child Family (OEBHCF), in partnership with the St. Lawrence Parks Commission once again used the Aultsville Train Station to house a British Home Child exhibit on weekends during 2016's autumn. This little known part of our Canadian heritage was showcased at the Aultsville Train Station near Upper Canada Village on County Road 2 between the villages of Morrisburg and Ingleside. Volunteers from the Ontario East British Home Child Family organization were on hand at the train station to answer any questions and provide information about the role that British Home Children played in the history of our area, our province and our country. As well, on display were artifacts and documents on this subject. After travelling to Canada by ship and spending time at one of the many receiving homes located in this country, the British Home Child would often travel to their new “home” via train. There is little doubt that many of these littlest of immigrants would have been found waiting in or near a building such as the Aultsville Train Station for pick up by their new “family”. It is for this reason that the Ontario East British Home Child Family, which seeks to preserve and promote the story of the British Home Child, approached the St. Lawrence Parks Commission and Upper Canada Village to seek permission to house a collection of memorabilia and information on British Home Children in Canada at the Aultsville Station. Plans have been made to exhibit again at the Aultsville Train Station in 2018. |
Wreath laid at Canada's National War Memorial The British Home Children and their descendants who enlisted in the Canadian Expeditionary Force as well as their descendants who have chosen to join the Canadian Military Services since that time were again remembered with a honorary wreath laid at the National War Memorial in Ottawa during Canada's National Remembrance Day Ceremony on November 11, 2017. The Canadian government declared 2010 the Year of the British Home Child and then in the same year Ontario's government declared September 28 as British Home Child Day. Remembrance Day 2013 marked the first time the contributions and sacrifices of British Home Children and their descendants were acknowledged by the laying of a wreath at the National War Memorial. Some British Home Children who were first placed in the Ottawa and St. Lawrence Valley areas before enlisting in the Canadian Expeditonary Forces include:
|