Together Trust Archive

On a journey to the archives this week, one case file turned up a new document. Most of these case files are fairly similar in content. All contain the now familiar admission form detailing child’s circumstances, parent’s names, previous addresses etc. Other common documents include visitor’s reports, letters from concerned individuals and indentures that are signed by a parent or guardian of the child. Parent Indenture, 1903

'When the stones under his bare feet are frozen he is sent out to wander, to plead, to pester, to get thrust out of the way and cursed by some, to get for his match-box the penny for which all the joy and health of his childhood are being sold' - Reverend Benjamin Waugh , Contemporary Review, July 1888.  Between 1885 and 1894 the Manchester Refuges operated a branch of work called the Manchester and Salford Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children . It was a predecessor to the NSPCC investigating and prosecuting neglectful or abusive parents in the courts. The establishment of a Manchester branch by the NSPCC in 1894 brought an end to this work, but not before 9,922 children had been assisted. After 1894 the charity had a close working relationship with the NSPCC and the admission books continued to tell stories of children whose parents were prosecuted by the courts.  Letterhead for branch

During a trip to Liverpool Maritime Museum last week, it was impossible to not take a look at the large Titanic exhibition they have on display. The devastation of this event is well known and got me thinking to our own children who made the same trip every year across the icy Atlantic towards Canada. On the 12 April 1912, the S.S. Victorian set sail from Liverpool to make one of its frequent trips across the Atlantic to Halifax, Canada. On board were 33 boys who were starting a new life in Ontario. 1897 Emigration party outside of Manchester Town Hall