Sailed for Canada
The emigration of children to Canada by the charity then known as 'Manchester and Salford Refuges and Homes' has been well documented in this blog and looking through the admission books the number of entries which end 'Sailed for Canada' demonstrates how emigration was an important part of the charity's work from 1872 until the charity ended the practice in 1914. Seen by many charities at the time as a cost efficient way of offering poor and orphaned children a new life, the practice also offered a solution to the demand for farm and domestic labour in Canada. While the admission books frequently refer to emigration being at the child's own request, it's hard to imagine that many of the children who made the journey understood what they were signing up to. The difficult circumstances of these children's lives however mean it's easy to understand why the hope of a new life was so tempting. I've concentrated my attention so far on those that left ...
