In Canada, John Joseph Kelso, a newspaper reporter for the Toronto World and later the Globe, devoted his life to securing a better system of providing for children’s social and emotional needs. Initially disturbed by the ill treatment of animals, he was a founding member and first president of the Toronto Humane Society in 1887. By 1891, he established the first Children’s Aid Society in Toronto. In 1893 Canada’s first Children’s Act was passed in parliament: An Act for the Prevention of Cruelty to and Better Protection of Children.
Foster care emerged by the latter half of the 19th century in response to beliefs that a substitute family was a more appropriate place than an institution for a child to build character and receive positive influence.
The assumption at the time was that children in institutions learned what were perceived to be evil or idle habits from one another and generally did not have the chance to morally improve. Organizations like Dr. Barnardo’s Homes placed orphaned British children with Ontarian families to provide farm labour and domestic service in return for what they hoped would be a better life. Dr. Barnardo’s Homes provided the model for Ontario’s first foster homes.
Foster parents received no remuneration and were expected to ensure the child’s attendance at school and Sunday school, while providing food, clothing and support to the child’s character development.
I found a clipping about Hannah Florence Lark and it spiked interest and I decided she needed to be documented. She had taken an overdose of Paris Green in 1911 and I knew her life had to be full of sadness– and it was. She had given birth to a child out of wedlock in January of 1900 and on the birth certificate the father’s name was x’d out. Hannah was easy to find but her daughter was not. She was first listed as Nilda Florence Lark on Ancestry and then I found her as Nelda on FamilySearch.org. It was easy to see that an ‘e’ was seen as an ‘i’ as so many other mistakes have been made.
Hannah went on to marry Donald Moore in 1905 and looked after his young daughter Tillie Elizabeth Moore from his previous wife who had died at age 26, but there was no mention of her first born Nelda. In those days men needed a wife to look after children after a wife died. I began to dig through archives and I soon found her. Nelda was now listed as Hilda F. Larke and was one year old during the 1901 Census and now living at the Salvation Army in Ottawa. She had been given up for adoption.
In 1911 it looks like Hannah was either living with her parents, or alone in town or —refused to give out her married name as she had various scrapes with the law.
May 19, 1911 Almonte Gazette
Hannah never told anyone about the birth of her daughter Nelda/ Hilda Lark/Larke and passed away in 1978. Looking to find out what happened to her. Everyone is meant and deserves to be documented.
1978, Wednesday February 1, The Almonte Gazette, page 9 Obituary Hannah Florence Moore The death of Hannah Florence Lark, widow of the late Donald Moore, formerly of 492 Haig Street, Sudbury, occurred at the Nichel Centre Nursing Home at Garson, Ontario on Thursday, January 19th, 1978, following a lengthy illness. She was in her 96th year. Born at Perth, Ontario, on October 14th, 1881, she was the daughter of the late Mr and Mrs Lark. She attended school at Perth and later was married at Ottawa on March 15, 1905, to Donald Moore. The couple lived at Crystal Falls for 50 years before moving to Almonte where Mr Moore died on November 4th, 1957. Mrs Moore became seriously ill in 1961 and lived with her step-daughter in Almonte until 1969 when she went to live with her niece, Mrs Millie Campbell of Garson, Ontario. She is survived by her step-daughter, Mrs Thomas Julian (Tillie), of 221 Augusta Street, Almonte, a number of grandchildren, great-grandchildren, nieces and nephews. Funeral services were held at the Gamble and Comba Funeral Home, 127 Church Street, Almonte, on January 21st, 1978, with Rev E. Smith officiating. Interment was at Auld Kirk Cemetery
Her husband Donald Moore passed away in 1957.
1957, Thursday November 7, The Almonte Gazette, page 5 Donald Moore Following a lingering illness, Donald Moore, died at his Main Street home in Almonte on Monday, Nov 4th. He was in his 88th year. Born in Ramsay Township, a son of the late William Moore and his wife the former Matilda Nicholson, he received his education at the 7th line of Ramsay school. Following his schooling Mr Moore took up the trade of stonemason and his work took him to all parts of the country. When he was getting up in years he turned to farming and for quite a number of years he farmed in the Crystal Falls district. Some 11 years ago he retired and moved to Almonte where he lived until time of his death. Twice married Mr Moore is survived by his second wife, the former Hannah Lark. His first wife, the former Sarah Eastman, of Russell, Ontario died 60 years ago. The last of a large family of 5 girls and 10 boys, he is survived by one daughter, by his first marriage, Tillie, Mrs Thomas A. Julian of Almonte. Also surviving are 6 grandchildren and 20 great-grandchildren. The funeral was held on Wednesday afternoon at 2 p.m. from the Comba Funeral Home, Church Street, with interment being made in the Auld Kirk Cemetery. Rev J. Ray Anderson of the Almonte United Church conducted the service.
When Hannah Florence Lark was born on 14 October 1881, in Perth, Drummond, Lanark, Ontario, Canada, her father, John Lark, was 47 and her mother, Mary Ann Moulton, was 27. She married Donald Moore on 15 March 1905, in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. They were the parents of at least 1 daughter. She died on 19 January 1978, in Garson Township, Sudbury, Ontario, Canada, at the age of 96, and was buried in Auld Kirk Cemetery, Mississippi Mills, Lanark, Ontario, Cana
Looking for some articles on the Spanish Flu I found this odd ad listed in 1919 of a father Robert Walter Hudson giving guardianship of his son Walter Arthur Hudson up to his grandfather and uncle in Carleton Place. When I find things like this I feel like they need to be documented so no one forgets them. So what happened to young Robert Walter Hudson? This is what I found.
His mother died a month and a half after his brother was born, as the baby was born prematurely, so his father decided he could not look after him alone and died 8 years later. It should be noted that his Mother had given So what happened to this poor young lad? After everything Walter had been through in his childhood he married his childhood sweetheart who was 16 and he was 19. He made his way into the world ending up becoming the Deputy Chief of the Ottawa Police Force. I love happy endings.
Facts
Walter Arthur Hudson
Birth 2 Sep 1908 • Carleton Place, Lanark, Ontario, Canada Lake Avenue, Carleton Place. Walter Arthur Hudson, son of Robert Walter Hudson, conductor [railway], and his wife Jessie Ross McLean. Sources1908
Birth and Death of Brother baby boy Hudson(1910–1910)18 Apr 1910 • Carleton Place, Lanark, Ontario, Canada19101–
Lake Avenue. Baby boy Hudson, lived for 4 hours. Son of Robt Walter Hudson, born Brockville, and Jessie Ross McLean, born Ramsay Twp. Cause of death: premature birth.
Death of Mother Jessie Ross McLean(1883–1910)3 Jun 1910 • Carleton Place, Lanark, Ontario, Canada1911
Residence1 Jun 1911 • Carleton Place, Lanark North, Ontario,
Canada,Lake Avenue. As Walter A Hudson age 2, born Sep 1908 in Ontario. Recorded with his father Robt Hudson & paternal grandfather Albert T Hudson. Source19112
Residence Jun 1911 • Ramsay, Lanark North, Ontario, Canada As Walter Hudson age 2, born Sep 1908 in Ontario. Recorded with his maternal grandparents Alex & Kate McLean.1 Source19112
Death of Father Robert Walter Hudson(1879–1919)28 Jan 1919 • Carleton County, Ontario, Canada191910
Residence Jun 1921 • Carleton Place, Lanark, Ontario, Canada George Street. As Walter Hudson age 12, born Ontario. Lodger [and nephew] in the home of Albert Hudson, an inspector with a railroad company.1 Source192112
Marriage18 May 1927 • Nepean Twp, Carleton County, Ontario, Canada Helen Naureen Tetlock (16), at home, and Walter Arthur Hudson (19), machinist, both born and living in Carleton Place. [Married in the Church of England, Bell’s Corner’s1]Source192718
Residence1962 • Ottawa, Ontario, Canada62 Melrose Avenue. As Walter Hudson, civic emp. Source196254
Death 19 Nov 1997 Date taken from headstone.199789
Memorial Lanark County, Ontario, Canada United (Pine Grove, Maple Wood, St. Fillan’s) Cemetery. HUDSON: Naureen Tetlock, May 15, 1911 – [blank], wife of Walter A. Hudson, Sep. 2, 1908 – Nov. 19, 1997. Loving parents of Gordon, Ross, James
It was always believed that some sort of miracle would would take place in the life of an orphan and they would be adopted. Orphans were normally taken in by their immediate relatives, neighbours or couples without children. Laws related to adoption did not prevail in the Victorian era and so most of the instances of adoption were informal. Adoption of a child of the lower class by people of higher class, however, did not permit the child to maintain relations with the higher class and Canada had strict laws. If you suddenly found yourself without family you were put in jail until the courts could deem your story. Canada was worried about the country becoming a dumping ground for child immigrants. Your morals were assessed to see if you could become responsible citizens.
Some of the orphans considered themselves lucky to get placed in educational institutions. The philanthropists of the Victorian era considered it a social responsibility to donate money to schools which were formed to educate the orphans and provide boarding facilities. Food, clothing, shelter and education were given to orphans until they turn seventeen. Once they attained the age of seventeen the orphans were expected to work and earn on their own.
Most of these education centres were not funded properly and Orphans were educated for the purpose of performing lower-middle class occupation such as that of a governess. To make matters worse the nutrition standards were not up to the standards and corporeal punishment excessively. In such poor conditions, diseases spread rapidly in the crowded centres.
As abandonment of children was quite often during the Victorian era a residential institution to take care of the orphans became the need of the hour. Thus orphanages were set up in different parts of United Kingdom as Group home, children home, rehabilitation centre and youth treatment centre.
The establishment of orphanages played a major role in reducing the infant mortality rates. The orphanages offered community-based living and learning to children. Though orphanages acted as a better option when compared to adoption and foster care, in some of the unregulated orphanages, children were subject to abuse and neglect. But there were still some orphans searching for a ray of light in the darkness, living in the streets doing menial work and begging for money for their living.
Gilbert and Bertha Cardwell were pardoned by the Dominion of Canada and who knows what desperate place they were sent. Attempts to find them on genealogy pages, insane asylum lists etc. were fruitless. All that is know is they went to an orphanage in Kingston and the were probably sent to the Sunnyside Children’s Centre in Kingston. From mid-century until 1893, children’s homes like the Kingston Orphans’ Home were the primary providers of care and protection to destitute and neglected children in Ontario. About one-third of the children admitted were returned to family, but more than half were placed in private homes when discharged. Establishing good placement procedures was therefore a priority and a primary motivation for the founding of the Home. One hundred thirty-five children placed by the Home from 1857 to 1876 are tracked in order to assess these placement practices and the Home’s effectiveness as a child protection agency.
Sunnyside Children’s Centre Kingston 1857-1998 History The Orphans’ Home and Widows’ Friend Society was organized in 1857 to provide for the care and education of orphans. Initially these children came from the House of Industry, an institution established by the Female Benevolent Society for the poor of the area. By 1857 the House of Industry was well established and receiving aid so the women who had been involved in organizing that agency now turned their attention to the children. In March, 1857, thirteen children were admitted from the House of Industry into a house on Earl street where they were cared for and taught by a Mrs. Harold. Other destitute children attended the classes. In 1862 the Orphans’ Home and Widows’ Friend Society was granted a charter. In 1862 the Orphanage and school moved to larger quarters. In 1927 the building housing the Orphanage was bought by Queen’s University and Sunnyside, the home of Mrs. G.Y. Chown, was bought for use as an orphanage. As conditions changed and orphan children were adopted or placed in foster homes the orphanage had fewer and fewer inmates. By 1947 the role of Sunnyside had changed. Since that time it has been a centre for the treatment of emotionally disturbed children
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