It is now three years since Tricia Leslie and I set up British Home Children ....... the story from Britain, with the purpose of highlighting the history of the migration of thousands of young people from Britain to Canada, and other parts of the old British Empire during the late 19th and early 20th century.*
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| Young people at Manchester Town Hall, prior to migration, 1897 |
We were only one of two BHC groups based in Britain and our aim was to make more people in this country aware of that story.
And here I want to give full credit to Tricia who has grown the group from a handful of people to a membership of over 2,000.
It was always our intention to make the site somewhere to exchange information, put people in touch with each other and seek new ways of advancing the knowledge of BHC.
Abd we are now coming up to September 28th which is National BHC Day in Canada, and it would be appropriate if we could play our part.
In Canada this year the celebrations will be dedicated to Judy Neville who was the driving force behind National BHC Day in Canada. Sadly, Judy died a few weeks ago.
This year also marks the 10th Anniversary of British Home Child Day in Ontario - spearheaded by Judy’s brother Jim Brownell.
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| Application for a BHC, 1914 |
And across Canada there are a series of events planned which include the illumination of public landmarks in red, white, and blue - the colours of the organization. To date these include The High Level Bridge in Edmonton, Alberta, The Calgary Tower, Calgary, Alberta, The Niagara Falls, Niagara Falls, Ontario City Hall, Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island, The Toronto CN Tower, Riverwalk Commons and the falls at Fairy Lake in Newmarket, Ontario, City of Cambridge pedestrian bridge.**
Now I fully admit that it is a bit late for these biggies, but perhaps following on other Canadian activities, members could leaving your porch light on or a light in your window for the Home Children, or perhaps the badge of BHC.
The Burial index administered by Lori Oschefski now has the burial locations of almost 5,000 Home Children from across the world. Those who wish to participate might want to visit the index, place your location in the search bar to see if you have a BHC buried close to you. Visit the grave, leave sunflowers or a token if you can. Take a photo to post in our BHCARA Facebook group.***
Alternatively you could down load or adapt our poster, and display it publically, as well as posting something on social media, or writing to your local paper.
Pictures; Young people on the steps of Manchester Town Hall, prior to migration to Canada, 1897, courtesy of the Together Trust,and documents from the story of Roger Hall, 1914, from the collection of Andrew Simpson
*British Home Children ....... the story from Britain, https://www.facebook.com/groups/bhchildren/members
**Adapted from Home Children Canada, September 2021, newslatter of Home Children Canada
*** The Burial index https://www.britishhomechildren.com/british-home-children-burials
****British Home Children pins are now back in stock and available from Home Children. They include a new crest for ironing on or sewing on. Canadian orders can be taken online at: www.britishhomechildren.com - outside of Canada, contact us at info@britishhomechildren.com for ordering and information. Ordering and pricing details are available on our website.
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