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We Are a Part of History: The Story of the Orphan Trains

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The Story of the Orphan Trains is a carefully researched historical record of the "orphan trains" that carried thousands of homeless children from the slums of New York to new lives with families in the Midwest and South. The trains, which ran from 1854 until 1929, were primarily the work of Reverend Charles Loring Brace and the Children's Aid Society, funded by citizens and companies who were concerned about the desperate lives of the "street arabs", the children who struggled to bring themselves up and survive on the city streets.

The book gives a thoughtful, fair account of both the benefits and pitfalls of the orphan train solutions. Many children, who might have otherwise perished on the streets, were given life and hope with new, loving families. Other children never got over the trauma of being separated from siblings, or they were moved into homes where they were badly treated (although the Society agents worked hard to prevent these tragedies).

The Story of the Orphan Trains is not a gripping read, but it is not intended to be. Those who are interested in this period of history, or in solutions to the problem of homeless children, will find it fair and thought-provoking. I found the last section of the book, accounts by the orphans themselves, to be especially moving.

Of all the books on the Orphan Trains, "We Are a Part of History: the Story of the Orphan Trains" is the best researched. Michael Patrick and Evelyn Trickel have used primary resources from the Children's Aid Society files, letters from orphans and their families, and interviews with survivors of the Orphan Train experience. The book also contains photographs that have never been published before. Additionally, they have carefully examined previously published material to give the reader a complete picture of what the Orphan Trains were and how they affected those who rode, the adults who took them in, and all of us as Americans.