Emigration [RESTRICTED ACCESS]

Along with other well known child welfare societies the Manchester and Salford Boys and Girls Refuges partook in the emigration of children to the British colonies, sending around 2129 children to the care of the Marchmont Receiving Home in Belleville, Ontario, Canada, between 1872 and 1921. Some of the elder boys were also emigrated to Grenfell in the North West Territory, where an agency had been established under Mr Norman Lee, formally a helper in Manchester. The process was seen by the institution as a way of separating children from squalid conditions and undesirable relatives and allowing them to start a new life abroad. The Refuge also saw it as a way of relieving overpopulation in the city and supplying one of England's colonies with greatly needed labour. In 1872 the first nine boys were sent to Marchmont under the care of the Annie Macpherson's organization, which had first set up the home in 1870. This house acted as a receiving home, where the children were taken and cared for, pending arrangements with the farmers of the district to adopt them into their families and provide work. The farmers were required to provide housing, food and clothing for the child and to ensure they attended Sunday school. They were also required to receive some schooling for part of the year. In return the child would help out with chores and other manual labour. Many of the children were sent from the orphanage homes on George Street and by 1891 the Sir William Stevenson Emigration Training Home had been set up on Great Ducie Street to help prepare the children for their life overseas. Rosen Hallas, which was opened in 1886, provided training for girls, many of whom were destined for Canada. Both of these homes, as well as the Refuge, were certified by the Local Government Board for the reception of children from the Poor Law Unions.

From 1887 onwards, emigration parties were sailing under the care of Ellen Bilbrough, who managed the Marchmont Home, and later her husband, Reverend Robert Wallace, as well as a master or matron from one of the Manchester Homes. The 'Custody of Children's Act' in 1891 legalised the work of private emigration societies, which had previously been a grey area. This allowed voluntary organisations to dispose of the children in their care, if the courts deem that the child's parents were not fit to have custody. In July 1912, after the resignation of Wallace, Marchmont was transferred to a group of Trustees, James Fildes, Edwin Gaddum and Brian Crossley, from the Manchester and Salford Boys' and Girls' Refuges and Homes and the Children's Aid Society. Mr Herbert O. Knight and his wife took over the day-to-day running of the Home. By 1916 however, Marchmont had been passed under the control of Liverpool Sheltering Homes, where the Trust had an arrangement for any children sent by the Refuge to be received and watched over. World War One suspended the emigration of children but did not interfere with the care and visitation of those children already in Ontario. At least yearly visits and reports were conducted by Marchmont assistants to ensure the children were settled in their adopted homes. These supervisions continued until the child turned eighteen, although many stayed in contact with the home long afterwards. Some of the Trustees and Committee Members, such as T. R. Ackroyd and G. R. Kirlew, also felt it was their duty to make visits to Ontario, to ensure the children who had been emigrated were in suitable conditions. By 1921 the Refuge were no longer sending children abroad and by 1925 another children's welfare society, Barnardo's, had taken over the running of Marchmont but closed it down during August of that year. Records pertaining to Marchmont now reside with Barnardo's but details of the children emigrating from the Refuge's homes can be found in this collection. Occasional emigrations of older children, over the age of 14, continued for a short while to Australia and New Zealand from the Refuge through the Liverpool Sheltering Homes who would continue to supervise them. These emigrations were requested by the child, who had to have written permission from their parents or guardians and provide appropriate documentation regarding their identity and schooling.

The dates recorded in this series reflect the years that the young people emigrated, rather than the year span that the subsequent reports were compiled. This is to allow for easier searching of individuals by date of emigration. The range of dates covered by each item is reflected in its description.

Includes; Annual lists and Indexes, Emigration Books, reports and letters, publications and papers relating to the Marchmont Homes.

Related Material:Further information on the Liverpool Sheltering Home for Destitute Children can be viewed at Liverpool Special Collections and Archives, Ref: D715. The University also holds records relating to the Barnardo's archive. Users should note that access to the records are restricted and prior permission for viewing needs to be obtained from the Charity itself.