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Orphan Trains: The Story of Charles Loring Brace and the Children He Saved and Failed
by O'Connor, Stephen
- Used
- Fine
- Paperback
- first
- Condition
- Fine
- ISBN 10
- 0226616673
- ISBN 13
- 9780226616674
- Seller
-
Webster, New York, United States
Payment Methods Accepted
About This Item
Chicago, Illinois: University of Chicago Press, 2004. First Edition. Trade Paperback. Fine. 6x1x9. First edition. A fine copy. 2004 Trade Paperback. xxi, 362 pp. In mid-nineteenth-century New York, vagrant youth, both orphans and runaways, filled the streets. For years the city had been sweeping these children into prisons or almshouses, but in 1853 the young minister Charles Loring Brace proposed a radical solution to the problem by creating the Children's Aid Society, an organization that fought to provide homeless children with shelter, education, and, for many, a new family in the country. Combining a biography of Brace with firsthand accounts of orphans, Stephen O'Connor here tells of the orphan trains that, between 1854 and 1929, spirited away some 250,000 destitute children to rural homes in every one of the forty-eight contiguous states.
Synopsis
A powerful blend of history, biography, and adventure, ORPHAN TRAINS fills a grievous gap in the American story. Tracing the evolution of the Children’s Aid Society, this dramatic narrative tells the fascinating tale of one of the most famous — and sometimes infamous — child welfare programs: the orphan trains, which spirited away some 250,000 abandoned children into the homes of rural families in the Midwest. In mid-nineteenth-century New York, vagrant children, whether orphans or runaways, filled the streets. The city’s solution for years had been to sweep these children into prisons or almshouses. But a young minister named Charles Loring Brace took a different tack. With the creation of the Children’s Aid Society in 1853, he provided homeless youngsters with shelter, education, and, for many, a new family out west. The family matching process was haphazard, to say the least: at town meetings, farming families took their pick of the orphan train riders. Some youngsters, such as James Brady, who became governor of Alaska, found loving homes, while others, such as Charley Miller, who shot two boys on a train in Wyoming, saw no end to their misery. Complete with extraordinary photographs and deeply moving stories, Orphan Trains gives invaluable insights into a creative genius whose pioneering, if controversial, efforts inform child rescue work today.
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Details
- Bookseller
- Yesterday's Muse Books
(US)
- Bookseller's Inventory #
- 2334620
- Title
- Orphan Trains: The Story of Charles Loring Brace and the Children He Saved and Failed
- Author
- O'Connor, Stephen
- Format/Binding
- Trade Paperback
- Book Condition
- Used - Fine
- Quantity Available
- 1
- Edition
- First Edition
- Binding
- Paperback
- ISBN 10
- 0226616673
- ISBN 13
- 9780226616674
- Publisher
- University of Chicago Press
- Place of Publication
- Chicago, Illinois
- Date Published
- 2004
- Size
- 6x1x9
- Keywords
- AMERICAN HISTORY BIOGRAPHY CHARLES LORING BRACE 1800S NINETEENTH CENTURY 19TH CENTURY ORPHANS NEW YORK
- X weight
- 19 oz
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About the Seller
Yesterday's Muse Books
Biblio member since 2005
Webster, New York
About Yesterday's Muse Books
Yesterday's Muse Inc. is an independent used & rare bookseller that has been in operation for over 15 years. We opened our first 'brick and mortar' storefront in December of 2008 in our hometown of Webster, NY.Owner Jonathan Smalter is a member of the Antiquarian Booksellers' Association of America (ABAA), former vice president of the Independent Online Booksellers Association (IOBA), both of which are trade organizations created to promote ethical online selling practices, and to encourage continuing education among fellow booksellers. He is also a 2011 graduate of the Colorado Antiquarian Book Seminar (CABS). He has nearly 20 years of experience in the book trade, during which time he has become adept at evaluating used and collectible books.
Glossary
Some terminology that may be used in this description includes:
- Trade Paperback
- Used to indicate any paperback book that is larger than a mass-market paperback and is often more similar in size to a hardcover...
- New
- A new book is a book previously not circulated to a buyer. Although a new book is typically free of any faults or defects, "new"...
- First Edition
- In book collecting, the first edition is the earliest published form of a book. A book may have more than one first edition in...
- Fine
- A book in fine condition exhibits no flaws. A fine condition book closely approaches As New condition, but may lack the...
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