UPCOMING EVENT IN MACON COUNTY
HOPES TO GIVE US A HISTORY
LESSON. ((CHRISTIE)) AND TEACH
US ALL ABOUT 'THE ORPHAN
TRAINS.' ROCHELLE GRIDLEY OF
THE MCLEAN COUNTY MUSEUM OF
HISTORY JOINS US NOW.
ROCHELLE, THANKS FOR BEING
HERE. TELL US ABOUT YOUR
EVENT. June 23, 2019 at 2:00
PM, Rock Springs Nature
Center, Decatur, Illinois Why
is this segment timely and/or
important to viewers? The
Orphan Trains were the
precursor to today
care system and were a
response to the problems
brought about by overcrowding
and poverty on the East Coast.
Thousands of children were
distributed throughout
Illinois and their descendants
still live here. Please share
four talking points or
subjects you would like
included in the interview.
(NOTE: These should be"big
pictur" points that give
context to the interview). 1:
The New York Juvenile Asylum
brought nearly 7000 children
to Illinois from 1853 to 1929
to work as indentured
servants. These children were
not all orphans, but had
families in the East who could
not provide a home for them.
2: The men and women who
operated the asylums and
orphan trains were the first
social workers. Through the
records of the Asylums we can
see how social work was
professionalized and theories
of child welfare developed. 3:
Searching for Orphan Train
I can refer people to thenge &
agencies that can help them. I
began my website project
because no one was compiling
information about the Orphan
Trains in Illinois on the
internet. 4: Ebenezer Wright,
the Western Agent of the New
York Juvenile Asylum, who
lived and worked in Normal
Illinois for almost two
decades, will be featured as a
character on the Evergreen
Cemetery Walk in Bloomington
in October.
Props/Demonstration Ideas: The
Urbana Free Library has a
collection of the indentures
that bound the children to
their guardians. I wonder if
they would allow them to be
displayed on television. They
wouldn
impact, but we could put on
the white gloves and emphasize
their age and history that
way. The indentures at Urbana
are from the 1850s. Most of
the young men who came then
ended up fighting in the Civil
War.
((ALEX)) STILL TO COME, WE'RE
HEADING INTO THE KITCHEN WITH
LEIA FLURE FOR HEALTHY LIVING.
((CHRISTIE)) WE'RE TALKING
ABOUT A STUDY FROM THE
ENVIRONMENTAL WORKING GROUP
WARNING PARENTS ABOUT
CHEERIOS. WE'LL TELL YOU WHAT
THE WARNING SAYS, AND IF IT'S
TRUE. STICK WITH US.
YOU'RE WATCHING THE MORNING
SHOW