Name: Home Children Canada
Address: CA

20 July 1907 Dr. Barnardo Immigration Party at Barkingside, England. Mrs. Barnardo is the lady at the front.

The leader in continuing the mission to bring the true stories of the British Home Children to light, maintain their memory, and to reunite the families separated by the child migrant schemes.

Important Update – Changes to our British Home Children in Canada website

Our research site, formerly known as British Home Children in Canada, has moved to a new address: HomeChildrenCanada@weebly.com - It also has a new name: Home Children Canada Research Site.

We know this is a big change, and we did our best to avoid it. Unfortunately, we were unable to set up a redirect from the old site, which we realize is causing some confusion. We truly appreciate your patience and understanding during this transition—these are just some of the growing pains we can’t always avoid.

Thank you for continuing to support our work and research into the history of the British Home Children.

Meet our Directors

Lori Oschefski - President & Speaker

Paul Jackson - Public Relations

Dan Oatman - Secretary & Speaker

Our Story

Between 1869 and 1948 over 100,000 children of all ages were brought to Canadian shores from the UK. These children were not brought to Canada for love or protection, they were sent to work on Canadian farms and in Canadian households. This is a significant part of the history of Canada and the United Kingdom, yet it is still vastly unknown.

Home Children Canada, is proactive charity established in 2012, has been dedicated to elevating the profile of the Home Children and preserving their memory. Through diligent efforts, the organization has worked tirelessly to shed light on the historical experiences of the Home Children and to honor their legacy. With a strong commitment to raising awareness and promoting understanding, Home Children Canada strives to ensure that the stories of these children are recognized and respected. By honoring their memory, the charity seeks to ensure that the Home Children's contributions and struggles are never forgotten and that their rightful place in history is acknowledged with dignity and compassion.

Over the years, Home Children Canada has remained committed to cataloging the stories of Home Children, preserving vital information, and reuniting families separated by these migration programs. The charity has worked tirelessly to promote the stories of the Home Children on a global scale, becoming their leading voice in this endeavor. Their ongoing work involves building the Home Child Registry and various indexes, while newsletters containing stories and educational articles have been published since 2013.

Home Children Canada takes immense pride in its work related to the service of the Home Children during the Wars. The charity has played a crucial role in advocating for the recognition of their contributions and sacrifices by Veterans Affairs Canada. Through dedicated efforts and persistent advocacy, Home Children Canada has worked towards acknowledging the significant role played by these children in various wars, ensuring that their service is properly honored and remembered.

Home Children Canada has undertaken a crucial mission of identifying the burial sites of Home Children, particularly those where these lost children were laid to rest. In one significant discovery, the charity located an unmarked mass grave containing the remains of 76 children in Etobicoke, Ontario's Park Lawn Cemetery. After four years of meticulous research to unveil the identities of these children, a grand monument was erected, bearing their names and providing them with the recognition they deserved.

The dedicated Board of Directors and our numerous volunteers are passionate about expanding the work of Home Children Canada as a registered Canadian charity. Our exciting plans will further the cause of honoring the Home Children, shedding light on their history, and ensuring their legacy endures for generations to come.

Annotated Sourcebook on the Emigration of Children to Canada, 1832–1926
“Room to Rest, and Room to Labour: Juvenile Emigration to Canada, 1832–1926"
By Dr. Chris Willmore

NEW RELEASE!

Whether You're Researching the British Home Children, Writing Their Stories, Discovering Your Family History, or Simply Want to Learn More—This Landmark Sourcebook Belongs on "Your Shelf".

Click here to view the volumes

This remarkable multi-volume collection brings together a vast array of historical documents relating to the emigration of children to Canada between 1832 and 1926. Carefully researched and thoughtfully annotated, the sourcebook provides valuable context to the records, making them accessible to descendants, researchers, authors, educators, and historians alike. By gathering these sources in one place and presenting them in an easy-to-use format, Dr. Willmore has created an invaluable resource that will greatly enhance our understanding of child migration to Canada. In my opinion, this is one of the most important contributions to British Home Child research published in many years and will undoubtedly become an essential reference for anyone studying the history of the Home Children and related child migration schemes.

This remarkable and groundbreaking collection is avaliable for free through a shared on a permissive Creative Commons license, to Joy Parr and Lori Oschefski.