|
|
Article: 'Orphan train' riders share common bond: Until 1929, children abandoned on New York streets were sent west to begin new lives with new families. Few orphan train riders survive, but for those who do, their 'bond is forever.'.
- Article from:
- Saint Paul Pioneer Press (St. Paul, MN)
- Article date:
- September 19, 2007
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2007 Saint Paul Pioneer Press. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
|
Byline: Richard Chin
Sep. 19--It was 3:49 a.m. June 15, 1916, when orphan A17206 arrived at the train station in Winona, Minn.
The 2-year-old girl with her name sewn in the hem of her dress was met by a couple who signed a receipt, promising to raise A17206 as a Roman Catholic, send her to school and 'give her all the advantages that we would give to a child of our own.'
Nearly a century later, A17206 is now Helen Koscianski, a 93-year-old Winona resident and one of the few living riders of the orphan trains, part of a 75-year-long practice in which thousands of children abandoned in New York City slums and tenements were shipped by train to ...