Arts & Entertainment

Sunday Lecture Series – The Orphan Trains

Carol Chandler of the Lee County Genealogical Society will discuss The Orphan Trains, The History and Human Side of the Story at the Pierce Art and History Center.  

A social experiment during 1854 to 1929, The Orphan Train was a time when Americans believed orphaned, abandoned or homeless children from city streets from the East should be taken away to start a new life and settle the county in religious Midwest homes.

More than 200,000 children rode an “Orphan Train," which is now seen as modern-day foster care.

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Chandler has researched more than 200 children who arrived in northwestern Illinois during The Orphan Train time period.

Aurora Author Jo Fredell Higgins, whose novel A Song for Cecilia is based upon the life of a fictional Orphan Train child, will appear as a special guest at the event.

The cost of the lecture is $5 per person or $3 for Aurora Historical Society members.

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Tickets will be sold at the door.


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