Hello, I have story about my grandmother in MA, which might be slightly off-topic. But, the discussions on the Digest this morning are about whether orphans were really orphans, or did they have a parent living. I can make 2 comments, actually. My grandmother was born in MA (?) in 1889, and was adopted by an older couple in 1892. She had just turned 3, and they changed her name, and then told her many lies about who her birth-parents were. Unfortunately, Mrs. DEXTER died in 1899. Perhaps she had been ill, because Mr. DEXTER sold their home and went to a boarding house in Downtown Boston. And he placed his adopted daughter, then 10, in the "Boston Female Orphans Asylum." He was near her until he got sick in 1904 and went to the Tewksbury State Hospital where he died a year later. Maybe when she was 13 (1902?), she went to live at "The Temporary Home for Women and Children," also in Downtown Boston. She apparently remained there until she was 19. He girlfriend at The Temporary Home had a living father. When she turned 18 or 19, her father asked her to come live in his apartment. He liked my grandmother, so she was invited to come live there, also. That is when my grandmother met "the boy next door." ... When I asked about this situation many years ago, I was told that in certain time periods, fathers were not allowed to be a parent for their own daughter - if there was no female adult in the home. The "Victorian Era" was most of the 1800's, up to 1900, and that is probably when that law was in place. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Victorian_era However, a similar situation happened around 1970 in NYC. My "EX" had lost his mother unexpectedly, and he had 3 young siblings still at home. They had an estranged, non-participating father. When it was time for the Courts to get involved, the Courts decided that the boys, 16 and 15, could remain living in their tenement apartment - with no adult. But the girl, 14, could not live there. When I found out she was about to become a Ward of the State in NYC, I insisted she come up to Lowell, MA, to live with us. (She arrived on her 15th birthday and was pregnant 6 mos. later. Unbeknownst to me at the time, she had become a "street girl" at a very young age.) :o( (to be continued) Betty (near Lowell, MA) (My grandmother's story is long and complicated, and I've mentioned it on the MA and CT Lists many times. I don't have the wherewithal to write a book about her life. But, I'd love to find a book author who would consider writing possibly an "historical novel" about her. She lived in Downtown Boston from 1899 to 1910, so the history of Boston ~1900 would be written about. Including the Victorian Era goings-on.)
These poor kids! 1 ----- Original Message ----- From: "Ms Betty Fredericks" <[email protected]> To: [email protected] Sent: Friday, February 3, 2012 5:01:24 AM Subject: [NORCAL] Orphans, Half-Orphans, and Victorian Era Hello, I have story about my grandmother in MA, which might be slightly off-topic. But, the discussions on the Digest this morning are about whether orphans were really orphans, or did they have a parent living. I can make 2 comments, actually. My grandmother was born in MA (?) in 1889, and was adopted by an older couple in 1892. She had just turned 3, and they changed her name, and then told her many lies about who her birth-parents were. Unfortunately, Mrs. DEXTER died in 1899. Perhaps she had been ill, because Mr. DEXTER sold their home and went to a boarding house in Downtown Boston. And he placed his adopted daughter, then 10, in the "Boston Female Orphans Asylum." He was near her until he got sick in 1904 and went to the Tewksbury State Hospital where he died a year later. Maybe when she was 13 (1902?), she went to live at "The Temporary Home for Women and Children," also in Downtown Boston. She apparently remained there until she was 19. He girlfriend at The Temporary Home had a living father. When she turned 18 or 19, her father asked her to come live in his apartment. He liked my grandmother, so she was invited to come live there, also. That is when my grandmother met "the boy next door." ... When I asked about this situation many years ago, I was told that in certain time periods, fathers were not allowed to be a parent for their own daughter - if there was no female adult in the home. The "Victorian Era" was most of the 1800's, up to 1900, and that is probably when that law was in place. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Victorian_era However, a similar situation happened around 1970 in NYC. My "EX" had lost his mother unexpectedly, and he had 3 young siblings still at home. They had an estranged, non-participating father. When it was time for the Courts to get involved, the Courts decided that the boys, 16 and 15, could remain living in their tenement apartment - with no adult. But the girl, 14, could not live there. When I found out she was about to become a Ward of the State in NYC, I insisted she come up to Lowell, MA, to live with us. (She arrived on her 15th birthday and was pregnant 6 mos. later. Unbeknownst to me at the time, she had become a "street girl" at a very young age.) :o( (to be continued) Betty (near Lowell, MA) (My grandmother's story is long and complicated, and I've mentioned it on the MA and CT Lists many times. I don't have the wherewithal to write a book about her life. But, I'd love to find a book author who would consider writing possibly an "historical novel" about her. She lived in Downtown Boston from 1899 to 1910, so the history of Boston ~1900 would be written about. Including the Victorian Era goings-on.) ----------------------------------------- NORCAL ARCHIVES: http://archiver.rootsweb.com/ Enter NORCAL. Browse by month. Or click the "Search all archives" link to search by keyword. ----------------------------------------- To post a message to the NORCAL mailing list, send an email to [email protected] ------------------------------- To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to [email protected] with the word 'unsubscribe' without the quotes in the subject and the body of the message