The Orphan Trains were a social experiment in the United States between 1854 and 1929, during which an estimated 200,000 orphaned, abandoned, or homeless children from crowded Eastern cities - mostly New York - were sent by train to rural areas across the country to be placed with foster families.
Organized by charitable institutions like the Children's Aid Society and the New York Founding Hospital, the movement aimed to provide these children with better lives through adoption or indentured labor.
While many children did find loving homes, others faced exploitation or abuse, sparking debate about child welfare and leading to the rise of the modern foster care system.
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