History Talk: Louisiana Orphan Train Museum

Name: History Talk: Louisiana Orphan Train Museum
Start: 2024-09-23T19:00:00-05:00
End: 2024-09-23T20:30:00-05:00
Location: East Bank Regional Library

Schedule

Mon Sep 23 2024 at 07:00 pm to 08:30 pm

UTC-05:00

Location

East Bank Regional Library | Metairie, LA

Martha Aubert, president of the board of the Louisiana Orphan Train Museum in Opelousas, and fellow board member James Douge will discuss the cultural institution and the orphan train movement, on Monday, Sept. 23, 7 pm, at the East Bank Regional Library (4747 W. Napoleon Ave. in Metairie).
This program was originally held last January at the library but has returned due to its popularity. The event is free of charge and open to the public. There is no registration.
The Louisiana Orphan Train Society is a non-profit organization dedicated to collecting and preserving items that tell the history of the orphan train riders who arrived in south Louisiana from The New York Foundling Hospital between 1854 and 1929. During this time, more than 200,000 orphaned children were transported to foster homes typically in rural areas in the Midwest.
More than 2,000 orphans arrived in Louisiana. The Sisters of Charity in New York contacted local Catholic priests asking for assistance. In the spring of 1907, three trains arrived in Opelousas with children from the Foundling Home wearing identification numbers that would match them to their new Catholic foster families.
The museum has a large collection of original documents, clothing, and images on display and many of the museum’s volunteers are descendants of orphan train riders. Visitors can also see statues on the grounds and the Orphan Train mural, depicting the arrival of the riders.