Followup to Sending for Home Children Records from LAC

Last week I wrote about Finding an Ancestor's Full Record on the NEW Home Children Database

Finding and figuring out how to order the records is somewhat tricky and my blog post was an explanation of how I did it.  After ordering I sat back to wait.

Yesterday I received my copies of records from Middlemore Children's Emigration Homes from Library and Archives Canada. I was quite excited until I opened the envelope. Inside were several photocopies, each 8 1/2 x 14 inches in size. 

The problem was that the image of the actual record was 6 1/2 inches by 2 inches. It was completely unreadable. The red text over the image is my addition due to the restrictions placed on my obtaining these records.

So here is how I made the images readable.

1. First I cut the pages down to a manageable size.

2. I scanned each page

3. I opened each page in turn in Picasa and enlarged it

4. I altered filters and added more light so I could get rid of the darkness blocking the text.

This method worked extremely well and even though it was time consuming I ended up with images I could read.

Since these records are restricted due to privacy laws and LAC is not allowed to send them via pdf, only as photocopies, I cannot publish them here on my blog as legible images. 

But I wanted you to see the steps I took so I have placed white squares over most of the wording. 

So if you order these records be aware of how they will come to you. But don't despair as they can be altered so that you can read them. 

Please do respect the privacy restrictions of these records and don't publish them online after you alter them for your own use. 

Tips for Searching For a British Home Child

During the years of the Child Emigration Scheme (British Home Children), between 1869 and 1939 (some up to 1948), over 100,000 children ages 1 - 18 were sent to Canada from Great Britain to work as farm labourers and domestics by over 50 Agents - Barnardo, Middlemore, Macpherson, Fegans, to name a few.

Descendants make up 12%, over 4 million of the Canadian population. If you think your ancestor was one of these children, there are ways to learn more:

You can search the British Home Children ships passenger lists from 1865 to 1935 on Library & Archives Canada website.

Part of the file Barnardo's sent us

If your ancestor was a part of the Dr. Barnardo's homes, you can contact Barnardo's for the records. They can be reached at Trace Your Family History on Barnardo's Homes website.

My husband has a British Home Child in his ancestry and sending to Barnardo's for his records provided a wealth of informative genealogical detail plus photographs of the child when he was admitted to Barnardo's Homes in 1897.

Marj Kholi's Young Immigrants to Canada website is another must for those seeking a British Home Child ancestor. Descendants can also check the British Home Children Registry for a name of interest.