The Location of Distributing Homes for British Children in Canada.
The dispersion of distributing homes corresponds roughly to the regional placement patterns for British apprentices in Canada. The majority of home children were located in southern Ontario but many Roman Catholic youngsters were placed with Irish and French-Canadian families in Quebec. The number of initial placements in western Canada was not large but more young men moved west to try homesteading after they had completed their eastern indentures. The location at Aylesford, Nova Scotia, was chosen by an Edinburgh society attracted by the Scots communities in the province. The other Maritime homes were run by precariously funded British homes attempting to minimise transportation costs by locating near the port of landing. The dominance of southern Ontario placements reflects both the relative scarcity of agricultural and domestic labour in that region and the British child savers preference for older settled agricultural communities as Canadian environments for their wards.
