Orphanages Childrens Homes and Orphan Trains

Resources are listed in alphabetical order. More information can always be found by using our website search bar, or contacting a member of our staff.

Articles

Pages from our Past articles written by Bill Kemp

2 items

A scale birds-eye illustration of the Baby fold buildings. There are two large buildings connected in a T shape in the foreground, with three smaller identical buildings on the left, and one other building in the lower right.

Baby Fold donation shines spotlight on architect

One of the primary missions of the McLean County Museum of History is to acquire objects and pa...

Article

13 children and young adults sit on a long bench at a table. The table has a white table cloth and place settings for each person. One man is at the head of the table, wearing a bow tie. A woman stands behind the table in a dress. They are all looking at the camera, many of the children are smiling. All of the people in the photograph are African American. The walls appear to be lightly-painted brick.

Washington Home couple worked ‘through the heart’

“Cooks and counselors, painters and referees, they are also mom and pop to up to twenty childre...

Article

Biographies

1 item

Wright, Ebenezer

Ebenezer Wright was born in either 1830 or 1831 in Ludlow, Massachusetts to Rev. Ebenezer and H...

Biography

Blog

2 items

McHistory: Louise Calimese and the McLean County Home for Colored Children

Listen to the audio on WGLT's website hereMcHistory goes back in time to explore big momen...

Blog Post

Museum to Dedicate Historic Marker on Bloomington’s West Side Memorializing the Former Booker T. Washington Home for Colored Children

Contact:Micaela Harris, Museum Director of Communications, at 309-827-0228 ext. 114Norris Porte...

Blog Post

Finding Aids

Archival collection finding aids (full contents of collections available on site)

1 item

Baby Fold

Nancy and Allen Mason were pioneers in Normal– moving here just after the Civil War. Nancy Maso...

Finding Aid

Speakers Bureau

2 items

Lucy's Girls: Lucy Orme Morgan and the Girl's Industrial Home

Speakers Bureau

The Orphan Train in McLean County

Speakers Bureau

Videos

Livestreamed and recorded presentations by staff, experts, and community members.

4 items

Augusta “Gussie” Becker and Francis Cahill performed by Carolyn Stucky and Will Lovell

Video

BNBHP Presents: A Reunion: the Booker T. Washington Home

Video

Napoleon and Louise Calimese performed by Demitri Corbin and Jennifer Rusk

Video

Untold African American Stories: Springfield's Lincoln Colored Home

Video