The Children's Friend Society for "the Prevention of Juvenile Vagrancy" through the reformation and emigration of children, was founded in London in 1830, by Captain Edward Pelham Brenton, together with or supported by wealthy philanthropists, and with cooperation from the government of the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

. Brenton's 1837 book, ''The Bible and Spade'', sets out the background and objectives, citing histories and correspondence pertaining to the society's activities.The Bible and spade
Edward Pelham Brenton, 1837, accessed 13 June 2013 The Society's principal aim was "to reclaim and provide for vagrant children found in the streets without any means of subsistence except by begging or thieving..." Such children were sent out to British colonies including the

Cape of Good Hope The Cape of Good Hope ( ) is a rocky headland on the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic coast of the Cape Peninsula in South Africa. A List of common misconceptions#Geography, common misconception is that the Cape of Good Hope is the southern tip of Afri ...

(

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, nine provinces are bounded to the south by of coastline that stretches along the Atlantic O ...

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

Mauritius Mauritius, officially the Republic of Mauritius, is an island country in the Indian Ocean, about off the southeastern coast of East Africa, east of Madagascar. It includes the main island (also called Mauritius), as well as Rodrigues, Ag ...

and

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

. In 1832 groups of children were sent to the

Cape Colony The Cape Colony (), also known as the Cape of Good Hope, was a British Empire, British colony in present-day South Africa named after the Cape of Good Hope. It existed from 1795 to 1802, and again from 1806 to 1910, when it united with three ...

in South Africa and to the

Swan River Colony The Swan River Colony, also known as the Swan River Settlement, or just ''Swan River'', was a British colony established in 1829 on the Swan River, in Western Australia. This initial settlement place on the Swan River was soon named Perth, an ...

in Australia, while in the following years 230 children were shipped to

Toronto Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...

and

New Brunswick New Brunswick is a Provinces and Territories of Canada, province of Canada, bordering Quebec to the north, Nova Scotia to the east, the Gulf of Saint Lawrence to the northeast, the Bay of Fundy to the southeast, and the U.S. state of Maine to ...

, Canada. A related child migration scheme was founded by Annie MacPherson in 1869, under which more than 100 000 so-called

Home Children Home Children was the child migration scheme founded in Canada by Maria Rye and Annie MacPherson in 1869 and then supported by both governments, under which more than 100,000 children were sent from the United Kingdom to Canada, Australia, New ...

were sent from the United Kingdom to Australia, Canada,

New Zealand New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...

, and South Africa.

References

{{reflist Adoption history British emigrants to British Overseas Territories