A 2-page article in the 5 August 2020 issue of This England magazine celebrates the life and work of Father James Nugent. He is known as one of those who organized the emigration of orphan and neglected children to Canada.
The article describes the situation he faced
"Liverpool at the time (1846) had a population of about 210.000. But 1847 saw the Irish potato famine at its height, and some 300.000 people in this single year paid the sixpence fare to flee to Liverpool. There, those that stayed - some 60 to 80.000 - found themselves living in appalling poverty, in overcrowded and insanitary courts, alleys and cellars. Epidemics of fever, cholera, and dysentery ran rampant.Liverpool. the “black spot on the Mersey.” was perhaps the worst city in the country. The 24 Catholic priests tried to do what they could. Ten succumbed to illness and died; eight became ill but recovered. The sick calls were unending and the churches filled with unburied corpses. The number of orphans skyrocketed, and homeless children were everywhere, with some 23.000 running wild along Liverpool docks."
It's clear (to me) from the article that Nugent had the children's interests at heart and not, as some would have it, just looking to benefit from subsidies for child immigration.
The magazine is available to read, free online, through PressReader available through many public libraries.
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