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Record #5491
Name :
: Florence ROBSON (1901 - )


Father
:
Mother
:
BMD and other details
Date of Birth
: 1901 (approx.)

Marriage (1)
:
Marriage (2)
:

Date of Death
:
Abode (1) : Place of BirthEngland, Northumberland, Newcastle
Abode (2) : Place of Death / BurialCanada
Sailing Information
Date of Arrival
: 25 Jun 1913
Country
: Canada

Ship
: Corinthian

Placement Family
:
Homes / Agencys
Institution (GB)
:

Agency
: Barnardos
NotesFlorence Robson was born into a family of seven children in a tiny village near Newcastle, England.

Florence might never have emigrated from England in 1913, if she and her father had been able-bodied. But her dragging leg, her father's tuberculosis, and her mother's latest pregnancy seemed like too many challenges for one family to handle alone.

Florence recalled, "One day, Mother said she was taking me to the Babies' Castle, a Barnardo home for crippled children. She said they would straighten my leg (which they did, by given me callipers), and then she would come for me. I never saw my mother again. One day, a nurse came and told me Daddy had gone to heaven so I would have to stay at the home."

At the age of 12, Florence Aulph wasn't asked whether she wanted to go to Canada. She was sent. That was in 1913, but she remembered being taken to the docks by carriage, and how she dropped her doll, which was smashed under the wheels. It was the end of her childhood.

In 1913, Florence Robson, 12, arrived at Quebec, Canada, in a group of 135 Barnardo girls en route to Peterborough, Ontario, Canada.

After a three-week sea crossing, I ended up in a foster home in Hagersville,--just me and two little boys. I didn't play with the other children there as we weren't considered as good as them.

"We were just Home kids and weren't supposed to have any feelings. I got terribly withdrawn as it seemed nobody wanted me, only for the work I did.

"Later I was sent to another farm [in Fergus], a dreadful place. The man had a vicious temper and beat me if I forgot something or didn't do it right. I was the hired hand and housemaid, too. I worked my soul out for three dollars a month."

Florence was 18 before she "escaped" to become a ladies' maid in town.

On March 21, 1923, at Sarnia, Lambton, Ontario, Canada, a marriage was registered between Florence Robson, 23, born in Newcastle, Northumberland, England (her parents names were unknown to her); and Henry Lorne Aulph, 33, boilermaker, born in Alvinston, Ontario, Canada, to Richard Aulph and Theodosia Shultis. Witnesses were John Aulph of Inwood and Barbara Aulph of London, Ontario, Canada.

She was "as happy as a lark" in her marriage. Florence kept in touch with her family until her mum died. She had one sister left alive who came to visit Florence one time. But they were strangers, with no kinship left.

Then, in 1991, Florence went to live in an old people's home in Ontario.

"I started out life in a little orphan home at four, and I end up here in another home, and sometimes," she said, "I wonder if there is a God." 
ContributorsCreated : 2009-03-08 16:46:08 / From original database


Last Updated : 2009-03-15 21:16:38 /

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Surnames starting with:   A  B  C  D  E  F  G  H  I  J  K  L  M  N  O  P  Q  R  S  T  U  V  W  X  Y  Z  30 Entries        
IDNameDOBPlace of birthArrivals & ShipsDest.AgencyFamily links
3004 AARON, Alfred Robert1899ENG, LAN, West Derby, Liverpool Mar 1911 : Sicilian CAN Barnardos  
3003 AARON, John Richard1895ENG, LAN, West Derby, Liverpool Mar 1911 : Sicilian CAN Barnardos  
3007 ABBEY, Bertha1890ENG, DUR, Stockton on Tees Jul 1904 : Southwark CAN Barnardos  
3006 ABBEY, John1887ENG, DUR, Stockton on Tees Oct 1904 : Southwark CAN Barnardos  
3161 ABBEY, Thomas1892ENG, DUR, Stockton on Tees Oct 1904 : Southwark CAN Barnardos  
3020 ABBOT, Alice1877ENG, MDX, Islington Oct 1893 : Labrador CAN Barnardos  
3047 ABBOT, William1878ENG,     Apr 1895 : Parisian CAN Barnardos  
3019 ABBOTT, Alfred1869ENG,     Aug 1887 : Parisian CAN Barnardos  
23669 ABBOTT, Alice1877ENG,     Oct 1893 : Labrador CAN Barnardos  
3022 ABBOTT, Bertie1894ENG, SFK, Ipswich May 1909 : Corsican CAN Barnardos sharonmx5 , patty_in_ms  
3025 ABBOTT, David Henry1891ENG, ESS, Grays Mar 1901 : Tunisian CAN Barnardos  
3055 ABBOTT, Douglas Groves1910ENG, HAM, Hartley Wintney Apr 1924 : Montclare CAN Barnardos  
3858 ABBOTT, Emily Jane1886ENG, YKS, Guisborough Jul 1903 : Dominion CAN Barnardos  
8354 ABBOTT, Frederick Albert Prosper1885ENG, LND, Homerton Apr 1895 : Parisian CAN Barnardos  
3036 ABBOTT, George1894ENG, MDX, London Jul 1904 : Southwark CAN Barnardos  
3038 ABBOTT, Herman Henry1882ENG, MDX, Hoxton, London Apr 1895 : Parisian CAN Barnardos  
10624 ABBOTT, John1913ENG,     Apr 1929 : Duchess of York CAN Barnardos  
3045 ABBOTT, Leslie1883ENG,     Mar 1893 : Labrador CAN Barnardos  
3060 ABBOTT, Lilian1903ENG,     Jun 1912 : Tunisian CAN Barnardos  
3026 ABBOTT, Mary1888ENG, ESS, Maldon Oct 1902 : Colonian CAN Barnardos  
3049 ABBOTT, Penelope1901ENG, KEN, Sidcup Jun 1912 : Tunisian CAN Barnardos  
5046 ABBS, Bertie Cecil John1914ENG, LND, St. Pancras Mar 1930 : Duchess of Richmond CAN Barnardos  
3061 ABDALE, John George1873ENG, NBL, Newcastle Upon Tyne Mar 1891 : Norwegian CAN Barnardos  
3063 ABEL, Albert Edward G.1901ENG, ESS, West Ham Aug 1910 : Tunisian CAN Barnardos  
3066 ABEL, Charles1891ENG,     Mar 1906 : Dominion CAN Barnardos  
3065 ABEL, Florence1902ENG, ESS, West Ham Aug 1910 : Tunisian CAN Barnardos  
3067 ABEL, Frederick1889ENG,     Jul 1900 : Tunisian CAN Barnardos  
3068 ABEL, George1887ENG,     Aug 1905 : Dominion CAN Barnardos  
3069 ABEL, George1897ENG,     Mar 1907 : Dominion CAN Barnardos  
3071 ABEL, John1886ENG,     Jun 1897 : Labrador CAN Barnardos  
IDNameDOBPlace of birthArrivals & ShipsDest.AgencyFamily links
Surnames starting with:   A  B  C  D  E  F  G  H  I  J  K  L  M  N  O  P  Q  R  S  T  U  V  W  X  Y  Z  30 Entries