Oliver : The Foundling Hospital [ Edited ]

[Choisya]

Last night I watched a rather sad little TV programme about the old Foundling Hospital (wonderful website and PDF!) in Coram's Fields, in north London and learned that identity tokens, like the locket which Oliver Twist's mother left for him, were indeed pinned to children by destitute mothers in those sad times and that Dickens knew of them.  The Foundling Museum has many trays of such tokens which were never reclaimed and this website shows a few of them. The musician Handel, who wrote a 'Foundling's Anthem', and the artist Hogarth, were great benefactors of the Hospital and concerts and art exhibitions were held there, including the first performance of Handel's Messiah. The Museum still houses some of their work and that of other Victorian artist benefactors, and it preserves some of the original architectural features from the original hospital.   

Happily, Coram's Fields is now the site of a large children's farm and playground.    

Message Edited by Choisya on 03-27-2009 07:03 AM

[Laurel]

That's where Harriet Beadle (Tattycoram) in Little Dorrit came from, too.

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Choisya wrote:

Last night I watched a rather sad little TV programme about the old Foundling Hospital (wonderful website and PDF!) in Coram's Fields, in north London and learned that identity tokens, like the locket which Oliver Twist's mother left for him, were indeed pinned to children by destitute mothers in those sad times and that Dickens knew of them.  The Foundling Museum has many trays of such tokens which were never reclaimed and this website shows a few of them. The musician Handel, who wrote a 'Foundling's Anthem', and the artist Hogarth, were great benefactors of the Hospital and concerts and art exhibitions were held there, including the first performance of Handel's Messiah. The Museum still houses some of their work and that of other Victorian artist benefactors, and it preserves some of the original architectural features from the original hospital.   

Happily, Coram's Fields is now the site of a large children's farm and playground.    

Message Edited by Choisya on 03-27-2009 07:03 AM

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Message Edited by Laurel on 03-27-2009 11:09 AM

[Melissa_W Moderator]

Simon Schama has a little segement on the Foundling Hospital in one of the later History of Britain episodes; it's so sad, seeing all those little bits of ribbon or a button because it was all she had to give to her baby.

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Choisya wrote:

Last night I watched a rather sad little TV programme about the old Foundling Hospital (wonderful website and PDF!) in Coram's Fields, in north London and learned that identity tokens, like the locket which Oliver Twist's mother left for him, were indeed pinned to children by destitute mothers in those sad times and that Dickens knew of them.  The Foundling Museum has many trays of such tokens which were never reclaimed and this website shows a few of them. The musician Handel, who wrote a 'Foundling's Anthem', and the artist Hogarth, were great benefactors of the Hospital and concerts and art exhibitions were held there, including the first performance of Handel's Messiah. The Museum still houses some of their work and that of other Victorian artist benefactors, and it preserves some of the original architectural features from the original hospital.   

Happily, Coram's Fields is now the site of a large children's farm and playground.    

Message Edited by Choisya on 03-27-2009 07:03 AM

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