Lisa Wingate wrote a book called Before We Were Yours based on real life stories of children who survived the Tennessee Children's Home Society and a woman called Georgia Tann who stole and sold children back in the 30's, 40's, and 50's as orphans. When the stories of these children came to light, though after Tann died, it caused many adoption policies and legalities to change in the United States. But the heartache happened and all of the survivors will never get those years with their biological parents and siblings back. But back in the 90's the adoption records were unsealed and many of these adoptees were able to find their own records and their biological families--if not their parents, then cousins, full and half siblings.
Lisa was bombarded by adoptees after Before We Were Yours came out and her book tours were flooded by survivors as well. They shared so many stories of hard or happy lives, abandonment issues, and the potential of finding or not finding their biological families. She was offered the idea of doing a reunion of these children--now grandparents. So a reunion was initiated and many people went and shared their stories back in 2017. Their stories permeated the area and is now being shared all over by these books.
This was a great, but sad read. I, obviously, had no idea that Georgia Tann even existed, let alone what she did to these kids and families. Getting parents, often single mothers who "made a mistake" and would be shunned from their communities and families, to sign away their babies or poor families from the rural south doing the same because they couldn't afford to take care of them. There were even stories of, because of corrupt hospital workers and politicians, babies being stolen from their families while their mothers were still recuperating in the hospital after just having given birth. My heart ached for all the people. Tann kidnapped (in one way or another) these children and sold them as if their were hats or boots and she became a very, very wealthy woman. It's disgusting. This is two such ads where she would sell the "pretty" children:
The worst part for me though--because many of the children were able to be placed in good, happy homes--was that at the end of the book when at the reunion they went to the memorial that was erected for the 19 known deaths of babies who were under Tann's care at the Tennessee Children's Home Society. But the horrendous moment for me was when it was reveled that there were actually more than 500 children/babies who died under that roof if the child wasn't "pretty" or already sick. One of the people who's story we were given very easily could have been one of those babies who died. It breaks my heart.
The compilation of all of these stories was very well put together. This is one that I think many should read and all should be aware of so then things like this doesn't happen again. Hopefully things have changed, though kidnappings and child slaves have gone more underground, but it all needs to stop.
I hope that these once children are able to find peace and the answer they are looking for. Because of Ancestry and other DNA places, many of these survivors have been able to find biological families, but there are still so many questions that have gone unanswered and as time passes, may never be fully answered.
I am very interested in hearing the story Before We Were Yours for the sheer fact that it changed so many lives.
This marker reads:
"The Tennessee Children's Home Society
An Infamous History. A Tragic Legacy.
September 17, 1923 -- December 10, 1949
"In Memory of the 19 children who finally
Rest here unmarked if not unknown,
And of all the hundreds who died under
The cold hard hand of the Tennessee
Children's Home Society. Their final resting
Place unknown. Their final peace a blessing.
"The hard lesson of their fate changed
Adoption procedure and law nationwide."
May you rest in peace.
