Street Child Collection

Victorian London boys begging and sweeping street, 1870
Vintage engraving of Victorian London boys begging and sweeping street. Mothers Last Words, Mrs Sewell, c.1870

Victorian London orphan boy begging on the street, 1870
Vintage engraving of Victorian London orphan boy begging on the street, 1870. Mothers Last Words, Mrs Sewell

Bleak House
Vintage engraving from the works of Charles Dickens. From Bleak House. I m Fly, says Jo. But Fen larksm you know. Stow hooking it!

In the orphanage. Young nun distributes toy figures and apples to the children. Private Collection

Boys playing at Bull-fighting; Notes on Spain, 1875. Creator: Unknown
Boys playing at Bull-fighting; Notes on Spain, 1875. From, Illustrated Travels by H.W. Bates. [Cassell, Petter, and Galpin, c1880, London]

The close of a career in New York, between 1900 and 1906. Creator: Byron Company
The close of a career in New York, between 1900 and 1906

Travel views of Cuba and Guatemala, between 1899 and 1926. Creator: Arnold Genthe
Travel views of Cuba and Guatemala, between 1899 and 1926

Homeless Child, 1920s. Creator: Petrov, Nikolai (1876-1940)
Homeless Child, 1920s. Private Collection

"City Arabs" - from a photograph taken after a course of training at the Belvedere-Crescent Reformat Creator
"City Arabs" - from a photograph taken after a course of training at the Belvedere-Crescent Reformatory, 1856. Children rescued from the streets

A "City Arab" - from a photograph taken before admission to the Belvedere-Crescent Reformatory, 1856. Homeless boy on the streets of London

Victorian London - Found in the Street
Vintage engraving showing a scene from 19th Century London England. A homeless orphan is cared for in a refuge after being found in the street circa 1870

Neapolitan Lazzaroni
Vintage engraving from Forsters Life of Charles Dickens in the Household Edition by Fred Barnard. Neapolitan Lazzaroni. The Naples Lazzaroni is an historical term specific to the Age of Revolution

Young Orphan Girl in the Cemetery. Artist: Delacroix, Eugene (1798-1863)
Young Orphan Girl in the Cemetery. Found in the collection of Louvre, Paris

Here are those to blame for homeless children, 1926. Artist: Anonymous
Here are those to blame for homeless children, 1926. Found in the collection of the Russian State Library, Moscow

Childrens home is like a family for a homeless child, 1926. Artist: Anonymous
Childrens home is like a family for a homeless child, 1926. Found in the collection of the Russian State Library, Moscow

Free Period in the Amsterdam Orphanage. Artist: Liebermann, Max (1847-1935)
Free Period in the Amsterdam Orphanage. Found in the collection of Stadtische Galerie im Stadelschen Kunstinstitut, Frankfurt am Main

On The Bench
circa 1890: Street urchins in Trafalgar Square. (Photo by Paul Martin/General Photographic Agency/Getty Images)

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In the heart of Victorian London, amidst the bustling streets and towering buildings, young boys found themselves trapped in a world of hardship. With tattered clothes and weary eyes, they resorted to begging and sweeping the streets just to survive. The year was 1870, a time when poverty gripped the city like an iron fist. One image captures this bleak reality perfectly - a lone orphan boy standing on a desolate street corner, his outstretched hand pleading for mercy. It's as if he stepped right out of Charles Dickens' masterpiece "Bleak House, " where destitution was rampant and hope seemed elusive. Another snapshot from that era takes us to Dudley Street in Seven Dials. Here, children roamed aimlessly through narrow alleys, their innocent faces etched with sorrow. They were the forgotten ones - abandoned by society yet resilient in their struggle for survival. But Victorian London wasn't alone in witnessing such heartbreaking scenes; across Europe, cities harbored their own tales of despair. In Naples, the Lazzaroni children faced similar hardships as they navigated life on the unforgiving streets. Yet amongst these haunting images emerges one filled with tenderness - Eugene Delacroix's portrayal of a young orphan girl seeking solace within a cemetery's embrace. Her vulnerability juxtaposed against her surroundings serves as a poignant reminder of innocence lost too soon. Fast forward to 1926 when anonymous artists shed light on those responsible for homeless children - pointing fingers at societal failings rather than blaming these innocent souls who had been dealt an unfair hand in life. Simultaneously though, another artist depicted how children's homes could provide refuge akin to family bonds – offering hope amidst adversity. A glimmer of joy can be found within Max Liebermann's painting capturing free moments at Amsterdam Orphanage – laughter echoing through its walls as children experience fleeting moments of carefree bliss despite their circumstances.