Humewood House 100 Years Old

From Toronto News:

For 100 years, Humewood House has been a refuge for vulnerable young unwed mothers, who have stood on its doorstep, suitcase in hand, their hearts filled with fear of what the future held.

More than 5,000 young women — many of them mere children themselves — found a haven at the home, just north of St. Clair Ave. on Humewood St., once the home of the province’s first chancellor, William Hume Blake.

For decades, it was where “bad girls” were shut away and hidden from society until they gave birth. Many had been disowned by their families for the shame they had wrought. Most gave their babies up, never to see them again.

Those who returned home had to deal with their trauma on their own, often living lives of silent desperation, their secret never to be revealed.