Barnardo, Thomas John

Barnardo, Thomas John (1845-1905), founder of homes for poor children, b. Dublin, Eire.

Thomas Barnardo intended to go to China as a missionary and he went to London to train as a doctor.

In those days missionaries would help the sick, as well as spread Christianity.

In London, Barnardo also taught in a school for poor children and one night he found a boy named Jim Jarvis hiding in the school.

Dr. Barnardo discovered that Jim had no home, and Jim took him through the streets of the East End of London and showed him other homeless children sleeping in corners and doorways.

At once Dr. Barnardo made up his mind to spend his life helping these children. In 1870 he opened a home for them at Stepney.

He appealed for money to help his work and, before he died, raised more than £3 million, rescuing 60,000 children from the streets.

After his death the work went on. Dr. Barnardo's homes continue today and there are over 400 projects around the UK.

See janet hitchman They Carried the Sword: a biography of Dr. Barnardo.