The Foundling Hospital, London

The Hospital was founded by royal charter in 1739. It was established 'for the maintenance and education of exposed and deserted young children'. It admitted its first infants in 1741. Being reliant on private funding meant resources were tight which meant restricting admissions. To ensure fairness, the Hospital instituted a system of selection by ballot in 1742. Women who brought infants to the Hospital drew coloured balls from a bag. A white ball meant the child was admitted, subject to checks for age and infectious disease; a black ball meant rejection. Between 1749 and 1756 only 803 babies were accepted out of a 2, 808 brought to the hospital.

The number of children actually reclaimed by their mothers may have been tiny, but ensuring the mothers were able to take their children back was an important priority for the hospital. Each baby left was registered with a number, accompanied with information designed to assist future identification.
On the printed registration forms or billets, there were headings for entering the sex of the child, the clothes it was wearing on admission, and any special distinguishing marks on its body. In addition the Hospital encouraged the mothers to supply a token, which might be a note, a letter, or a small object, to be kept with the billet as an identifier.
Small objects were especially suitable when the mother concerned was illiterate. Such tokens may include:

• A padlock and key
• brooches
• rings
• buttons
• metal watch seals
• coral necklaces
• coins
• keys
• swatches of textiles (usually cut from from a sleeve, a ribbon, or a gown)

These tokens remain interleaved in billet books. They and the stories they tell about manufacturing, fashion, women's skills, childrearing and maternal emotion are at the heart of Threads of Feeling. (An exhibition hosted by The Foundling Museum, London).

These Hospital tokens remind me of some of the charms and amulets which I have been observing recently. I especially like the use of textiles, which is reminiscent of antique patchwork quilts. The ones patched together from old clothing and often having significant and sentimental meaning to the owners and families. Often, objects such as human hair, hair pins, handkerchiefs, newspapers and letters were trapped and hidden between the layers of fabrics.  An historical family gift which would be passed down through generations. Each patch with its own story to tell. 

Examples of old American Patchwork quilts