Advertisement for the sale of children: the history of a photograph from the USA in 1948, which is considered staged

An old black and white photograph of a woman hiding her face and four children in the foreground would not have attracted any attention if not for the advertisement in the center. On a large sheet of paper it is written: “4 children for sale. Ask inside." This photo can often be seen on the Internet, and there is usually a debate about whether it was staged or not. The history of photography is well known, so today you will find out the answer.

This strange photo was taken in 1948 in the suburbs of Chicago. The woman in the photo is a mixed race from Canada, Lucille Chalifoux. Four children belong to her, and she was pregnant with the fifth at the time of filming. Lucille is not a single mother - she has a legal husband named Ray. He worked as a truck driver and hauled coal throughout the United States and Canada for many years, but lost his job in 1948 due to layoffs.

The family rented the house on the porch of which the photographer captured the mother and children. After the husband lost his job, the Chalifoux family had no income, and they were asked to vacate their home, for which they had no money to pay. It was this situation that forced Lucille to take a desperate step - to write an advertisement for the sale of children.

News of the strange announcement quickly spread throughout the area. Soon a photo reporter from The Vidette-Messenger newspaper appeared at the family's house. Soon they published a famous photograph with a small note underneath it. The journalist wrote that poverty has driven Lucille Chalifoux to despair, and the children in the photo, fortunately, do not understand what is happening. The names of the children were also indicated: on the top step, Lana (6 years old) and Rae-Ann (5 years old), below Milton (4 years old) and Sue Ellen (2 years old).

The editors of Life magazine learned about this story. The respected publication sent photographer George Scadding to Chicago, who talked with Lucille Chalifoux and took a whole series of photographs. The journalist was surprised to note that the woman likes to be the center of attention and willingly poses.

Having extensive journalistic experience, Scadding suggested that Chalifoux was manipulating the emotions of compassionate Americans. He thought that the woman simply wanted to become famous in order to receive as much help as possible from philanthropists. To test her guesses, the journalist suggested that she sell one of the children for $100, which by today's standards is about $1,000.

To Scadding's surprise, Lucille perked up and agreed without hesitation. She herself chose the “product” for the photographer - five-year-old Rae-Ann. George, realizing that the matter was taking a serious turn, hastened to leave the house of the Chalifoux family. The result of his business trip was a harsh article in which he called Lucille a “bad mother.” The publication caused a stormy reaction in society and a flurry of letters to the editor.

It would be logical to assume that the authorities would react to the situation, but this did not happen. The scandalous publication was discussed, and soon everyone happily forgot about Chalifoux. Meanwhile, Lucien and her husband gradually disposed of all their children over the course of two years, including newborn David, with whom the woman was pregnant at the time of filming.

Surprisingly, the children whose parents got rid of them were not lost, and the fates of some of them are known. They turned out differently: some were lucky, some were not. The youngest, David, ended up in a prosperous, albeit strict, family. He was given a good education, and he devoted 20 years to military service. In civilian life, David chose the profession of a driver.

RaeAnn and Milton were not so lucky. In 1950, they were adopted by the Zuteman farming family. The new parents changed their children's names and began exploiting them as free labor. Children worked in the fields and in the barnyard, doing the most difficult and dirty work. RaeAnne and Milton were beaten, starved, and sometimes locked in a barn as punishment.

At the age of 17, Rae-Ann ran away from home and her traces were lost. Milton, who remained in foster care, grew up as a boy with serious mental problems and spent several years in a mental hospital. All his life he was haunted by fears and causeless attacks of rage.

Chalifoux's children, having matured, found each other. They not only began to communicate, but also found their biological mother. Lucille Chalifoux, having said goodbye to her five offspring, separated from her husband and remarried. In her new marriage, she gave birth to four more and raised them. The woman reacted coolly to the meeting with the children who found her and said that she never regretted getting rid of them. According to Lucille, they drove her crazy and interfered with her life.

The woman never asked for forgiveness from the children she abandoned. Some of them forgave their mother, justifying her actions with difficult times. But RaeAnn said, "My mother deserves to burn in hell." Lucille Chalifoux died in 1998. Most of her children are no longer alive - only Sue Ellen and Rae-Ann remain.

Behind many old photographs are hidden tragedies that we are not even aware of.