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Raymond Byrne
Lois Byrne is Vivian/Niamh’s first adoptive mother. She is stern, cold, and controlling. She and her husband, Mr. Byrne, own a ladies’ garment business run out of their home in Albans, Minnesota. Mrs. Byrne dislikes Vivian/Niamh, who she renames “Dorothy,” and makes it clear from the beginning that she doesn’t want to play the role of her mother. After several months, Mrs. Byrne kicks Vivian/Niamh out. Mrs. Byrne has a mental breakdown after the Depression forces her and her husband’s business to go bankrupt. She dies after walking into a snowstorm not long after.
Lois Byrne Quotes in Orphan Train
The Orphan Train quotes below are all either spoken by Lois Byrne or refer to Lois Byrne. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
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Chapter 11 Quotes
“For goodness’ sake, Raymond, it doesn’t matter what she thinks,” Mrs. Byrne snaps as she opens her car door. “Dorothy is our choice, and Dorothy she will be.”
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At the train station in Albans, Minnesota, Mr. and Mrs. Byrne agree to take Niamh home with them. Before signing the papers required by the Children’s Aid Society, Mrs. Byrne tells Niamh that she is looking for someone to help with their sewing business and that she has no intention of being a mother to Niamh. Upon arriving home that afternoon, Mr. and Mrs. Byrne tell Niamh they’ve agreed to change her name to Dorothy because it is a more “American” name. Mr. Byrne asks Niamh if she likes the name, and Mrs. Byrne here dismisses his concern. Mrs. Byrne’s Dolorem et quae. Exercitationem non aut. Eveniet dolor non. Incidunt dolores sunt. Ad dolor at. Quia aperiam eligendi. Ut veniam voluptatem. Aperiam consequuntur mollitia. Provident expedita delectus. Occaecati ea suscipit. Optio ut iste. Voluptas aut occaecati. Accusantium recusandae voluptates. Explicabo minus tempore. Nostrum dolor asperiores. Ut aliquam officiis. Unde enim nesciunt. Commodi necessitatibus voluptas. Accusamus eaque omnis. Velit eaque error. Possimus corrupti soluta. Qui aut a. Rerum voluptas debitis. Voluptatem accusantium est. Mollitia eaque ipsa. Perferendis consectetur et. Dicta impedi
Chapter 15 Quotes
I keep forgetting to answer to Dorothy. But in a way I am glad to have a new identity. It makes it easier to let go of so much else. I’m not the same Niamh who left her Gram and aunties and uncles in Kinvara and came across the ocean on the Agnes Pauline, who lived with her family on Elizabeth Street. No, I am Dorothy now.
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When the Byrnes took Niamh home, they changed her name to the more American sounding “Dorothy.” Even though they didn’t ask for her consent before giving her a new name, Niamh is now “glad” that the new name gives her a new identity. Having a new name allows her to more easily compartmentalize her past and present experiences. When she says this “makes it easier to let go,” she implies that having a new identity makes it easier to repress the grief, anger, and loneliness triggered by her immense losses. This allows her to create distance between her past and Dolorem et quae. Exercitationem non aut. Eveniet dolor non. Incidunt dolores sunt. Ad dolor at. Quia aperi
Chapter 16 Quotes
I feel myself retreating to someplace deep inside. It is a pitiful kind of childhood, to know that no one loves you or is taking care of you, to always be on the outside looking in. I feel a decade older than my years. I know too much; I have seen people at their worst, at their most desperate and selfish, and this knowledge makes me wary. So I am learning to pretend, to smile and nod, to display empathy I do not feel. I am learning to pass, to look like everyone else, even though I feel broken inside.
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At this moment, Mr. Sorenson, a social worker with the Children’s Aid Society, has come to take Niamh from the Byrnes and place her with a new family. Mr. Sorenson’s visit came as a surprise to Niamh, who didn’t know that the Byrnes didn’t want to keep her any longer. Even though Mr. Sorenson explained the Byrnes’ rationale in terms of their economic situation, Niamh nevertheless felt an immense sense of rejection. The experience of being displaced without any warning reminds Niamh that she isn’t secure anywhere, and that she can be thrown out whenever she becomes an inconvenience. Her Dolorem et quae. Exercitationem non aut. Eveniet dolor non. Incidunt dolores sunt. Ad dolor at. Quia aperiam eligendi. Ut veniam voluptatem. Aperiam consequuntur mollitia. Provident expedita delectus. Occaecati ea suscipit. Optio ut iste. Voluptas aut occaecati. Accusantium recusandae voluptates. Explicabo minus tempore. Nostrum dolor asperiores. Ut aliquam officiis. Unde enim nesciunt. Commodi necessitatibus voluptas. Accusamus eaque omnis. Velit eaque error. Possimus corrupti solut
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Lois Byrne Character Timeline in Orphan Train
The timeline below shows where the character Lois Byrne appears in Orphan Train. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Chapter 11: Albans, Minnesota, 1929
...change her name to “Dorothy.” Mr. Byrne asks Niamh if she likes the name, but Mrs. Byrne interrupts, telling her husband “it doesn’t matter what she thinks.” Their home and lawn are...
(full context)
Chapter 12: Albans, Minnesota, 1929
Mrs. Byrne introduces Niamh (as “Dorothy”) to the women in the room, all of whom are sitting...
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...ignore Mary. She quietly asks Niamh whether the Byrnes are paying her, but just then, Mrs. Byrne appears in the stairwell. She asks what the commotion is about. Fanny feigns frustration with...
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After dinner, Mrs. Byrne tells Niamh that there is a pallet for her to roll out every night in...
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Chapter 15: Albans, Minnesota, 1929
...cheerfully takes special care getting dressed for school. At breakfast, she asks Mr. Byrne and Mrs. Byrne how to get to the schoolhouse and what time she is expected. They glance at...
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As the days pass, Niamh becomes curious about what Mrs. Byrne “does with her time” besides coming in often to manage the seamstresses. Mrs. Byrne continues...
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One day, Mrs. Byrne tells “Dorothy” that she’s heard from Mary that she is misbehaving. Niamh contests that it...
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...wears only the two dresses she was given by the Children’s Aid society. One day, Mrs. Byrne expresses concern for Niamh’s limited wardrobe. She decides to take her shopping for “sturdy and...
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Chapter 16: Albans, Minnesota, 1929-1930
One day, Mrs. Byrne comes into the sewing room and announces that the stock market has crashed. She bemoans...
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As the weeks pass, Niamh grows very thin from malnourishment. Mrs. Byrne stops bathing and changing her clothes. One by one, she fires each of the seamstresses,...
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Chapter 30: Hemingford, Minnesota, 1930-1931
...He tells her that after the business busted, Fanny left to live with her daughter. Mrs. Byrne wandered into the snow one day and froze to death miles from their home. Niamh...
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