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In 1874, an unusual incident created an opportunity to establish the first organization dedicated to the prevention of cruelty toward children. A young girl named Mary Ellen Wilson, who had been abused by her caregiver, attracted the attention of a concerned citizen. Unanswered pleas to child-saving institutions and public officials resulted in the citizen approaching Henry Bergh of the New York SPCA. Bergh, with the help of attorney Elbridge T. Gerry, initiated court action to remove Wilson from the abusive environment, using laws addressing the treatment of animals. As a result of this legal action, Gerry emerged as a leader of the new child rescue movement, founding the New York Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children (SPCC) in 1875, the first such organization in the world. After 1874, many North American animal welfare groups with available resources expanded their missions to include the welfare of children, thereafter referring to themselves as Humane Societies. The newly organized effort to rescue neglected and abused children was not simply the result of awareness that children, like animals, merited protection from cruel treatment. Rather, it was an evolutionary step in the movement to protect children from a variety of harms, while simultaneously establishing their rights. By 1900, more than 250 societies in the United States aided in the protection of children from neglect and abuse.
When a parent or caregiver abuses, neglects, or is clearly unable or unwilling to protect their child, society responds with the public child protective services system, traditionally a specialized component of a broader child welfare system. The focus of such services is the rehabilitation of the home by addressing contexts giving rise to abuse and neglect. Many