Results: 4 Children for Sale (Part 3 of 6)
This photo was first was published in 1948, with the caption, “A big ‘For Sale’ sign in a Chicago yard mutely tells the tragic story of Mr. and Mrs. Ray Chalifoux, who face eviction from their apartment. With no place to turn, the jobless coal truck driver and his wife decide to sell their four children. Mrs. Lucille Chalifoux turns her head from camera above while her children stare wonderingly. On the top step are Lana, 6, and Rae, 5. Below are Milton, 4, and Sue Ellen, 2.” Actually, Lucille and the kids had been abandoned by her husband who didn't return because of his criminal record. Daughter Raeann claimed she was sold so her mother could get money to play Bingo, and because the man Lucille was dating at the time didn't want to have anything to do with children.
1.
1.
Five-year old RaeAnn ((top right) was sold to a farming couple for $2 (about $28 today). Her four-year-old brother Milton (bottom left) sobbed so much, the Zoetemans took him, too. The siblings were subjected to an abusive and loveless childhood. They were forced to work as field workers from 5 on, and were often chained in the barn, subsisting on milk and peanut butter. Are you surprised the Zoetemans were able to get away with this?
Yes
42%
•
457 votes
No, it was a different time.
26%
•
289 votes
No
10%
•
111 votes
N/A
21%
•
234 votes
2.
2.
RaeAnn kept the dress (pictured) and the green corduroy pants she and Milton were wearing when they were sold. Do you have any clothes from your childhood?
Yes
14%
•
156 votes
No
63%
•
686 votes
N/A
23%
•
249 votes
3.
3.
Despite the beatings and abuse, the Zoetemans maintained the facade of a happy family. In her teens, RaeAnn was kidnapped, raped, and became pregnant. Sent away to a home for girls, she surrendered her child for adoption. She left the farm at 18, later married, and had a family. Her son described her as loving, compassionate, and "tough as nails". Does it seem unsettling to see such a typical family portrait when you know the dark backstory of abuse?
Yes
55%
•
600 votes
No
18%
•
201 votes
I'm vision-impaired.
3%
•
28 votes
N/A
24%
•
262 votes
4.
4.
RaeAnn (pictured) shared that at 21. she was reunited with her birth mother. Lucille expressed no remorse, regret, or love. How would that make you feel? RaeAnn died at 82 in 2025, the last of the siblings.
Hurt
25%
•
270 votes
Disappointed
19%
•
209 votes
Frustrated
9%
•
94 votes
Betrayed
16%
•
180 votes
Angry
17%
•
185 votes
I would have expected nothing from her.
18%
•
195 votes
Other
2%
•
17 votes
N/A
26%
•
288 votes
Sad
34%
•
372 votes
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