Susan, did you ever get any replies on this? I was browsing through and saw your message. There was a very large orphanage during the time you mention in Owatonna, MN, Steele county, called "The Owatonna State School for neglected and dependant children". My father-in-law spent some time there. About 18,000 children went through this orphanage between the years of approx. 1888-1945.

Denise