Abandoned as a baby and looking for birth mother

Abandoned in a cardboard box when she was only a few days old, Elizabeth Rylands, who is 86% Irish according to DNA testing, is desperate to meet her birth parents and discover her true identity.

Elizabeth, now aged 57, is making a public appeal to anyone who might be able to shed light on her situation.

On March 28, 1958, five-day-old Elizabeth was left on the steps of No 61 Grafton St in Manchester — an area known for having a high volume of Irish residents; the street was known as “Little Ireland”.

She was found shortly before midnight, wrapped in oilskins. While police searched for a “desperate” birth mother, their investigations never led to a breakthrough.

Elizabeth was taken into care and eventually fostered.

“I was taken straight away to the Princess Christian Children’s Home in Fallowfield,” Elizabeth told Irish TV’s Out and About in Manchester programme. “I lived there from the end of March until August of 1958 when I was fostered and later adopted by the same people.

Can you help Elizabeth @graftonstbaby one of the foundlings featured @longlostfamily contact: http://t.co/esFZwam1mx pic.twitter.com/13ctO0LtKF

— Long Lost Family (@longlostfamily) July 15, 2015

“I’ve always known I was adopted because my mum told me from a very early age, I think I was about six or seven.”

When she was a child, Elizabeth’s adoptive mother would say her biological parents had died in a plane crash. She later realised this was untrue and began to wonder if she might be able to find out who her parents were and what had actually happened to them.

Elizabeth said she just hopes her birth mother has had a good life and that she has not spent it feeling guilty about abandoning her.

She also said it would be “unbelievable” if she actually got to meet her birth mother.

“It’s something I can’t even allow myself to think about if I’m honest,” said Elizabeth. “It would be so amazing for that to happen given the length of time that has passed. There’s also a birth father out there somewhere, it would be great to meet him too.

“Given my background, perhaps it is no surprise that I am a private person, preferring to be a listening ear to friends rather than share my own experiences. It was, therefore, a massive step for me to go public about my own life. I have found my journey an emotional roller coaster but already over a three-month period we are piecing together a story.”

Anyone with information can email elizabethrylands58 @gmail.com