article: Illicit operation: Chiropractor Gertrude Pitkanen would sell newborn babies to adoptive parents for as little as $100 in Butte, Montana . For as little as $100, chiropractor Gertrude Pitkanen took babies from their mother's arms seconds after they were born and handed them to their adoptive parents. As the infants were driven to their new homes, the families were sometimes forced to throw their afterbirth out of the window because they were removed so quickly. These transactions formed the basis of a lucrative, illicit market that started in Butte, Montana, in 1920s, and grew until Pitkanen decided to stop in the 1950s. Most of the children who were victims of this horrific crime have now aged, have families and have forged their own lives - but they are still looking for answers. They have joined together to form a group called Gertie's Babies who have been using DNA to trace their biological families and search for their estranged siblings that are still alive. Only a six of them have come together, but they believe there are many more people who were given up by Pitkanen out there, and simply do not know it. Heather Livergood, 69, was purchased for $100 in a motel room in 1946.  Now 69 she lives in Coeur d'Alene, northern Idaho, with her husband Steve. This May she will have been married for 47 years, has three children and is expecting a grandchild this month. Last year, while using sites such as Ancestory.com and 23andMe.com, she was able to track down two half brothers Bob and Gary, who live in Grantsville, Utah. Her birth mother was called Violet Weyland Sandberg, and discovered the circumstances which forced her to abandon her as a child. While her husband, Evan Sandberg a member of the Army Air Corps, had been fighting in the Pacific, she got pregnant with another man's child, prompting her to take desperate action. She told the Daily Mail Online that her biological aunt, Julia, had told her children before she died that Violet had spent two months with a man in Montana while her husband was fighting. On a night in 1946, Violet traveled 450 miles from Grantsville to give birth in Butte. That decision forged a certain future for Mrs Livergood, . She moved into a good home with her adoptive family. Her mother died when she was three and she was raised by her father, a man who she said was 'great, very funny and outgoing', and a stepmother. Heather Livergood (center), now 69, was given up for adoption in 1946 but has been reunited with brothers Gary (left) and Bob (right) following a trip to Grantsville, Utah, last year . However she has sympathy for her birth mother, because she had gotten herself into trouble. She told the Spokesman-Review in an interview last year: 'I couldn't give up a child, but I don't blame her for that. And you know, things weren't very good when the war got out. People didn't have a lot of money.' Her adoptive father also shared a detail from the night she was born which prompted her to dig further into her family history. Mrs Livergood told the Daily Mail Online she visited her brothers last year after tracking them down and keeps in contact with them on a regular basis. She plans to return for another trip as she continues to build a relationship with them. Some others however have been unsuccessful in their search. Mrs Livergood discovered her birth mother was called Violet Weyland Sandberg. She got pregnant with another man while her husband was away at war . Bonnie Gower told the Daily Mail Online that when she was born, she was given to parents who couldn't have children through traditional methods. They had already adopted two boys and wanted a girl  but they were told they couldn't have anymore. 'A friend of theirs who had a adopted a son through Gertie got a call from the local go between asking them if they wanted a baby girl,' she told the Daily Mail Online. 'They said no but called my mom and asked. My parents said yes and they drove to Butte to get me. My birth certificate is filled out in my Dad's handwriting.' Her adoptive parents were told what to write and they handed over $500 to complete the transaction. She added: 'He [her father] said he couldn't remember if they went the day I was born (probably not), but the date they were to write down was the day they got me. Throughout her childhood, Mrs Gower was always told she had been adopted and lived a good life. Her parents always said she was 'special' because they picked her. 'I did not know the black market baby stuff until I was ready to get married and decided I wanted to try to get my medical history, ' she said. 'In contacting the state they said there was no adoption papers and that I wasn't adopted. Then I got the story from my parents. 'My mom's words were..."we were never going to tell". But they knew nothing of the birth mother and asked no questions. 'I think they knew what they were doing was illegal, but they just wanted a baby and put that little fact away.' Mrs Gower has since completed the checks on Ancestory.com and has only found connections to third cousins. She has contacted them but is yet to receive a reply. 'I suppose I will continue my search for many more years...but not aggressively as I did when we all connected,' she added. Sue Docken was also sold for $500 in 1951 from on office building in Butte. The transaction was expected to last just a few minutes, so her adoptive's mother's husband was told to leave the car running as he waited outside. She went back to the empty office building about a month ago to see where the exchange unfolded. Mable Deane, 65, who runs the Gertie's Babies website, was given up in 1949, and is yet to learn much about her past. Pitkanen was never held accountable for the black market scheme which tore families apart. She was born in 1878 and trained as a nurse and chiropractor before moving with her husband Gustave Pitkanen to Butte. She died in 1960, but escaped criminal prosecution. It's not known how much money she made from the scheme or how many of the adoptions she organised over at least three decades. According to The New York Times she worked with the political and business elite and had a 'black book' with intelligence she could use as blackmail. She was charged with botched abortions on multiple occasions, but each time a judge threw out the case, fearing the repercussions of what she might do. Pitkanen also made her service available to prostitutes, an industry that was thriving in Butte at the time of her operation. Others who got pregnant out of wedlock or through affairs also used the service.
highlights: Gertrude Pitkanen started the illicit scheme in Butte, Montana in the 1920s .
  For around 30 years, she gave newborns to adoptive parents for cash .
  Children involved in the crimes have aged, and are looking for answers .
  Is only since the proliferation of DNA that they have found lost relatives .
  Group called Gertie's Babies believe there are more children out there .
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