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Irish Examiner
15-07-2025
- General
- Irish Examiner
Troubled Ground: The story of the excavation of the Tuam Mother and Baby Home
Troubled Ground is a two-part podcast that explores the historic exhumation of a mass grave at the site of the Bon Secours Mother and Baby Home in Tuam, Co Galway, involving the remains of 796 infants and children. In Episode 1, reporter Alison O'Reilly meets local historian Catherine Corless, who first uncovered the existence of the burial site and whose research ultimately led to the excavation. Forensic experts describe the painstaking process of examining the site in search of lost remains. The episode revisits the origins of the Tuam Babies story, beginning in 2014 with Catherine Corless's research into the deaths of hundreds of children at the Tuam Mother and Baby Home. Anna Corrigan shares the devastating discovery that her mother had two sons who died in the home. Despite initial indifference from the media, the story gained traction on the global stage. As international attention mounted, political leaders were compelled to respond, including the Taoiseach of the day, Enda Kenny. The episode captures how a local investigation into a burial ground for forgotten children led to the first mass grave exhumation of its kind in Ireland. To hear more compelling journalism from the Irish Examiner team, follow The Full Story podcast wherever you get your podcasts. Read More Alison O'Reilly: It took a global spotlight for many to accept hundreds of babies are buried in a septic tank in Tuam
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First Post
14-07-2025
- Health
- First Post
How nearly 800 Irish babies were discarded in a sewage tank
For decades, 796 babies who died at a church-run home in Tuam, Ireland, lay in an unmarked grave — many possibly discarded in a former sewage tank. Now, a landmark forensic excavation aims to identify and bury them with dignity read more A 'No access to public' sign is put up on a barricade near the excavation site of the Tuam graveyard, where the bodies of 796 babies were uncovered at the site of a former Catholic Church-run Bon Secours Mother and Baby Home, in Tuam, Ireland, July 7, 2025. File Image/Reuters A full-scale forensic excavation is now underway at a site in Tuam, County Galway in Ireland, where the remains of nearly 800 infants and young children are believed to be buried in an unmarked grave. The dig, which formally commences on Monday, marks a turning point in Ireland's reckoning with the harrowing legacy of its church-run institutions for unmarried mothers and their children. The operation, expected to last two years, is taking place on the grounds where the Bon Secours Mother and Baby Home once stood — a site now overlaid by a housing estate and children's playground. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD A team of forensic archaeologists, anthropologists and crime scene investigators, including international experts from as far as Colombia, Canada, Australia and the US, is tasked with recovering and identifying human remains that date back to when the institution was in operation, between 1925 and 1961. Uncovering Tuam's hidden & horrific history The Tuam Mother and Baby Home — also referred to as St Mary's — was one of many such facilities established to house women who became pregnant outside of marriage, a condition then heavily stigmatised by both Irish society and the Catholic Church. The Bon Secours Sisters, a religious order of Catholic nuns, oversaw the institution, which also included the nearby Grove Hospital under their care. A memorial is put up at the Tuam graveyard, where the bodies of 796 babies were uncovered at the site of a former Catholic Church-run Bon Secours Mother and Baby Home, in Tuam, Ireland, July 7, 2025. File Image/Reuters During its 36 years of operation, St Mary's housed thousands of women and children. Death records show that 796 infants and young children died at the institution, ranging in age from newborns to toddlers up to three years old. The first child known to have died at the home was five-month-old Patrick Derrane in 1925, and the last was Mary Carty, also five months old, in 1960. Despite the number of recorded deaths, only two of the children were officially interred in a nearby cemetery. The absence of any formal burial documentation, headstones or memorials for the remaining children raised longstanding questions about where and how they were buried. Historian Catherine Corless watches Taoiseach Micheal Martin speaking during a Government webinar meeting for survivors and supporters of Church-run mother and baby homes where he outlines the first look at the report by the Commission of Investigation into the institutions before it is formally published, in Tuam, Ireland, January 12, 2021. File Image/Reuters The reality began to come into focus in 2014 when local historian Catherine Corless published her findings based on years of research. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD She had grown up in Tuam and remembered the 'home children' being segregated at school. Her initial inquiries into the home's history led her to request death records from the Galway registrar's office. Expecting a short list, she was stunned when she was told there were hundreds of names. 'A fortnight later a sceptical member of staff called to ask if she really wanted them all,' she recalled. The eventual list included 796 names. Seeking answers about their burials, Corless checked cemetery records in Galway and nearby County Mayo, only to find no trace of these children. Her research also included old survey maps of the site. One map from 1929 identified a specific area as a 'sewage tank.' A later map from the 1970s bore a handwritten note calling the same area a 'burial ground.' Senior Forensic Consultant Niamh McCullagh shows a map of the planned excavation of the Tuam graveyard, where the bodies of 796 babies were uncovered at the site of a former Catholic Church-run Bon Secours Mother and Baby Home, near the excavation site in Tuam, Ireland, July 7, 2025. File Image/Reuters Her suspicions intensified when she learned from a local cemetery caretaker that two boys playing in the area during the 1970s had lifted a broken concrete slab and found bones underneath. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD The site was quickly covered, and for decades, the matter remained undisturbed. Although some believed the bones might have belonged to victims of the Irish Famine, Corless noted that famine-era dead had been buried with markers in a separate field nearby. This discovery pointed instead to a potential mass grave on the home's former grounds. Irish govt confirms graves in Tuam In 2017, the Irish government commissioned a test excavation at the Tuam site. Forensic investigators unearthed a vault consisting of twenty chambers containing 'significant quantities of human remains.' The remains, confirmed through carbon dating, were from the period when the home was in operation and ranged in age from approximately 35 weeks gestational age to three years old. The investigation was carried out by the Mother and Baby Homes Commission of Investigation under Judge Yvonne Murphy. The Commission expressed shock at the findings and continued its inquiry to determine who was responsible for the handling and disposal of the remains. Anna Corrigan, whose two brothers were born at the former Catholic Church-run Bon Secours Mother and Baby Home and one of them died very young as the records suggest, shows pages from the book titled 'My Name is Bridget: The Untold Story of Bridget Dolan and the Tuam Mother and Baby Home' near the excavation site of the Tuam graveyard, where the bodies of 796 babies were uncovered at the site of the former Catholic Church-run mother and baby home, in Tuam, Ireland, July 7, 2025. File Image/Reuters In 2021, following the release of the Commission's final report, the Irish government issued a formal state apology. Taoiseach Micheál Martin stated: 'We had a completely warped attitude to sexuality and intimacy, and young mothers and their sons and daughters were forced to pay a terrible price for that dysfunction.' The commission's work revealed that roughly 9,000 children had died across 18 mother and baby homes in Ireland. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD The Bon Secours Sisters, who operated the Tuam facility, also offered their apology. 'We did not live up to our Christianity when running the Home,' they acknowledged. Excavation crew work at the site of the Tuam graveyard, where the bodies of 796 babies were uncovered at the site of a former Catholic Church-run Bon Secours Mother and Baby Home, in Tuam, Ireland, July 7, 2025. File Image/Reuters They further conceded that the children had been 'buried in a disrespectful and unacceptable way' and offered compensation to affected families. The excavation into the mass grave begins Now, a decade after Corless's research brought global attention to Tuam, heavy machinery and prefabricated units occupy the site as excavation work begins in earnest. The project is led by Daniel MacSweeney, an expert in recovering human remains from complex environments, including conflict zones such as Afghanistan. 'This is a very challenging process — really a world-first,' MacSweeney said. He noted that the remains of the children are likely to be intermixed and extremely fragile. 'They're absolutely tiny,' he explained. 'We need to recover the remains very, very carefully – to maximise the possibility of identification.' He added that the task is complicated by the co-mingled state of the bones, the difficulty in distinguishing male from female remains in children so young, limited archival records, and the uncertain condition of the DNA. The operation, funded by the Irish government at an estimated cost between €6 and €13 million, aims to carry out DNA testing to identify as many of the remains as possible. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD The ultimate goal is to provide dignified burials for the children who were denied one in life. Denise Gormley and her daughter Rosa, 7, pay their respects and blow bubbles at the Tuam graveyard, where the bodies of 796 babies were uncovered at the site of a former Catholic home for unmarried mothers and their children, on the day a government-ordered inquiry into former Church-run homes for unmarried mothers is formally published, in Tuam, Ireland, January 12, 2021. File Image/Reuters While the excavation at Tuam proceeds, some residents have called for further scrutiny of the Grove Hospital, another facility once run by the Bon Secours order. Allegations have emerged that children and siblings may have been buried there from the 1950s through the 1970s. The order denies that any graveyard existed on the premises, but Galway County Council has now mandated that an archaeologist monitor any ground disturbances at the hospital site to preserve possible human remains. The Tuam dig represents more than a recovery of bones — it is a broader confrontation with one of Ireland's most disturbing institutional legacies. For decades, the home operated under a veil of secrecy. The hope now is that each child will finally be named, honoured, and laid to rest with the dignity they were once denied. Also Watch: With inputs from agencies
American Military News
20-06-2025
- Health
- American Military News
Remains of nearly 800 babies, kids may be recovered, identified during excavation in Ireland
An excavation at the site of a former Catholic home for babies and unmarried women was launched on Monday by officials in Ireland to identify the remains of roughly 800 babies and young children who died at the home. According to The Associated Press, the excavation was launched by Irish authorities this week at the former Bon Secours Mother and Baby Home in Tuam, County Galway, which is located in the western part of Ireland. The outlet noted that the Bon Secours Mother and Baby Home, which was run by Catholic nuns until it was shut down in 1961, was one of many similar institutions that provided homes for unmarried pregnant women and orphans throughout the 20th century in Ireland. The Associated Press reported that historian Catherine Coreless investigated almost 800 death certificates in 2014 for almost 800 babies and young children who died at the Bon Secours Mother and Baby Home from the 1920s to 1961. However, despite tracking down hundreds of death certificates, Coreless was only able to find one child's burial record, according to the outlet. After the historian's investigation, investigators discovered a mass grave located in an underground sewage structure on the Bon Secours Mother and Baby Home property that contained the remains of young children and babies, according to The Associated Press. The outlet noted that a DNA analysis determined that the remains were from children as young as 35 weeks of gestation to children as old as 3 years. READ MORE: Pics: Suspect arrested for digging up grave site 'It's a very, very difficult, harrowing story and situation,' Irish Prime Minister Micheal Martin said in a Monday statement obtained by The Associated Press. 'We have to wait to see what unfolds now as a result of the excavation.' According to The Associated Press, Daniel MacSweeney, who is leading the excavation effort at the Bon Secours Mother and Baby Home property, explained that survivors and family members will be able to view the progress at the mass grave site in a matter of weeks. However, the outlet reported that the excavation project could take a total of two years. MacSweeney said, 'This is a unique and incredibly complex excavation.' The Associated Press reported that the remains recovered from the excavation site will be preserved and analyzed by forensic experts and that identified remains will be returned to the family members of the deceased babies and young children.
Mint
19-06-2025
- Mint
Ireland begins dig at mass grave of 800 babies exposed by historian
After more than a decade of tireless research and ridicule, Catherine Corless—the historian who uncovered the burial site of nearly 800 babies at Tuam, County Galway, beneath a former Irish home for unwed mothers—is finally seeing justice take root. Excavation crews began work this week at the grounds of the former Bon Secours Mother and Baby Home in Tuam, marking a major turning point in one of Ireland's darkest historical reckonings. In an interview with The Irish Times, Corless reflected on her struggle to bring the truth to light. 'It's just beginning to dawn on me now,' she said. 'It has taken a while to sink in.' Her work first gained national attention in 2014, when she uncovered death certificates for 796 children who died at the Tuam home between the 1920s and 1961—but found only one corresponding burial record. Convinced the children's remains were still on site, she pushed for answers while facing relentless opposition. The local backlash was immediate and intense, she reportedly told the news outlet. 'People would cross the street to avoid me,' Corless told The Irish Times. Strangers harassed her in supermarkets, while others accused her of smearing the town's name. 'You're about as credible as Santa Claus. You're a disgrace,' a man wrote in an email to her just days ago, on June 15. 'I hope those nuns bring you to court.' But on Monday, Corless was vindicated. The fenced-off site where the babies' bodies were buried—some inside a decommissioned septic tank—is now under forensic control, with a full-scale excavation underway. In 2017, government investigators confirmed what Corless had long suspected: a mass grave was found beneath the grounds of the home. DNA analysis later revealed the remains belonged to babies and children ranging from 35 weeks gestation to three years old. The home, run by an order of Catholic nuns until its closure in 1961, was one of many institutions in Ireland where unmarried pregnant women were placed—often forcibly—and their children hidden, mistreated, or adopted without consent. 'All those lovely little children and babies, that's the one thing that drove me,' Corless told The Irish Times. 'That's all that was in my mind—these babies in a sewage system, they have to come out.' The broader scandal is staggering: nearly 9,000 children are believed to have died in 18 mother-and-baby homes across Ireland. Most succumbed to illnesses like gastroenteritis, whooping cough, diphtheria, and tuberculosis. But the lack of burial records—particularly in Tuam—points to deep institutional neglect. In 2021, the Irish government issued a formal apology for the mistreatment of women and children in these homes, acknowledging that 'a profound failure of empathy, understanding and basic humanity' had occurred. Daniel MacSweeney, head of the excavation project, said the process is expected to take two years. Families will have the opportunity to view the work as it progresses. Identified remains will be returned to relatives; unidentified remains will be buried respectfully. 'This is not just an excavation,' MacSweeney noted. 'It is a national act of recognition and dignity.' For Corless, that long-overdue dignity is finally beginning to emerge from the soil of Tuam. As she quietly watches the start of the dig she spent years fighting for, her words ring as powerfully now as when she began: 'It's about doing the right thing.'
Yahoo
18-06-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Grim excavation begins at site believed to contain remains of around 800 babies
Irish officials have begun excavating the grounds of a former home for unwed mothers which authorities say contains the remains of around 800 babies and young children who died there. "It's a very, very difficult, harrowing story and situation," Irish Prime Minister Micheal Martin said Monday. "We have to wait to see what unfolds now as a result of the excavation." Mysterious 'Dumped' Bodies Of Woman And Child Found By Archaeologists In Picturesque Town The former Bon Secours Mother and Baby Home in western Ireland — which closed in 1961 and was run by Catholic nuns — was one of many mother-and-baby homes during the 20th century in the European country. The homes housed unmarried pregnant women as well as tens of thousands of orphans, according to The Associated Press. Historian Catherine Corless tracked down death certificates in 2014 for nearly 800 children who died at the Bon Secours Mother and Baby Home between the 1920s and 1961. However, she could only find a burial record for one child, the AP reported. Archaeologists Make Grim Discovery After Finding Ancient Roman Buildings Read On The Fox News App A mass grave was later discovered by investigators in an underground sewage structure at the home. DNA analysis found the structure contained the remains of infants and young children between the ages of 35 weeks gestation and 3 years old, according to the AP. Family members and survivors will soon have the opportunity to view the works, according to Daniel MacSweeney, who is leading the exhumation of the infant remains. "This is a unique and incredibly complex excavation," MacSweeney said in a statement. Archaeologists Unexpectedly Uncover Hundreds Of Skeletons, Medieval Church Beneath University Campus Any remains recovered from the site will be analyzed and preserved by forensic experts. Identified remains will be returned to family members, while unidentified remains will be buried. The work is expected to take two years to complete, the AP reported. The sisters who ran the former Bon Secours Mother and Baby Home previously offered a "profound apology," acknowledging they failed to protect the dignity of the women and children that lived there, according to the AP. In 2021, Prime Minister Martin issued a former state apology after a report found that 9,000 children died in 18 mother-and-baby homes during the 20th century in Ireland. Daniel MacSweeney and Ireland's National Police and Security Service, An Garda Síochána, did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital's request for article source: Grim excavation begins at site believed to contain remains of around 800 babies
