The site of the former Bon Secours Sisters Mother and Baby Home on the Dublin Road in Tuam has now been cordoned off and placed under forensic control, ahead of a full excavation beginning next month.
It's a moment local historian Catherine Corless has waited 11 long years for.
Back in 2014, Corless shocked the world when she revealed that 796 babies and children had died at the home between 1925 and 1961 — nearly one every two weeks.
A test excavation in 2016 supported her findings, confirming that many of the children were buried on the grounds, some in a septic tank.
In a statement to Ireland’s Classic Hits, Catherine Corless said she never thought this day would come:
“It means a lot to me because it was a struggle and it was hard. I’m so delighted that I kept with it because others didn’t seem to care. My intention was to be the voice for the voiceless.”
Journalist Alison O’Reilly, who originally broke the story, also spoke to the Ireland’s Classic Hits newsroom. She says the excavation process is expected to take at least two years:
“Excavating a children’s grave is the most complex thing an archaeologist can do when they are working on graves, so it’s going to be a long road — but it’s the start of something really important.”
The five-phase excavation is set to formally begin on July 14th, with the families of those buried there hoping for long-awaited answers and closure on one of the darkest chapters in Irish history.
