The History of The Irish...Worldwide
Galway Mass Grave Story: A Cautionary Tale
Belfast Telgraph: "Mass Grave of 796 Babies Found in Septic Tank at Catholic Orphanag...
Irish Central: "Mass Grave of Up to 800 Dead Babies Exposed in County Galway"
Al Jezeera: "Nearly 800 Dead Babies Found in Septic Tank in Ireland"
After reading these headlines, one would be excused for thinking that an object that was clearly a tank for human excrement had been recently opened, and the bodies of 800 skeletons had been exhumed. That is exactly what is said above, isn’t it? Except that isn’t what happened at all.
Tuam Mother and Baby Home: The Trouble With the Septic Tank Story
The article above, from today’s Irish Times paints a very different picture. The recent interest is not stemming from any new discovery. The story is that the bones were seen by local boys in the 1970s in some kind of concrete enclosure. One of those boys (now a man, still living in the area) says there might have been around 20 skeletons. A local historian has collected death certificates for 796 children who died in the home over a period of 36 years. The resting place of their bodies, at this time, IS NOT KNOWN. No excavation of the property has been done. At this point, no 800 skeletons have been found.
The Times article raises more questions than answers. Where are these children buried? Why was no investigation conducted in the 1970s when bones were seen? Was the crypt a septic tank, a water tank (as it was called in earlier stories), or something else? Were these children given proper care when they were alive? Then there are the philosophical questions: What is the relationship between the treatment of a body and the respect for a person? How should we tread on land which is known to contain graves, and does this change with the passage of time? Does engraving their names on a plaque right any of the wrongs suffered by the deceased, or does it serve another purpose: to remind us of the significance of every human life?
It’s important to note that the deaths of 796 children are not in doubt. It is also clear that Catholic institutions like this one buried people in ways that were disrespectful and an affront to their own theological dictates. After all, much larger mass graves than this one are found throughout the island, including 11,000 bodies found interred outside Miltown cemetery in Belfast. The underlying view that certain human beings do not deserve life and dignity is intolerable, and the people who ran these institutions have plenty of questions to answer. The people responsible for grossly misrepresenting these facts do as well. Indignance is no substitute for accuracy. As the facts continue to come out, they may be every bit as salacious as the rumours. If they are less so, the inflated tales will only cloud the issue. The truth, reported as it is verified, would honour the departed most.
Those of you who have followed this story, may have noticed its absence, until now, from this website. A sense of caution unfamiliar in media circles prevailed as the dust settled around the shocking early reports. At this point I feel obliged to disclose that my husband, Ryan, is an administrator on the site. That makes me undeniably biased, but I hope my observations are still valid.
I appreciate that TheWildGeese.com is not interested in becoming just one more Irish tabloid. As a reader, I am not interested in websites that run prematurely with half-baked stories and throw up headlines about Hollywood celebrities anytime there is the slightest hint of Irish connection. Sites like that will continue to prosper, because the appetite for sensationalist voyeurism is wide, but it is also shallow. I appreciate your desire to create something deeper; a community of people with interest in the history and culture of Ireland. This includes debates on the issues of the moment, but also the themes of the age; the later giving the former context, nuance, and sanity. To the Wild Geese community, I say, the broader, more balanced view you take does not go unnoticed.
This will likely not be the last article posted on the Wild Geese on this topic, and some may take a different view than mine on the way it should be reported here. The Wild Geese will welcome those views as well, and that openness is another reason I will continue to be an avid reader.
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Comment by Geraldine Callaghan on June 24, 2014 at 5:08pm
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Please don't ever become IC and turn into a tabloid. Everyone is entitled to their opinion, sadly opinions are given sometimes to settle a grudge, especially if it involves the Catholic Church. I am not an apologist for the Catholic Church, but there are times I feel it becomes a punching bag for those, as I said previously, have a grudge or an axe to grind. I am closely following the ongoing investigation.
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Comment by Bit Devine on June 24, 2014 at 5:37pm
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As one of those who spoke indicated, this wasn't just a Catholic issue. It crossed all religious and socio-economic groups. It was systemic problem throughout Ireland. I don't see the church being used as a punching bag at all. It is simply the tip of an iceberg that many would like to have stayed unexposed.
The best part about the NWG is that we share our opinions in a well thought out manner.
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Comment by Ryan O'Rourke on June 25, 2014 at 2:20am
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Not to worry, Geraldine ... we will never let The Wild Geese become just another tabloid. Yes, everyone is free to share their opinions; but we will not allow this site to be one that starts or perpetuates potentially damaging and unfounded rumours.
This particular story is interesting, because just about everyone can agree that these "Mother & Baby" homes were not a good idea, and that the many children who perished at these institutions make for a sad situation. However, we're not all seeing eye-to-eye on what eye (and many others) believe is irresponsible and reprehensible "journalism" (to use that term very loosely). Seems most "reporters" these days would rather piggy-back off others' work instead of digging for actual facts and verifiable proof ... and that's why you have things like this Associated Press apology. It happens constantly, and it's inexcusable. But, people are getting used to it now and are willing to shrug it off.
Latest example would be this RIDICULOUS hoax from the U.S.A. about this disabled girl whose grandmother hatched a scam to get free stuff from kind-hearted people. How did that get so big so fast? Yep ... same way. It caught on like wildfire, and everyone shared it, republished it, and screamed with fervent outrage about this terrible incident at KFC ... that never ... actually ... happened. This is the world in which we live, and the wise among us will learn to look at everything with a critical eye until such time as everything can be backed up with facts.
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And I'll say again that I am not questioning these rumours because I'm a Catholic. I'm NOT a Catholic and never have been. I have absolutely ZERO loyalty to the Catholic Church; in fact, I have no small number of objections to the doctrines, structure, etc. of the Catholic Church. But that doesn't prevent me from seeing the negligence on the part of the mass media in the handling of these reports. They've botched this ... big time. Regardless of what ends up being found out for sure in the end, the media (as a whole) have been their typical selves -- unworthy of their wages.
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Thanks Ryan for responding and the assurance not to let the WG become a "Tabloid" much of what is written today is not researched and yes, once on social media it travels like an out of control wildfire. Social Media is a wonderful tool if used responsibly, in many instances it's not. When used in a sinister way to mislead it's not so good. I was raised in the era when being social was good conversation around the fire. I read and did my homework by lamplight,writing letters was the main method of keeping in touch with those far away. I was 10 yrs. old when we got electricity in our modest little farmhouse. The idea of having a phone to talk to someone in another county or country was well, a wild imagination at work. They were simple happy times. Of course as time moved forward for me and I was introduced to the modern world with all it's modern conveniences I loved and enjoy every one of them. My grandchildren keep me tutored. I have come to be aware of making sure ever story that comes across is researched. This story is sad, barbaric and cruel if proved to be true. It will once again cast a black mark on yet another Irish Institution. Perhaps I'm super sensitive because I was raised there, was educated by Nuns. I have wonderful memories of my school years and childhood. Thanks for listening. Love the WG
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Comment by John W. Hurley on June 26, 2014 at 8:25pm
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Ms. Izzykamikaze makes a great point in defense of the nuns who ran the place. The place was an old converted workhouse built in the 19th century. The nuns did not move into it until 1937 when the sewage tanks were long empty. Note they are not SEPTIC tanks or CESSPOOLS but stone slabbed chambers with steps.
"They (the now EMPTY of human excrement) sewage tanks are extraordinarily varied in appearance and none of them would be immediately identified as a sewage tank by an inexperienced person....On such a cramped site, it would be astonishing if a series of underground rooms had not found a use. As space to bury the dead appears to have been an issue, the (again EMPTY 19th century) sewage tanks may have become tombs."
She also goes on to give this link about the story, which suggest that the nuns were not the evil, cold hearted women so many people would like to make them out to be:
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Founding Member Comment by Nollaig 2016 on June 26, 2014 at 9:38pm -
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Founding Member Comment by Nollaig 2016 on June 27, 2014 at 5:11am
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The more that comes out, the less we know. This story is a complete mess ... all the more reason for journalists to be professional about the way they cover it.
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What's wrong with the way the story was and is being presented is the tabloid innuendo which stems from what is a clearly a rush to judgement and an agenda of bashing the Catholic Church. Yes they buried (still born?) babies in underground stone chambers. Yes, long before, in the 1800's, some of those chambers were used as part of a sewage system for the workhouse. By 1937 though, I doubt these chambers were piled full of sewage or that the nuns were down there carelessly tossing the corpses of babies into a stinking pool of sh**e where they sank to the bottom - but that is precisely what some are trying to imply. Otherwise what exactly is their point? That the babies did not get a decent Christian burial? Some of the people complaining about this aren't even Christian. These same people have no problem whatsoever with women today *killing* their own babies and tossing their corpses into a trash can. That is something to be enraged about but that goes against the agenda. Even Izzykamikaze is saying that the nuns would not have known that these chambers were once used for sewage. And then after the place was closed, well sadly people forgot about them. Apparently these chambers were also used for air raid shelters during WW2:
"After Alison O’Reilly for the Mail on Sunday broke the story nationally on Sunday 25th of May, there began an incremental media interest, which, almost two weeks later, became a total frenzy in which my mother calmly and patiently repeated her findings, consistently, again and again, to speak on behalf of forgotten babies who had nobody else to speak for them."
Yes and that is great that she did speak for them. But where is all the rage and who is speaking on behalf of the millions of forgotten babies "who had nobody else to speak for them" before they were murdered in the womb? Thanks to Belinda Evangelista for the great articles by Izzykamikaze and Adrienne Corless (which brings up the point of who will speak up for and defend our most innocent and precious lives). What is much more sad and tragic is how the humanity of so many dead babies the feminists and pro-abortion groups in Ireland are willing to deny based on modern political mores. So sad.
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