Location: Tuam, County Galway, Ireland (site of the former Bon Secours Mother and Baby Home, operational 1925-1961) 🌍
Story: In 2014, historian Catherine Corless uncovered records suggesting nearly 800 infants and children had died at a Catholic Church-run home for unmarried mothers and their babies in Tuam. Initial excavations confirmed a mass burial site in a disused sewage tank on the grounds. Further investigations revealed more unmarked graves nearby. 🔎
Twist: The latest excavations found remains of children up to age nine buried less than a meter deep, with no markers or memorials. The home was part of a network of institutions where "fallen women" were sent, and their children were often forcibly separated, adopted, or died in care. Ireland has called it a "dark and shameful chapter." The ongoing search suggests the death toll may exceed 900, revealing a systemic tragedy hidden for decades, a stark testament to the cruelty inflicted on society's most vulnerable. 👶