Tuam, Ireland — A long-awaited forensic excavation has officially commenced at the site of the former St. Mary’s Mother and Baby Home in Tuam, County Galway, where nearly 800 infants and young children are believed to have died and been buried in unmarked graves between 1925 and 1961.
The operation is being conducted by the Office of the Director of Authorised Intervention (ODAIT) and will run for approximately two years. The team is led by Daniel MacSweeney, a former envoy of the International Committee of the Red Cross, and forensic archaeologist Niamh McCullagh. They are joined by international experts from Colombia, Spain, the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, and the United States.
The site, which operated under the care of the Bon Secours Sisters and with state support, gained global attention in 2014 following research by local historian Catherine Corless. Her investigation revealed 796 death certificates of children linked to the institution, with no corresponding burial records. Test digs conducted in 2016 and 2017 confirmed the presence of infant remains in a disused septic tank beneath the site.
The current excavation covers a 5,000 square meter area, which has been secured with fencing and 24-hour monitoring. Forensic specialists will recover the remains, conduct DNA testing, and seek to identify as many of the children as possible. Peptide analysis and other techniques will also be used to determine the children's age, sex, and possible cause of death.
Relatives of the deceased, including more than 80 individuals who have already submitted DNA samples, are hoping for long-overdue answers and dignity for the children. Survivors like PJ Haverty and campaigners such as Anna Corrigan have spoken about their personal connections to the site and the pain of decades of unanswered questions.
However, the excavation has not been without controversy. Some local residents have opposed the disturbance of the remains, while legal and human rights experts have called for the dig to be treated as a criminal investigation. Lawyer Kevin Winters has urged authorities to assign Garda PULSE numbers to all remains found and involve the coroner’s office.
The Tuam excavation is one of the most significant efforts to address the legacy of Ireland’s mother and baby homes, institutions that housed unmarried pregnant women and their children, often under harsh and neglectful conditions. A 2021 commission report concluded that more than 9,000 children died in similar institutions across Ireland.
As work progresses, officials intend to ensure that remains which can be identified are returned to their families. Those that cannot be identified will be reinterred respectfully. Catherine Corless, whose efforts brought the Tuam scandal to light, stated that the excavation is not only about finding remains but also about restoring dignity and acknowledging the injustices of the past.
The outcome of this operation could shape the response to similar cases across Ireland and internationally, as calls for accountability and healing continue to grow.