22 more infant remains found at notorious Irish mother and baby home site, total now 99

Investigators in Tuam, Ireland, have uncovered the remains of 22 more infants at the former St. Mary's Mother and Baby Home, raising the total discovered to 99 since excavations began last July. The latest remains were found between July 1 and July 15, buried beneath a gravel-covered vehicle access area that bore no surface indication of graves. The site was operated by the Catholic Bon Secours nuns and housed unmarried mothers and their children between 1925 and 1961.

Daniel MacSweeney, the lead investigator, described the excavation as exceptionally challenging due to the close proximity of the remains and the need to treat each burial as a separate archaeological unit. The site, now located within a residential area, has the remains buried more than three meters below ground in a system of 20 interconnected underground chambers. Investigators are collecting DNA samples from family members to help identify the children who died at the home.

Official records from the era suggest children in these homes often succumbed to malnutrition and diseases like measles and tuberculosis. The case gained international attention in 2014 when historian Catherine Corless reported that as many as 796 babies and young children might be buried at the site. A state commission confirmed the presence of significant human remains in underground chambers three years later. In 2021, then-Irish Prime Minister Micheál Martin formally apologized on behalf of the state for the treatment of women and children in such institutions, with a state investigation concluding that approximately 9,000 children died across 18 similar facilities nationwide.

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The remains are buried very close to each other and each burial must be processed as a separate archaeological unit.