Mass grave discovered in US likely that of Irish railroad workers
Jim Kenney, Mayor of Philadelphia at the Duffy's Cut Memorial Service. Photo: Duffy's Cut Project/Brian Quinn, Clonoe Gallery/Flickr
A mass grave discovered in the United States is likely that of Irish railroad workers.
This week, a team of researchers announced the discovery of human remains at a cemetery in Downingtown, Pennsylvania.
The Duffy's Cut Project suspect that up to 120 bodies were buried in the grave in 1892.
It comes 19 years after the bodies of 57 Irish immigrants were discovered in a mass grave at Duffy's Cut in Malvern.
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The men and women who worked for the Pennsylvania Railroad died from cholera, while some were murdered.
The workers travelled to work in Philadelphia from Donegal, Tyrone, and Derry.
While most of the workers were reburied in the US, John Ruddy from Donegal and Catherine Burns from Tyrone were repatriated and buried in their hometowns in 2012 and 2015.
The two mass graves are believed to be linked. It's suspected that a worker at Duffy's Cut ran the tracks from Malvern to Downingtown and infected the workers there with disease.
Jim Kenney, Mayor of Philadelphia at the Duffy's Cut Memorial Service. Photo: Duffy's Cut Project/Brian Quinn, Clonoe Gallery/Flickr
The grave in Downingtown was discovered when ground-penetrating radar detected an anomaly in the ground, Daily Local News in West Chester, Pennsylvania, has reported.
The land was excavated manually, and human bones and teeth were found.
The area has been closed off to the public, and the team plans to rebury the remains and construct a memorial Celtic cross in honour of the deceased.
'We are doing this out of a sense of justice, honour and dignity,' said Researcher Frank Watson.
'Their stories need to be told. They have the right to be remembered.
'There's still more to find, there is still more to tell.'
Retired Police officer Bob McAllister said it's about justice.
'This was a soul, this was somebody's life.
'This was a human being that we are excavating from the ground.'
Downingtown Mayor Phil Dague added: 'This is a crime, there is no statute of limitations.'
'Others can go visit the graves, you can't put a dollar value on that.
'I hate mysteries. There are a couple less mysteries here.'
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