Hundreds of Irish Famine Graves Discovered in Massachusetts

A Rhode Island woman researching her husband's Irish ancestors found approximately 600-900 gravestones marking the second resting place of bodies previously disinterred from the Irish Catholic Cemetery in Waltham, Massachusetts.

Discovering that her husband's ancestor was no longer buried in the Catholic Cemetery but had been moved, along with hundreds of others, to a new location, she set out to pay a visit. To her surprise only 4 headstones were seen in that new location. She knew from her research that the stones had been laid flat on top of the coffins when the bodies were moved, so she began scraping away dirt and grass. And there she found the stones, hidden under dirt and grass since 1947.

Along with Archie Bennett, Waltham historic preservationist; Sheila Fitzpatrick of the Waltham Historical Society; and The Irish Ancestral Research Association, they decided to begin a restoration project to uncover all the stones.

Continue reading Irish Central's story Rhode Island woman's quest uncovers hundreds of Irish Famine graves