What is recorded here

On a high pasture hill in County Mayo, a small walled rectangle holds the buried children of the 1930s, 1940s and 1950s. Blackthorn and long grass hide low stones that may have marked each life, while the open western edge faces the wide sky. The place is not grand, but it is exact: small hands, short years, and a community honest enough to set them aside rather than pretend they never existed.

In pasture, located on a hill, with excellent views. This children’s burial ground is indicated on the 1838 OS 6-inch map as a roughly rectangular area (c. 15-20m E−W; c. 10m N−S), annotated ‘Graveyard’; on the 1930 edition is shown as a subrectangular area (c. 18m NW−SE; c. 14m NE−SW), annotated ‘Children’s Burial Ground (Disused)’. The remains consist of a very slightly raised rectangular area (c. 10m NNE−SSW; c. 8m ENE−WSW) enclosed on the N, E and S sides by drystone field walls, and open on the W side, where a slight scarp (H 0.3-0.4m) is evident. A number of small low stones, possibly gravemarkers, protrude from the ground surface in the interior, but are largely obscured by blackthorn scrub and long grass. According to local information, burials of unbaptized babies took place here during the 1930’s, 40’s and 50’s. Compiled by: Jane O’Shaughnessy Date of upload: 5 May 2021

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