The Magdalen Laundry related headstones in Bohermore cemetery, Galway

Introduction

Bohermore cemetery in Galway city, or the ‘new cemetery’ as it is called was opened in 1880. The cemetery contains two mortuary chapels – the western chapel was reserved for Catholic usage and the eastern one for Protestant use - and a caretaker’s lodge close to the entrance gates.

Magdalen Laundry related burials are found in three groups comprising seventeen different headstones and containing eighty names and associated burial dates. Similar to Forster St. the Magdalen related grave monuments, headstones and kerbs, were erected in the last decade."

Bohermore cemetery is located in the extensive townland of Townparks (St. Nicholas' Parish) and besides being the final resting place for a number of women who had worked in the Magdalen Laundry the cemetery was also used as an escape route for a number of women who managed to climb over the north boundary wall of the Convent & Laundry buildings in Forster St., 500m to the southwest. We do not know how many women who had worked in the Magdalen Laundry are buried in Bohermore. We do know though the women who were buried in Magdalen laundry related graves in the pauper's section (south east quadrant) of the cemetery and these are the headstones that are presented here.

The burial dates on the headstones do not always match the dates of death on the women's death certificates. Normally these are only out by a day or two but in a few cases the gap is greater. Also a number of the women's names vary between the headstones and the burial register/death certificates and we have done our best to correlate the names with the available registers.

These headstones were recorded as part of a project supported by COPE Galway to remember the women of the Magdalen Laundries in Galway. The first laundry was situated off Lombard St. until it was moved to Forster St in approx. 1870. There are two burial grounds in the Forster St. Laundry one of which was for women who worked in the laundry and it has been published https://historicgraves.com/graveyard/magdalen-laundry-forster-st-galway/....

Headstone 1

In Loving Memory of

TERESA JONES 17-4-1922

MARGARET JOYCE 20-5-1922

SARAH DUFFY 1-10-1922

LOUISA DEVANEY 7-11-1922

ALICE PIERCE 10-2-1924

Rest in Peace

Headstone 2

In Loving Memory of

MARGARET NALLY 13-1-1921

ELIZABETH FLANAGAN 21-1-1921

MARY WALSH 7-2-1921

ELLEN CLOONAN 29-10-1921

Rest in Peace

Headstone 3

In Loving Memory of

MARGARET COMMINS 12-8-1919

BRIDGET SULLIVAN 6-2-1920

MARY SMITHWICK 22-10-1920

CECILIA KEANE 31-12-1920

BRIDGET O’DOWD 17-1-1950

Rest in Peace

Headstone 4

In Loving Memory of

ELIZA CONLON 5-3-1919

MARGARET STREET 10-3-1919

MARGARET D’ARCY 11-3-1919

BRIDGET McDonnell 15-3-1919

BRIDGET FINAN 8-4-1919

Rest in Peace

Headstone 5

In Loving Memory of

MARGARET WATSON 8-6-1915

CATHERINE CAULFIELD 14-7-1915

MARY MASON 13-9-1915

JANE BEAKEY 21-4-1918

MARY HALLORAN 14-10-1918

ANNIE KENNEDY 3-3-1919

Rest in Peace

Headstone 6

In Loving Memory of

MARY CAFFREY 14-1-1909

ANNE LOUGHLIN 30-9-1910

KATE BRENNAN 11-7-1911

MARY COLLERAN 16-11-1911

KATE WALSH 31-10-1914

Rest in Peace

Headstone 7

In Loving Memory of

MARY WARD 23-5-1894

BRIDGET BURKE 5-8-1901

KATE McCARTHY 27-9-1903

ELLEN SHERIDAN 8-2-1904

MARY FLYNN 17-1-1905

MARY ELLEN GIBBONS 11-3-1905

Rest in Peace

Headstone 8

In Loving Memory of

ELEN THOMPSON 22-2-1913

MARY WHELAN 4-7-1913

ROSE ANNE NIXON 21-5-1914

Rest in Peace

Headstone 9

In Loving Memory of

MARY EGAN 22-10-1975.

KATHLEEN HENEGHAN

6-12-1998.

KATHLEEN MURPHY 21-1-1999.

ANNE LYNCH 7-7-1999.

MARY REIDY 27-12-2006

MARGARET O’REILLY 15-3-2007

BRIDGET CONNEELY 30-1-2013

R.I.P.

Headstone 10

In Loving Memory of

MARY NOLAN DIED 13-1-1976

JOSEPHINE KILMARTIN DIED 25-1-1979

MARY REGAN DIED 7-3-1981

ROSE RYAN DIED 11-6-1986

BRIDGET QUINN DIED 9-11-1987

DELIA MULRYAN DIED 28-3-1989

RITA LYDON DIED 31-5-1989

BRIDGET HUSSEY DIED 13-2-1990

MARY FLEMING DIED 6-9-1990

MARY JACKSON DIED 26-2-1995

MAUD McLOUGHLIN DIED 13-5-1995

R.I.P.

Headstone 11

IN LOVING MEMORY OF

AGNES KEEGAN 20/10/1973

MARY O’BRIEN 22/4/1974

FRANCES COMBERFORD 11/2/1975

REST IN PEACE

Headstone 12

IN LOVING MEMORY OF

MARY Mc Guinn

Died 14 May 1980

HER MOTHER MARY

DIED 5 NOV. 1955

R.I.P.

Headstone 13

IN LOVING MEMORY OF

BRIDGET MULLALLY 5/8/1965

ANNIE HOULIHAN 16/9/1965

BRIDGET FOLEY 30/11/1967

JOSEPHINE FLYNN 9/1/1968

MARGARET O’HARA 10/1/1968

MARY McDONNELL 6/11/1969

REST IN PEACE

Headstone 14

IN LOVING MEMORY OF

BRIDGET FLYNN 6/11/1957

MARY ANN HOEY 19/2/1958

CHRISTINA HOULIHAN 17/1/1959

KATE LYDON 15/6/1959

MARY KELLY 12/8/1961

REST IN PEACE

Headstone 15

IN LOVING MEMORY OF

KATE KENNEDY 11/8/1945

KATE CALLANAN 39/7/1946

MARY CUNNINGHAM 30/11/1946

JULIA SHIELS 4/10/1950

MARY RONALDSON 12/12/1950

MARY COMMINS 7/8/1962

REST IN PEACE

Headstone 16

IN LOVING MEMORY OF

MARY GIBLIN 19/1/1938

ELLEN HARRINGTON 5/6/1962

REST IN PEACE

Headstone 17

IN LOVING MEMORY OF

MARGARET DONOVAN 17/4/1924

MARY FOLEY 16/9/1924

BRIDGET McSHERRY 1/8/1925

BRIDGET WALSH 3/2/1928

MARY KILGANNON 6/8/1933

ANNIE DUNNE 24/5/1962

MARY MULKERRINS 20/3/1971

REST IN PEACE