Main content

The amateur sleuth and the lost babies

Historian Catherine Corless uncovered a national scandal in Ireland

Catherine Corless has always been interested in history. She’s from Tuam in the west of Ireland, and after her children had grown up, she enrolled in history classes. As a little girl, she had always been aware of the local Mother and Baby Home – a Catholic institution for unmarried mothers and their children. When she started digging, she couldn’t find much public information about the place, but then she unearthed a shocking statistic – almost 800 children had died in that home, but their bodies were missing. Catherine began tirelessly investigating. Her work would thrust her into the spotlight and expose a national scandal in Ireland. (Photo credit: AP.)

Release date:

Available now

17 minutes

Podcast