Impressions of a fifth class student of life as an inmate of the Workhouse

Behind St. Patrick's Hospital was a large graveyard where hundreds of Leitrim people who perished during the Famine years were buried, many in unmarked graves. This graveyard was overgrown and unattended. In 1993 the Carrick-on-Shannon Historical Society undertook the work of clearing and transforming this area and have created there a Garden of Remembrance, a fitting commemoration of all the people who are buried there, many of them children. The Historical Society was helped by MRD and Fas, by grants from the Department of the Taoiseach and by fundraising organised in Boston, U.S.A by Brian Mc Keon (R.I.P.) The grounds of the Garden of Remembrance have been developed, native Irish trees have been planted, a wildlife preserve has been recreated and a lovely water fountain now adorns the Garden. We are very proud of our Famine Garden of Remembrance which commemorates that very sad time in our Irish History.