Grandson of a former Magdalene inmate cautiously welcomes move by Religious Order to rectify Glasnevin Cemetery burial records & calls for greater candour and engagement with relatives

Frank Brehany has cautiously welcomed the press release from the Irish religious order of ‘Our Lady of Charity of the Good Shepherd’ on the 5 September 2025. In providing his cautious welcome, Frank is mindful that since 2019, he is still waiting for a full disclosure as to the facts of his grandmother’s life and death from within the High Park Magdalen Laundry.

One headstone on the High Park plot within Glasnevin Cemetery in Dublin - Photo by Frank Brehany © 2025

Within their release, the Order announced that ‘Work was underway to amend information at gravesites at Glasnevin Cemetery, Dublin’.

Through their release we learn that they have carried out an “extensive historical review” resulting in “significant amendments” to be made to the graves of those who were once incarcerated within the former High Park and Sean McDermott Street Magdalen Laundries in Dublin.

We have also learnt that they have carried out this work in order to correct “errors and omissions” found within these gravesites and that “historical records and sources were accessed”, including the “historical archives of the Congregation”.

Their release reveals that some 327 names “were not recorded on any headstone” and that missing names and amendments to these sites are now subject to remedial work. These revelations reflect many of the concerns expressed in the book, ‘Ireland and the Magdalene Laundries – A Campaign for Justice’ (McGettrick, O’Donnell, O’Rourke, Smith & Steed) and revealed by the methodology deployed by the Magdalenes Names Project.

It is noted that there is further recognition that 3 more gravesites “belonging to the Congregation” are subject to a further review.

Frank Brehany is the Grandson of a former High Park inmate, Mary Julia Breheny. Although the order has over a 2 ½ year period, provided a limited amount of information regarding her death and subsequent burial and apparent exhumation, the available data in the research carried out by JFMRs (Justice for Magdalenes Research), suggests that Mary was one of the 155 women who were exhumed from their apparent last resting place in the St. Mary’s Graveyard within the former Magdalen Laundry site in Drumcondra in Dublin. These controversial exhumations were carried out to effect a commercial transaction, to sell the order’s land, following the onset of financial difficulties for the religious order, then known as ‘Our Lady of Charity of Refuge’. 154 women were cremated, some of whom were combined and all were reinterred in Glasnevin on 11 September 1993.

Substantial questions remain over the 1993 identifications, exhumations, cremations and reinterments and the methodology used at the time.

Since November 2019, Frank has sought answers to pertinent questions relating to his grandmother’s life within High Park and in particular, issues relating to her death, burial, apparent exhumation, cremation and reinterment; these latter enquiries have also led to correspondence with Glasnevin Cemetery and Irish Government departments.

In relation to his grandmother’s death and subsequent post-death events, Frank has since the beginning of his engagement with the order, provided 30 distinct and detailed questions on these important family matters. The order has provided a very small amount of information arising from those questions, which in turn has led to a wider engagement in order to establish the truth with other bodies that also hold information on the exhumation events of 1993.

Frank has also made repeated offers to meet with the order along with requests to examine their archives, not just for death and burial information, but for a greater detail of Mary’s life during her confinement in this Institution.

Presently, Frank is still waiting to hear or receive contact from the order on these broad issues and the actions taken after her death. To date, his request to meet and search the order’s records and his requests for further information, remains unanswered.

Frank states:

“Objectively, I must offer a cautious welcome to the news that the order, as an important national religious Institution, appears to be finally taking the necessary action to potentially acknowledge, recognise and to accurately represent all of the lives of those who died within their Institutions”.

He adds:

“Truth and acknowledgement of a truth is an essential ingredient in delivering the story of what happened, over many decades, up to the present day, from within their Institutions. To access this truth any responsible party must provide openness, candour, transparency and a viable and a demonstrable methodology to reveal and deliver that truth. For a wider Irish society and in particular, the victims and survivors and their families, it is vital for them to understand the important questions of what happened and why so many suffered, to know that they existed. The delivery of this initiative, no matter how small it may be considered by many, is potentially an important step to the acknowledgement of lost lives, their suffering, and the all-important journey towards ‘non-recurrence’ or ‘never again’”.

He further adds:

“My journey with this order, Irish government departments, agencies, along with other parties, is not yet complete. It is evident to me that there exists much more information about the life and death of my grandmother, covering the broad range of issues of her life and death, to be found with their own records and through other sources. Whilst I have waited patiently and respectfully for those answers, the order’s press release perhaps indicates an important change in their thinking about how to address the wrongs of the past. But, in delivering the truth of a past, it would have perhaps been prudent to create a co-design with external interested parties, thereby delivering a greater certainty on any methodology deployed to deliver a truth”.

He concludes:

“I do not believe that it is right to discount the undoubted good work of this order nor indeed other orders across Ireland in the present day, but I do believe that the present day inheritors of the past should rethink how they engage with victims, survivors and indeed their surviving families and engaged academics. Given that the order has still to comprehensively engage with me and resolve many outstanding issues, I would suggest that if they wish to achieve a full reconciliation with their past activities and with all those who suffered from those activities, their press release should be the catalyst to achieve such a change. Perhaps their press release indicates they have; only time will tell”.

Press Information:

Date of Release:

22 September 2025

Contact information:

Frank Brehany | E Mail: frankbrehany@icloud.com | Twitter/X: @ConsumerFrank

Frank’s connection to High Park:

Frank is the grandson of Mary Julia Breheny. Mary was born in 1906 and lived in a townland near to Portumna in Co. Galway. In 1930, Mary became pregnant during what was then a long-term relationship with her partner, Patrick Cleary, who lived in the same area. Both Patrick and Mary were prevented from getting married despite it being known that they were very much together, a couple. Mary’s journey began at the Loughrea County Home, followed by the Galway Central Hospital (where she gave birth to Frank’s father) and remained there for the first 10 days of his life; thereafter they were then transported to the infamous Tuam Mother and Baby Home. Mary remained there until 2 days after Frank’s father’s 1^st birthday when she was ‘released’ from the home. There is a period of 12-14 weeks when Mary’s whereabouts are unknown, but it was discovered that she was transported to the High Park Magdalen Laundry in Dublin, arriving there on 15 January 1932. She remained there until her death in 1972. Patrick appeared before the Portumna District Court on or around 14/4/1931, charged with being a ‘putative father’, a charge he did not deny; Frank is still waiting for access to court papers. Frank’s father, Francis (also known as Frank) remained in the Tuam Home until 1935 (nearly 5 years of age), and then boarded-out to a family in Glenamaddy, Co. Galway; he remained there from 15 years of age with the changed status of being ‘hired-out’.

About Frank Brehany:

Information on Frank’s work can be found here: https://frankbrehany.online/about 

Frank has spent the last 27 years engaged in legal activism, principally on Consumer issues in the UK, the EU, USA and Australia. He has extensive media experience.

Frank has authored two books:

·       Gaspers – Clean Air for Passengers?

·       A Magdalene Rose – ‘Can our secrets and promises ever be reconciled?’

For more information on Frank's A Magdalene Rose book visit here: https://www.frankbrehany.shop/category/all-products

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