Cavan orphanage fire

Passersby in Cavan Town look at a ‘Stand For Truth’ protest on the site of the Cavan Poor Clares’ orphanage fire where 35 children and one elderly lady lost their lives 75 years ago. Thirty-six locks and tiny shoes were tied to the railings to represent the lives lost, the worst ever fire tragedy in the history of the State. The memorial was undertaken to coincide with the visit of Pope Francis to Ireland.Photo: Lorraine Teevan

Group seeks ‘fitting’ orphanage fire memorial

Cavan orphanage fire

Seamus Enright

Published: Tue 29 Mar 2022, 5:59 PM

A public meeting will take place on Monday evening, April 4, with hopes to erect a public memorial for the 36 victims of the Poor Clares’ orphanage fire in 1943.

The Remember the Cavan Orphange Victims Group are seeking to kickstart a campaign to have a permanent memorial erected in the centre of Cavan Town ahead of the 80th anniversary of this tragedy in February 2023.

Between 9.30pm on February 23 and 2am on February 24, 1943, a fire broke out at the basement of the laundry of the orphanage, run by the enclosed order of nuns.

Despite the tragic loss of life, around 50 others were saved by the quick actions of locals including electricity worker Mattie Hand and businessman Louis Blessing.

In 2018 a petition to have a permanent memorial erected collected almost 5,500 signatures, which were then handed into Cavan County Council.

However, little has happened since and, with the pandemic restrictions lifting, the Remember the Cavan Orphange Victims Group believe the time is right to prepare a “fitting memorial” for the 80th anniversary of the tragedy.

Seán Galligan first got involved in the campaign after learning about the history of the orphanage. During Pope Francis’s visit to Dublin in 2018, he was a member of a group that tied baby shoes, white ribbons and locks to the gate of the orphanage site – one for every victim of the blaze.

For the 75th anniversary of the tragedy, a group of people gathered to pay their respects at the former orphanage site; while a Mass of the Angels was celebrated at St Clare’s Chapel that morning.

According to Seán “a lot of people are anxious that something would be done” in time for the 80th anniversary. “Lorraine Teevan and Daniel Downey helped collect thousands of signatures, and they were handed into Cavan County Council, but still nothing has been done as far as we can see to have a suitable public memorial erected remembering the 36 victims. We would like to hear from everybody on this, and we feel a public meeting is the right place to start that process.”

The public meeting will take place at the next Monday evening, April 4, starting at 8 pm in the Bridge Street Centre, Bridge Street, Cavan Town.