Information board erected at old Mayo burial ground

AN information sign has been erected at an old cemetery in Castlebar where hundreds of people were interred in unmarked graves.

Castlebar Tidy Towns members have erected a historical information sign at the entrance to the Aglish Graveyard.

They have been working with the St. Mary's Historical Society with the help of the Castlebar Municipal District to improve the appearance of the graveyard.

Hundreds of people were buried in unmarked graves from all over County Mayo from 1878 to 1921. All residents of St. Mary's Hospital, they died from natural causes, with quite a number succumbing to the Spanish Flu in 1918.

Castlebar Tidy Towns chairman Ger Deere said it is only right and fitting that after more than 150 years that those buried there have a dignified resting place.

It is also important to educate the public, he said, as quite a number are not aware as to the history and significance of the plot at Aglish.

The plot is surrounded by the last remaining section of the old Castlebar Gaol.