Sculpture to commemorate Ennis paupers

A SCULPTURE in remembrance of the hundreds of paupers buried in a mass unmarked grave in the old part of Drumcliffe Cemetery is being unveiled and blessed this Sunday.

The stone sculpture has been designed and created by Clare artist Shane Gilmore on behalf of the Ennis Sculpture Trail Initiative.
Committee member Donal Griffin said it is a beautiful piece, which depicts the poignancy of the Paupers’ Grave.
Mr Gilmore explained the sculpture depicts a family – a father, a mother who is pregnant and four children.
“I am happy with how it’s turned out and I feel it is symbolic and very much in keeping with the theme. Something similar was used on a paupers’ grave in West Bromwich, with a sculpture of a woman and a child, so I developed that idea further. I’ve been told the men, women and children were all buried in the paupers’ grave. I suggested a whole family.
“I was given a large block of Irish limestone to work with and I wanted to use as much as possible and come up with something quite expansive, which I feel I’ve accomplished,” he said. It took him almost a year to create the piece.
Fr Tom Hogan assisted in the project, by informing the Ennis Sculpture Trail Initiative and Mr Gilmore about the history of the Paupers’ Grave in Drumcliffe Cemetery.
“The Paupers’ Grave was a burial place for those who were literally the unknown. These people had no known family connections or means at the time they died. Primarily, they were people who died in institutions, mainly in workhouses. The Old Workhouse in Ennis was where the present St Joseph’s Hospital is,” he explained.
He said paupers were buried in these unmarked graves in the old section of Drumcliffe Cemetery from the early 19th century until almost the middle of the 20th century, probably up to the 1940s.
“The guardians of the workhouse in most cases informed the local authority when one of its residents died and the local authority had the responsibility to bury them as these people had absolutely no means.
“They were buried with no funeral as such, possibly even no public prayers but hopefully with private prayers by someone for them. We could be talking about hundreds of people buried here. Each person was buried in an individual space in the grave but with no marking or indication of who they were,” Fr Hogan added.
“Because these people are nameless, there was feeling that they should be remembered. There was a terrible stigma with being a pauper and entering the workhouse system but these misfortunate people had no alternative.
“The conditions they endured in the workhouse would have been horrendous and they were probably left with very little dignity. This sculpture in some ways affords them some respect now,” he said.
The idea for the sculpture to remember the paupers buried in Drumcliffe Cemetery originally came from a small voluntary group called The Friends of Drumcliffe, who have worked hard to clean up the cemetery every winter.
“They have also cleaned up the Paupers’ Grave and they suggested that something be created and erected as a mark of respect to those buried there,” Fr Hogan explained.
The sculpture could not be erected on the grave itself as it is listed and consecrated ground, so it has been placed on the footpath beside the Paupers’ Grave instead.
Next year, Clare Roots Society plan to have archaeological mapping of the grave carried out with a view to determining how many people are buried there.
The Paupers’ Grave will be blessed and the commemorative sculpture unveiled at the Blessing of the Graves in Drumcliffe Cemetery at 3pm this Sunday. All are welcome.