Duffy's Cut
Duffy's Cut | |
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![]() Enclosure where the majority of human remains are believed to rest, possibly after having been moved[1] | |
Coordinates: 40°02′14″N 75°31′57″W / 40.03722°N 75.53250°W | |
Country | United States |
Town | Malvern, Pennsylvania |
Duffy's Cut is the name given to a stretch of railroad tracks about 30 miles (48 km) west of
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/00/Duffy%27s_Cut_state_historical_marker%2C_East_Whiteland_Township%2C_Pennsylvania%2C_USA.jpg/220px-Duffy%27s_Cut_state_historical_marker%2C_East_Whiteland_Township%2C_Pennsylvania%2C_USA.jpg)
The site is located in
History
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/72/Duffys_Cut_Pipes_1.jpg/220px-Duffys_Cut_Pipes_1.jpg)
Immigrants generally and
Official record of the deaths at Duffy's Cut remained locked in the vaults of the Pennsylvania Railroad (PRR) until Joseph Tripican, a secretary to a former PRR president, removed them after the company's bankruptcy in 1970. In the 1990s, one of Tripican's grandsons, Reverend Dr. Frank Watson, discovered the papers in a file and began to research the history with his brother Dr. William Watson, Professor of History, and adjunct professors Earl Schandelmeier and John Ahtes of Immaculata University.[6]
On June 18, 2004, a Pennsylvania state historical marker was dedicated near the site. The text of the marker reads, "Nearby is the mass grave of fifty-seven Irish immigrant workers who died in August, 1832, of cholera. They had recently arrived in the United States and were employed by a construction contractor, named Duffy, for the Philadelphia and Columbia Railroad. Prejudice against Irish Catholics contributed to the denial of care to the workers. Their illness and death typified the hazards faced by many 19th century immigrant industrial workers."
In August 2004, the site began undergoing archaeological
On March 9, 2012, the remains of five men and one woman from those who died at Duffy's Cut Shanty Town were laid to rest with a religious service at West Laurel Hill Cemetery in
In popular culture
Television
- Tile Films of Dublin, Ireland produced "The Ghost of Duffy’s Cut", a documentary on the story for broadcast on the Irish State Broadcaster RTÉ.[15] They then went on to produce a follow-up with WNET, "Death on the Railroad". as an episode of the PBS series Secrets of the Dead (season 12, episode 3) first aired May 8, 2013[1]and RTÉ. In this episode, the claim was made that modern forensic science determined that the 57 Irish railroad workers did not perish as the result of cholera, but instead were murdered. No conclusion was drawn as to motive, although many theories were offered.
- The American TV Series Secrets of the Underground presented the Duffy's Cut grave story in the first part of the show's episode entitled "America's Buried Massacre" (Season 1, Episode 4).[16]
- Greenwood Publishing Group published The Ghosts of Duffy's Cut in July 2006.[2]
- Duffy's Cut is a key setting in Paul Lynch's 2013 novel Red Sky in Morning.
- In 2018, authors and researchers William E. and J. Francis Watson published the true crime book Massacre at Duffy's Cut: Tragedy and Conspiracy on the Pennsylvania Railroad.[17]
"Duffy's Cut" | |
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Song by Christy Moore and Wally Page (writer) | |
Language | English |
Published | 2009 |
Songwriter(s) | Wally Page |
Music
- Irish musician railway.[2]
- In March 2011, Celtic Punk band The Dropkick Murphysreleased a song called "The Hardest Mile", which also deals with the newly discovered evidence that some of the men may have been murdered rather than having died of cholera.
- Americana Songwriter Rick Shelley released the song "Dead Horse Hollow" in 2017. The song references young John Ruddy and the 56 other Irish immigrants lost to Duffy's cut.
- In 2012, Celtic Punk band The Kilmaine Saints released “57” as part of their album “Drunken Redemption”. This discusses the anti-Irish sentiment in the 1840s and the fact that some may have been murdered.
Gallery
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Construction tool (top) and iron strapping (bottom) c. 1832 that was attached to a wooden stringer and used as a rail. Both items recovered at the site.
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Grave of some of the victims in West Laurel Hill Cemetery
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Duffy's cut memorial marker at West Laurel Hill Cemetery
See also
- St. Malachi Church, a 1838 Catholic church located 25 miles (40 km) southwest
References
- ^ a b "Death on the Railroad". Secrets of the Dead. PBS. Retrieved May 9, 2013.
- ^ ISBN 0-275-98727-2.
- ^ Crimmins, Peter (March 24, 2009). "Irish Laborers Buried Under Suburban Railroads". Weekend Edition. WHYY/NPR. Retrieved March 24, 2009.
- ^ Pirro, JF (August 8, 2019). "This Local Coroner Still Has Questions About the Duffy's Cut Mass Grave Site". Main Line Today. Retrieved March 26, 2021.
- The (Delaware County) Daily Times. Retrieved March 24, 2009.
- ^ a b Barry, Dan (March 25, 2013). "With Shovels and Science, a Grim Story Is Told". The New York Times.
- ^ "Duffy's Cut Mass Grave Historical Marker". explorepahistory.com. Retrieved May 10, 2021.
- ^ McClements, Freya (March 24, 2009). "Secrets of mass grave revealed". BBC News. Retrieved March 24, 2009.
- ^ "Dead Men of Duffy's Cut". PennMuseum. August 8, 2019. Retrieved March 25, 2020.
- ^ "Duffy's Cut Memorial Service & Burial - West Laurel Hill Cemetery, Bala Cynwyd, PA". Archived from the original on March 9, 2012. Retrieved March 11, 2012.
- ^ "Duffy's Cut Project". Immaculata University.
- ^ O'Dowd, Niall (March 9, 2012). "Five murdered Irish emigrants will be reburied in a new grave today". IrishCentral (video).
- ^ a b "Duffy's Cut: New searches for remains of Irish migrants". BBC. October 6, 2015.
- ^ O'Shea, James (October 31, 2011). "Duffy's Cut dig ends as Amtrak refuses mass grave excavation". IrishCentral (video).
- ^ "The Ghost of Duffy's Cut". Tile Films Ltd. Retrieved November 2, 2022.
- ^ "America's Buried Massacre".
- ISBN 978-1467139083.
External links
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/4/4a/Commons-logo.svg/30px-Commons-logo.svg.png)
- "Marker Details: Duffy's Cut Mass Grave". Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission.
- Rafferty, Meghan (August 24, 2010). "Grandfather's ghost story leads to mysterious mass grave". CNN (video).
- Valania, Jonathan (August 17, 2010). "Murder in the Time of Cholera". Philadelphia Weekly. Archived from the original on January 31, 2013.
- Hughes, Samuel (November–December 2010). "Bones Beneath the Tracks" (PDF). Penn Gazette. p. 34. Archived from the original (PDF) on July 19, 2011.
- Loftus, Peter (April 14, 2011). "The Mystery of Duffy's Cut". Wall Street Journal.
- Crimmins, Peter (March 11, 2012). "Forgotten Irish Laborers Finally Laid To Rest". Weekend Edition. NPR.
- "Duffy's Cut Marker". Historical Marker database.
- Loftus, Peter (March 9, 2012). "Irish Immigrants' Mystery Honored in Burial". Wall Street Journal.
- "Duffy's Cut". Clonmany Genealogy. Retrieved March 12, 2014.
- "America's Buried Massacre".