Bessborough: 1926 census reveals scale of child deaths and missing records in Cork

New census analysis highlights deaths, missing children, and lived experiences at Bessborough as redevelopment plans reignite public attention

Bessborough House, where 923 babies are known to have died. The names of the children whose deaths relate to Bessborough will be read at the former mother and baby institution at 1pm Sunday, April 26. Picture: Denis Minihane

The 1926 census allows us to look back a century to a place where more than 900 children died, where more than 800 bodies are missing, and where Cork City Council has now granted permission for the building of 140 apartments.

There were 144 people in the Sacred Heart Convent at Bessborough House on census night, Sunday, April 18, 1926.