The Irish Heritage Trust and Strokestown Park invite the public to join a discussion with the film makers of their short film, Famine Heroes, today, October 4, at 2:00 p.m. Eastern time. Or you can just watch the film anytime.
Famine Heroes documents the eyewitness accounts of Montreal’s Grey Nuns who cared for the Famine immigrants in the fever sheds.
In 1847, approximately 75,000 people fled across the Atlantic from famine-stricken Ireland to Montreal. Those suffering from infectious diseases such as typhus were cared for in the city’s fever sheds by the Grey Nuns or Sisters of Charity.
The most detailed and evocative eyewitness accounts of the suffering of Famine emigrants in North America can be found in their annals.
Discover the stories of James Flood from Strokestown and Rose Brown from Galway who were cared for by the Grey Nuns after losing their parents.
Learn about the miracle of Rose’s marble which led to her reunification with her mother and vocation to join the Grey Nuns as Sister St. Patrice.
Over 6,000 thousand Irish emigrants are buried in Montreal, the largest Famine Irish mass grave outside of Ireland, which is marked by the Black Rock memorial. This burial ground has been recently excavated. The film pays tribute to Montreal’s Famine Irish and their Canadian caregivers.
The film and the link to join the post-show discussion on Zoom can be found here. The film is available now.
