Epidemics in 19th and 20th Century Ireland are the probable cause of mass graves. According to a report, regular and lethal outbreaks of cholera sprung up in Ireland during the 19th Century. Various outbreaks around the country were reportedly blamed on British soldiers who had previously been stationed in India. Resulted in many deaths, one conservative estimate was that 30,000 died.
Workhouses existed because of evictions and for those who had fallen on hard times. A member of the British gentry reported on one 19th Century Mayo workhouse as being in a constant state of extreme poverty. Thousands lived there including children. The reporter witnessed a burial which he described. Two children had died two days before and were being buried in the grounds by two young men. Two others were present, possibly parents. No ceremony. Possibly infected with cholera or typhus.
The Spanish flu pandemic reportedly began in 1918 and on reaching Ireland was thought to have infected 800,000 individuals resulting in 20,000 deaths. A possible cause of the fatalities in Tuam and other mother and baby homes. Reports were that skeletons were found in the grounds of Tuam, and the remains of 222 children from the Bethany home were found in an unmarked grave. Probably infected by Spanish flu or/and another epidemic. Tuberculosis was reported to be the leading cause of infant death in 1930’s Ireland.