A mass burial site uncovered on the Main Line has brought a 177 year old mystery to a close. The bodies recovered, at least two so far, are believed to be among 57 Irish rail workers.
Since 2004, searchers have come to the woods of East Whiteland Township in Chester County.
For thousands of hours they have dug, seeking answers to a terrible secret, hidden from everyone for more than 170 years.
Their maps, but mostly their hearts told them that somewhere in the woods, somehow they would find a mass grave holding 57 Irish immigrants.
The immigrants had come in 1832 to build what's now the R5 line. But five weeks after getting off the boat, they were dead and seemingly forgotten, until now.
"I started screaming, 'teeth, teeth, teeth,' incoherently," John Ahtes said.
Urgently but gently, they dug and found more remains, including parts of two human skulls.
So far, it is believed searchers have found at least two, perhaps as many as four of the workers.
And while most died from the plague, a bullet found in the same area raises the possibility that terrified neighbors may have made sure every last worker was wiped out.
"Either through neglect or through physical violence, some of these men were killed," Earl Schandelmeier of Immaculata University said.
As they dig for more workers, searchers hope DNA recovered from teeth can be matched to remaining family members still in Ireland.
The workers will be indentified and in their home country, with peace, love and respect, at last, they can be laid to rest.
"There's a lot of goodbyes that have never been said and it can be done," Schandelmeier said.
Officials of the former Pennsylvania Railroad kept the Irish workers grave top secret for more than a century.
And it's possible they might never have been found until Dr. Bill Watson and his colleagues at Immaculata found dusty old files as they cleaned out a family member's attic.
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