Duffy's Cut
Encyclopedia
Duffy's Cut is the name given to a stretch of railroad tracks about 30 miles west of Philadelphia, USA, originally built for the Philadelphia and Columbia Railroad in the summer and fall of 1832. The line later became part of the Pennsylvania Railroad
's Main Line
. Railroad contractor Philip Duffy hired 57 Irish immigrants to lay this line through the area's densely wooded hills and ravines. The workers came to Philadelphia from Counties Donegal
, Tyrone
, and Derry
to work in Pennsylvania's nascent railroad industry. Less than two months after their arrival, all 57 are believed to have died during the second cholera pandemic
, which was a worldwide contagion
spanning several continents and many years.
The site is located near Malvern, Pennsylvania
, USA
, in East Whiteland Township near the intersection of King Road and Sugartown Road, where a Pennsylvania state historical marker has been placed.
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 along with his brother Dr. William Watson and professors Earl Schandelmeier and John Ahtes of Immaculata University
.
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 excavation by a research team that included Immaculata University and Pennsylvania state and local governments. The Duffy's Cut Project team consists of three primary members, Frank Watson, Bill Watson, and Earl Schandelmeier of Immaculata University. On March 20, 2009, the first human bones were unearthed, consisting of two skulls, six teeth and eighty other bones. The researchers announced their discovery on March 24, 2009. The remains will undergo DNA testing for possible identification.
In August 2009, "Finding Dulcinea" reported that the two earliest skulls found both show evidence of blunt-force trauma inflicted peri-mortem, suggesting the possibility that murder was done there. A full investigation is expected to ensue as further excavation and testing is done on the remains.
More recent research of the site suggests to some that a mass murder may have taken place against the Irish workers by local vigilantes fearful that cholera would spread. Analysis of the bones has indicated the possibility that some of the men were killed by projectiles.
published The Ghosts of Duffy's Cut in July 2006, and a documentary on the story has been produced by Tile Films LTD of Dublin for broadcast on the Irish State Broadcaster RTÉ
. Irish musician Christy Moore
includes a song, written by Wally Page, called "Duffy's Cut," whose subject matter is the death of the workers on the railway.
In March 2011, Irish Punk band The Dropkick Murphys released 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 dying of cholera.
Pennsylvania Railroad
The Pennsylvania Railroad was an American Class I railroad, founded in 1846. Commonly referred to as the "Pennsy", the PRR was headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania....
's Main Line
Main Line of Public Works
The Main Line of Public Works was a railroad and canal system built by the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania in the 19th century. It ran from Philadelphia west through Harrisburg and across the state to Pittsburgh and connected with other divisions of the Pennsylvania Canal...
. Railroad contractor Philip Duffy hired 57 Irish immigrants to lay this line through the area's densely wooded hills and ravines. The workers came to Philadelphia from Counties Donegal
County Donegal
County Donegal is a county in Ireland. It is part of the Border Region and is also located in the province of Ulster. It is named after the town of Donegal. Donegal County Council is the local authority for the county...
, Tyrone
County Tyrone
Historically Tyrone stretched as far north as Lough Foyle, and comprised part of modern day County Londonderry east of the River Foyle. The majority of County Londonderry was carved out of Tyrone between 1610-1620 when that land went to the Guilds of London to set up profit making schemes based on...
, and Derry
County Londonderry
The place name Derry is an anglicisation of the old Irish Daire meaning oak-grove or oak-wood. As with the city, its name is subject to the Derry/Londonderry name dispute, with the form Derry preferred by nationalists and Londonderry preferred by unionists...
to work in Pennsylvania's nascent railroad industry. Less than two months after their arrival, all 57 are believed to have died during the second cholera pandemic
Second cholera pandemic
The second cholera pandemic also known as the Asiatic Cholera Pandemic was a Cholera pandemic from 1829-1849.-History:This pandemic began, like the first, with outbreaks along the Ganges River delta. From there the disease spread along trade routes to cover most of India. By 1828 the disease had...
, which was a worldwide contagion
Infectious disease
Infectious diseases, also known as communicable diseases, contagious diseases or transmissible diseases comprise clinically evident illness resulting from the infection, presence and growth of pathogenic biological agents in an individual host organism...
spanning several continents and many years.
The site is located near Malvern, Pennsylvania
Malvern, Pennsylvania
Malvern is a borough in Chester County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 2,998 at the 2010 census. The main road through the borough is King Street, although the borough is also bordered by Paoli Pike on the south, and is near US 30 on the north. The primary cross street is Warren...
, USA
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, in East Whiteland Township near the intersection of King Road and Sugartown Road, where a Pennsylvania state historical marker has been placed.
Background
Prejudice against immigrants generally and Irish Catholics specifically contributed to the denial of care to these immigrant workers, who were often viewed by the owners and managers of railroad and coal mining companies as expendable components, and by "native" Americans as unwholesome and even dangerous. Philip Duffy's blacksmith buried the first three to perish in individual graves, but when it became clear that all would die he buried the rest of the dead workers in a shallow ditch along the railroad’s right of way without ceremony or funeral. No death certificates were ever filed for these Irish non-citizens. Asiatic Cholera usually causes 40-60% casualties within a single population. In this case, all of the workers are believed to have died, leading to the theory that some may have been killed.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 along with his brother Dr. William Watson and professors Earl Schandelmeier and John Ahtes of Immaculata University
Immaculata University
Immaculata University is a Catholic University on King Road in East Whiteland Township, Chester County, Pennsylvania.-History:Immaculata was founded as Villa Maria College, a women's college in 1920. It was the first Catholic college for women in the Philadelphia area...
.
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 excavation by a research team that included Immaculata University and Pennsylvania state and local governments. The Duffy's Cut Project team consists of three primary members, Frank Watson, Bill Watson, and Earl Schandelmeier of Immaculata University. On March 20, 2009, the first human bones were unearthed, consisting of two skulls, six teeth and eighty other bones. The researchers announced their discovery on March 24, 2009. The remains will undergo DNA testing for possible identification.
In August 2009, "Finding Dulcinea" reported that the two earliest skulls found both show evidence of blunt-force trauma inflicted peri-mortem, suggesting the possibility that murder was done there. A full investigation is expected to ensue as further excavation and testing is done on the remains.
More recent research of the site suggests to some that a mass murder may have taken place against the Irish workers by local vigilantes fearful that cholera would spread. Analysis of the bones has indicated the possibility that some of the men were killed by projectiles.
In popular culture
Greenwood Publishing GroupGreenwood Publishing Group
Greenwood Publishing Group is an educational publisher and is part of ABC-CLIO. It publishes reference works under its Greenwood Press imprint, and scholarly, professional, and general interest books under Praeger Publishers...
published The Ghosts of Duffy's Cut in July 2006, and a documentary on the story has been produced by Tile Films LTD of Dublin for broadcast on the Irish State Broadcaster RTÉ
RTE
RTÉ is the abbreviation for Raidió Teilifís Éireann, the public broadcasting service of the Republic of Ireland.RTE may also refer to:* Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, 25th Prime Minister of Turkey...
. Irish musician Christy Moore
Christy Moore
Christopher Andrew "Christy" Moore is a popular Irish folk singer, songwriter, and guitarist. He is well known as one of the founding members of Planxty and Moving Hearts...
includes a song, written by Wally Page, called "Duffy's Cut," whose subject matter is the death of the workers on the railway.
In March 2011, Irish Punk band The Dropkick Murphys released 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 dying of cholera.
External links
- The Duffy's Cut (Archaeological) Project, an Immaculata UniversityImmaculata UniversityImmaculata University is a Catholic University on King Road in East Whiteland Township, Chester County, Pennsylvania.-History:Immaculata was founded as Villa Maria College, a women's college in 1920. It was the first Catholic college for women in the Philadelphia area...
website - Marker Details: Duffy's Cut Mass Grave, a Pennsylvania State Historical Marker from the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum CommissionPennsylvania Historical and Museum CommissionThe Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission is the governmental agency of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania responsible for the collection, conservation and interpretation of Pennsylvania's historic heritage...
- Grandfather's ghost story leads to mysterious mass grave, an August 2010 CNNCNNCable News Network is a U.S. cable news channel founded in 1980 by Ted Turner. Upon its launch, CNN was the first channel to provide 24-hour television news coverage, and the first all-news television channel in the United States...
article with video about the mass grave at Duffy's Cut] - http://www.smithsonianmag.com/history-archaeology/Irelands-Forgotten-Sons-Recovered-Two-Centuries-Later.html, Ireland's Forgotten Sons Recovered Two Centuries Later, Abigail Tucker, Smithsonian Magazine
- http://www.philadelphiaweekly.com/news-and-opinion/cover-story/Murder-in-the-Time-of-Cholera.html, Murder in the Time of Cholera, Jonathan Valania, Philadelphia Weekly.
- Bones Beneath the Tracks, Samuel Hughes, Penn Gazette.
- Peter Loftus The Mystery of Duffy's Cut, Wall Street Journal, April 14, 2011
- http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=127074433, Fate of Irish Workers Sealed in Mass Grave, interview on NPR's "All Things Considered," with Guy Raz, May 23, 2010
- Duffy's Cut Mass grave at Find A grave