A new museum in Strokestown, County Roscommon commemorates The Great Famine.
In November 1847, Major Denis Mahon, landlord at Strokestown House, was assassinated. Major Mahon had come up with the, assisted emigration scheme to get rid of two thirds of his starving tenants. As a result, he earned international notoriety and condemnation.
Strokestown House was at the centre of a dark night of starvation, eviction and murder at the height of the famine.
Opening the Famine Museum at Strokestown, President Mary Robinson, spoke of her concerns about modern day forced emigration and the vulnerability that migrants face.
Famine is a definable disaster but there are also catastrophes which are less easy to define and yet which may in the end be just as devastating.
Growth in population and lack of jobs has meant that many young people have been forced to leave Ireland in search of opportunity.
It is anticipated that the new Strokestown Famine Museum will attract fifty thousand visitors this year. Many of these visitors will be returning emigrants in search of their roots.
An RTÉ News report broadcast on 14 May 1994. The reporter is Jim Fahy.
