Anna Corrigan, administrator of the Tuam Babies family group, browses through research documents at her home in Dublin on July 16, 2025. For years, Corrigan has sought answers about the fate of her two missing siblings, who were born at the former St. Mary’s Mother and Baby Home — a maternity institution for unmarried mothers and their children run by the Bon Secours religious order — in Tuam.

Anna Corrigan browses research documents at her home in Dublin in July. For years, she has sought answers about the fate of her two missing siblings, who were born at a mother and baby home in Tuam.

Paulo Nunes dos Santos/for NPR

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Paulo Nunes dos Santos/for NPR

As we look back at our international reporters’ most memorable stories of the last year, we revisit a story about families from Ireland learning their full history. There, the Catholic Church once ran homes for unwed mothers. Until recently the church dominated life in Ireland and pregnancy outside marriage was considered shameful. Behind one of these homes a ghastly discovery has recently been made. It was a secret most people in the town knew about, but no one took any action until recently. And through reporting the story, our correspondent learned of a personal connection to this history.