The Lusitania

The liner “Lusitania” sailed from New York on 1st May 1915 on a voyage to Liverpool with a total of 1962 person on board.  As about 2pm on 7th May she way torpedoed by German Submarine “U20” off the Irish coast 12 miles from the Old Head of Kinsale.

The Ship sank in just 18 minutes and 1198 people were lost.  Most of the 764 that we saved were landed at Cobh together with many of the dead.  Of the 289 bodies recovered 169 are buried in this cemetery in three common graves and 20 private graves.  45 of these are unidentified and have numbers only.  The stones over the graves were erected in 1986 through the efforts of Tim Cadogan, Pat O Shea, Luke Cassidy and Jim Meagher.

The grave closest to the road holds 23 bodies, the one adjacent to this 52 bodies, and the one furthest from the road 69 bodies.  25 bodies are buried in 20 private graves in sections B and D of this cemetery.  Of the 169 victims buried here, 85 were male and 84 female.

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