DOCUMENTS

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Passport Info

 Passport
Most of us were issued an Irish passport at the time of our exportation to the U.S. If you possess such a document, you'll note a number on the upper right of the first page-this number can be used to help INS trace your alien number and immigration records.
Original Irish Birth Certificate
The original birth certificate-this document should be part of your US INS package, which can be obtained through an FOIA request.
US Amended Birth Certificate
The amended birth certificate-issued by the state your adoption was finalized in. In most cases, this is the only "birth" certificate you will be issued by the state, as all but four US states have sealed original birth certificates.
US Adoption Decree
The adoption decree-issued by the state your adoption was finalized in, this document is legal representation of your adoption.
US Certificate of Naturalisation
Certificate of Naturalization-this document is issued at the time you formally become a US citizen, usually several years after the adoption is finalized. There have been several cases where Irish-born US-adoptd children were never naturalized.
Short-form Irish Baptismal Certificate
The short-form baptismal certificate-when writing to Ireland to request your or a birthfamily member's baptismal certificate, this is the document you will typically receive. It may or may not list sponsors (godparents), depending on the case.
Pre-Adoption Photos
A pre-adoption photo was often sent to prospective US adoptive parents.  Some adoptees may even have old photos taken with their birthmothers.  Often, adoptive parents would send back photos to the home of the child's first Christmas in the States or other important events.
A Tour of Sacred Heart Bessboro'

The following photos were taken in 1999 at the Sacred Heart, Bessboro', mother-baby home in Cork. Many thanks to Des Hurley (Bessboro'-1959) for supplying the photos!

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The front drive and main buildings facade of the Bessboro' Home. Note the white posts to the left-these posts mark where a six-foot wall once stood.
Another view of the marker posts along with a sign directing visitors to the hospital and convent (nuns' residence).
Sister Mary Sarto, former head search/trace coordinator for Sacred Heart Adoption Society, now reassigned, to the collective relief and joy of Irish adopted people everywhere!
The view from the front door of the mother-baby residence.
Inside the nun's residence. 
Another view inside the nuns' residence.
The view of the river and the Sacred Heart from the front door of the nuns' residence. 
The home's farmyard, where many of the mothers toiled.  Bessboro' now also serves as a local Heritage Center.  Figures are dressed in turn-of-the-century clothing and posed to show how local Cork residents may have lived, worked, and looked at that time.

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