Susan McCann: Headstone is unveiled for child drowned in 1963

A six-year-old girl who was buried in an unmarked grave in Milltown Cemetery now has a proper resting place.

Susan McCann was an orphaned child who lived in Nazareth House in Belfast.

She was with a foster family for the weekend in February 1963 when she disappeared. She was found drowned in the Bog Meadows a few days later.

Her story came to light last year when a fellow resident at Nazareth House tried to find out where she was buried.

Marie-Therese Rogers-Maloney realised Susan was buried in an unmarked plot after looking for her grave

Marie-Therese Rogers-Maloney, who was also at Nazareth House in 1963, was appalled when she found out how she had been buried.

"I couldn't believe it and I was determined, even after all these years, to make sure that she was given the recognition in death that she hadn't been given in life," she said.

After seeing her story, several people came forward to offer help.

Vincent McGuinness owns a warehouse in Newry and one of his tenants gifted the headstone.

He said: "I just couldn't believe what people did in those days.

"It's in our generation, this happened in our generation."

David Laird from Killough in County Down, who engraved the memorial, said he felt it was important for people to remember.

"Meeting Marie-Therese and seeing how passionate she was about it, it was just the easiest decision I could make was to help her make this everlasting memorial for her friend," he said.

Reverend Richard Houston spoke at the ceremony

A service was held at Milltown cemetery at the weekend to unveil her new headstone.

It was taken by the Reverend Richard Houston from Lucan Presbyterian Church in Dublin, who said he had been impressed by Marie-Therese's efforts to remember her friend.

He said: "This story is about Susan McCann and restoring dignity to this little child who was lost, but it is about honouring the campaign and the compassion of Marie-Therese as well."

For Marie-Therese it is the final chapter in the story.

Susan McCann was an orphan at Nazareth House in Belfast.

"I'm happy for Susan that someone has thought about her and I'm happy for the girls of Nazareth who talked about it all over the years, but I was the one who decided I was going to do something about it," she said.

"It brings it to an end, a compassionate end, a decent end.

"That's a final goodbye and now she can be at rest."