Railroad contractor Philip Duffy hired 57 Irish immigrants to lay this line through the area's densely wooded hills and ravines.

The remains of seven have been discovered at the site, and forensic evidence suggests that some may have been murdered, perhaps due to fear of contagion[2] as the pandemic spanned several continents over many years.

[3] While this has become the most popular theory, a coroner who studied the bones believes the alleged bullet holes and injuries were actually due to natural decomposition and post-mortem damage.

[6] Immigrants generally and Irish Catholics specifically were often viewed by the owners and managers of railroad and coal mining companies as expendable components, and by Anglo-Germanic Americans as unwholesome and even dangerous.

[9] On March 9, 2012, the remains of five men and one woman from those who died at Duffy's Cut Shanty Town were laid to rest with a religious service at West Laurel Hill Cemetery in Bala Cynwyd, Pennsylvania.