School: Crieve (roll number 4369)

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1. Famine Times

   

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   The people in this district tell stories about the famine. It affected the district very much. This district was very thickly before that time. The people pointed out sites of houses then occupied and now in ruins and no traces of them they are completely buried in the ground. When the "blight" first came the people did not know what it was, it cut down the stalks before they were fully grown. The potatoes decayed in the ground. A story was told that when three men went out for a day's digging they would only get a small can full. Some potatoes were kept for the following year and others had none for seed. The people ate porridge while they had it, when it was done they ate dandelion sorrel and any roots they could gather in the fields and hedges. blackberries and other wild berries were also eaten. The potatoes were sown in ridges. There is a road leading from the main road to Listraor bog called the twopenny road because it was part of the relief work given during the famine time the workers being paid 2d per day.
   There is no account of any person dying of starvation. Sickness did follow the hunger and people did die then. There was a partial failure in 1979 this was due to the potato-crop failure. The well-off men and the landlords together with the Government subscribed and bought Indian meal

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   Transcribed by a member of our volunteer transcription project.

   History Edit

   Topics

   1. time
      1. historical periods by name (~25)
         1. the great famine (~4,013)

   Language

   English

   Collector

   Isobell Farlow

   Gender

   Female

   Address

   Derryarrilly, Co. Monaghan

   Informant

   Mr Gage

   Gender

   Male

   Age

   77

   Address

   Listroar, Co. Monaghan