School: Toames, Maghcromtha (roll number 15478)
- Location:
- Tuaim, Co. Chorcaí
- Teacher: Seán de Búrca
Archival Reference
The Schools’ Collection, Volume 0338, Page 242
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- In the year 1918 after the termination of the great war there was a terrible Epidemic of Influenza not only in this country but in almost all European countries. The epidemic was particularly severe in the district around Macroom and this district of Toames suffered severely. I remember one sad case in this townland in the Mac Sweeney family. The whole family eleven in all were laid up together and at the crisis period one of the children a little boy succumbed. Neither father nor mother nor any other member of the family could leave the bed to attend to the corpse and neighbours were afraid to come near as the disease was terribly contagious. However a kind neighbour, O'Keefe, who is now dead, at great risk procured a coffin (after hearing the story from the doctor) and took the body from beside its sick mother and arranged and coffined it and saw that it was properly buried.
A little to the east of this three brothers by the name of Mac Sweeney all in the prime of life, died in the space of three days from the terrible effects of the dread disease. It was a peculiar sign of the virulence of the disease that the bodies used to turn black soon after death. Temperance advacates got(continues on next page)
