School: Woodland (roll number 8464)
- Location:
- Woodland, Co. Donegal
- Teacher: Mrs Crossan
Archival Reference
The Schools’ Collection, Volume 1085, Page 118
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- In the famine times there was an old house in Knockabrin and it was used as a barrack. The police stayed in it. Indian meal was boiled and made into porridge in a boiler and shared among the policemen and the neighbours living there. A blight which came on the potato crop was the cause of the famine. The people died in multitudes at Knockbrack crossroads. The corpses were so numerous that they could not be buried. The people decayed in the pits and the people had no seed for the following year so the government had to give out potatoes for seed.
- The famine is described by an old woman called Mrs. Kelly who at the age of nine left Ireland with her parents and went to live in England. Though only nine years old she gave a wonderful description of seeing people lying dead on the roadside from hunger. Food being so scarce she remembers how each child got a number of spoonfuls of porridge according to their age & size.Indian meal was imported and was practically the only food to be had by the poor people. It was said that at that time Ireland had a large supply(continues on next page)
- Collector
- Henry Mc Cafferty
- Gender
- Male
- Address
- Oldtown, Co. Donegal
