School: Guaire (Goorey) (roll number 7929)
- Location:
- Goorey, Co. Donegal
- Teacher: Úna M. Montgomery
Archival Reference
The Schools’ Collection, Volume 1124, Page 46
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- "Gentle ground" is ground which is supposed to belong to the fairies. It is unlucky to build on this ground, or to build with stones quarried from gentle ground.
Once some people were building a house on gentle ground. This was in Knockglass in Crockraw, adjoining townlands about three miles out of Malin town between the town and Malin Head, by the shore road.
One day the woman of this house was churning. A tiny woman came into the kitchen and asked her for a drink. The woman gave her a drink of buttermilk. She took it, thanked the woman and then advised her to tell the man not to go on building on gentle ground, as ill luck would come to them.
The fairy disappeared. Despite her advice these people continued to build on the gentle ground.
Afterwards they suffered losses of cattle and horses. One member of the family was also drowned subsequently.
- Collector
- Úna M. Montgomery
- Gender
- Female
- Occupation
- Múinteoir
- Address
- Goorey, Co. Donegal
- Informant
- Kathleen Starrett
- Gender
- Female
- Address
- Killin, Co. Donegal
