School: Smithstown, Castlecomer (roll number 14626)
- Location:
- Smithstown, Co. Kilkenny
- Teacher: Bríd Ní Mhórdha
Archival Reference
The Schools’ Collection, Volume 0865, Page 271
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- XML School: Smithstown, Castlecomer
- XML Page 271
- XML “Churning”
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- I have no churn at home, but I am writing about my neighbour's churn. This is an ordinary churn, and is three feet wide at the bottom and two feet wide at the top, and it is four feet high. The sides of it are round. Butter is made practically every day in summer, and it is only made once or twice in a week in winter. All the family who are able to churn, take up the work, in turn. If a stranger came in while the churning was taking place, it wold be considered unlucky for him to leave the house, without giving a help. Sometimes the churning would take an hour according to the weather, other times it would only take a quarter, or half an hour. The churning is done by hands nowadays. The churn-dash is always moved up and down it is considered the best way to make the butter.
The people see the butter come to the top of the milk, and that is how they know when the butter is made. If the milk was too thick, the people would pour in cold or hot water in order to make it(continues on next page)
- Informant
- Thomas Comerford
- Gender
- Male
- Age
- 48
- Occupation
- Miner
- Address
- Smithstown, Co. Kilkenny
