School: Cluain Fraoich
- Location:
- Cloonfree, Co. Roscommon
- Teacher: Seán Ó Fiachra
Archival Reference
The Schools’ Collection, Volume 0252, Page 293
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- (continued from previous page)A drink called "Sowans" was usually made from the oat seeds or "hull" mixed with a little of the oatmeal and allowed to "sour". This was generally used as a drink instead of water. For manure every occupier generally burned a kiln of lime and spread it on the ground after the crop being taken off and dug it into the soil when preparing it for the next year's crop. A funny custom was that the people of Cloonraine generally intermarried and if an outsider went looking for a wife, he was welcomed with a drop of poteen and when he was "hearty" all the buttons were cut off his breeches and he had to go home holding it up with his hands - he never afterwards went courting to Cloonraine.
When the Flax mill was built at Cloonfree Bridge the cultivation of Flax was taken up. The owners of the Flax mill - the Mahons of Strokestown brought a man from the north of Ireland (Keegan) & manage it and he disposed of the spun flax - the "tow" was kept at home and was spun into thread by the women during the winter nights. It was woven into sacking and sold at the Strokestown market. There was a weaver's loom kept by a man living near Cloonfree Lake named Neary his descendants live there still (Michl Flynn) whether there was a weaver or not in Cloonraine I do not know.
There was a Dyeing & Pressing establishment in Cloonfree in what was styled Cloonfree Cottage owned(continues on next page)
- Collector
- M. P. Hunt
