School: Baile Aodha (C.). Inis (roll number 13419)

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1. Houses Long Ago (continued)

   

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   house-building. Friday was supposed to be the luckiest day to start. In this County when going to build they went to Biddy Early who was a "wise woman". She looked through a blue bottle and told them in what direction the house should be faced. Sometimes when houses were being built they were knocked again in the night by the "good people" because they were in the way of the fairies. To prevent this when the foundations were cut the mason made three little castles of stones before sun set. Then he said aloud "If these little castles are in the way of the fairies they can knock them to night." If the castles were knocked in the morning then he would have to change the foundation of the house.
   Plaited sally bushes stuck in a large opening in the wall served as a door in these old houses. A bag of hay packed the holes which served as windows. The floors were of clay and there was a half-door in every house, to keep out the fowls and pigs. A kitchen and one bedroom were all these early houses contained. The bed which was called a "four poster"

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   Transcribed by a member of our volunteer transcription project.

   History Edit

   Topics

   1. objects
      1. man-made structures
         1. buildings
            1. residential buildings (~2,723)

   Language

   English

   Collector

   Norah Casey

   Gender

   Female

   Address

   Killerk East, Co. Clare

   Informant

   James Casey

   Relation

   Parent

   Gender

   Male

   Age

   50

   Occupation

   Farmer

   Address

   Killerk East, Co. Clare