School: Sráid na Cathrach (B.) (roll number 8850)
- Location:
- Milltown Malbay, Co. Clare
- Teacher: Pádraig Ó Briain
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- XML School: Sráid na Cathrach (B.)
- XML Page 296
- XML “The Famine”
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The Famine (continued)
“Before the Famine the people of Ireland lived mainly on potatoes and the stapll food of the majority of the people was three meals of potatoes...”
(continued from previous page)daily In June 1846 a very heavy blight came on the potatoes and a great portion of the crop was destroyed all over the county potatoes were so scarce that the people were compelled to eat those that were usually kept for seed
In Spring the food was so scarce that the farmers ate the greater portion of the little seed left and cut out a small portion round one of the eyes of the potato and used this as seed. The result was the complete failure of the potato crop of 1847 and the Famine. People died by the thousands the undertaker in Miltown Malbay was a man named Donnellan and even though he employed many extra hands he found it nearly impossible to keep coffins made
In Legard South there was an old workhouse and messengers came daily from there to Donnellan for supplies of coffins and often the coffins of today were for the messengers of yesterday
The dead were brought in cartloads every day to the graveyard and often when when it was too late at night to bury them they were left in cartloads at the(continues on next page)- Collector
- Gerry Rynne
- Gender
- Male
- Informant
- Mrs Fitzpatrick
- Gender
- Female
- Age
- 88
- Address
- Milltown Malbay, Co. Clare