School: Collon (B.) (roll number 14578)
- Location:
- Collon, Co. Louth
- Teacher: B. Mac Searraigh
Archival Reference
The Schools’ Collection, Volume 0677, Page 038
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- XML School: Collon (B.)
- XML Page 038
- XML “Churning”
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- We have a churn at home. It is about three feet high It is about two feet wide at the bottom and one foot nine inches at the top. The sides are round. It is fifteen years old. The parts are the barrel, lid, dash, and cup.
In Summer the milk is churned about twice a week. In Winter the milk is churned once a week. The churning is done by the woman of the house, assisted by a helper. People who come in during the churning say "God bless the work" and take a hand at the dash, if not no butter would come on the churn. The average time for churning is one hour. At first the dash is moved up and down quickly then they rock the churn to gather the butter. When small pieces of butter gather on the lid of the churn the butter is churned. Water is poured in to quicken the work.
The butter is lifted into a wooden dish (butterdish) then it is washed, salted and made into rolls with butter hands. Buttermilk is used for drinking, making bread and feeding calves and pigs.
The witches long ago used to take the butter from the cows, to stop them a plough-share had to be sharpened at the forge and dipped in the crocks of cream
- Informant
- Mrs Browne
- Gender
- Female
- Address
- Collon, Co. Louth
