School: Knockcommon (roll number 16549)

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1. Travelling Folk

   

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   The chief travelling folk that inhabit this districty are tinkers who still call to our home. Some of them are coming a long time now. Others who used to come a couple of years ago are dead, or have removed to another part of the country. Most of them appear to be very poor.
   Some of the tinkers sell small articles, such as :- pins, needles, scented-soap, laces, artificial roses, scissors, and other little things. For charity's sake local people buy from them. The tinkers buy their goods in the nearest town to which they camp.
   The travellers that you very seldom see seeking help are generally welcome, but those who are constantly coming are never welcome. Some of them remain in this locality for a year or so. These sleep in a shed on the old Dublin road. They nearly always have food with thme which they obtain by begging. The alms they expect is :- a grain of tea, sugar, meal, a piece of bread or money, or anything in the way of old clothes.
   The tinkers generally go about on foot. Some of them go in bands and others singly. The

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   Transcribed by a member of our volunteer transcription project.

   History Edit

   Topics

   1. agents (~1)
      1. people by social grouping
         1. travellers (~3,023)

   Language

   English

   Collector

   Josephine Gallagher

   Gender

   Female

   Address

   Knockcommon, Co. Meath