School: Kilbeg (roll number 11039)

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1. Ancient Local Forts (continued)

   

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   of Carlanstown. This man got payment for the used of his greens by a sum of money which was collected known as a "toll". Every person who sold a beast would have to pay twopence a head on each beast he sold. Genkins who owned the fair-greens would hire three of the roughest men in the locality, to stand at the three roads that lead to the fair, well armed with sticks and anyone who wouldn't obey these men would be struck down with a stroke of a stick as thick as a crowbar. Those men were there with a notebook writing down how many animals would be sold, and each person would be held and asked whether they sold or not, and if they made a sale they would have to pay twopence on each animal. The Carlanstown fair was noted all over Ireland until one 12th March it happened that there was to be a fair in Kells on the same day as the Carlanstown fair and a few people who went to Carlanstown saw nobody there and they went on to Kells. Then the people thought that the Carlanstown fair was dying out and from that 12th March, 1881 the Carlanstown fair was abandoned. There used to be an annual fair held at Ardamagh on the 19th May and it was known as the "Ardamagh Breaga". This fair was held in a field now owned by Thomas Reilly, and at this fair

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   Transcribed by a member of our volunteer transcription project.

   History Edit

   Language

   English

   Collector

   Matthew O' Connell

   Gender

   Male

   Address

   Drakerath, Co. Meath