School: Coole (roll number 3936)
- Location:
- Coole, Co. Westmeath
- Teacher: T. Mac Cormaic
Archival Reference
The Schools’ Collection, Volume 0719, Page 433
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- XML “Essay on the Local Forge”
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- (continued from previous page)called 'Weapon of War'. Long ago when there was no clocks the black smith used to be kept busy making sundiles. It was made from a flag and when the sun shone on the flag they would know the time.
Long ago the old people had great belief in the forge water. Warts and chilblanes were cured by it. The smiths long ago would get a lot of presents. Some of the smiths was very strong men and used to fight great battles. A black smiths was very strong minded men and was never known to be an informer. All events of the parish were talked over in the forge and the Fenians used to hold all the meeting in it. Long ago the black smith had some power of banishing rats.
I heard when Captain Pakenham lived in Loolure he was annoyed with rats and he sent for a black smith. When the black smith came he whistled three times and about a hundred rats came out. He then spitted on the ground and all the rats went into the lake.
- Collector
- Mary Gunning
- Gender
- Female
- Address
- Coole, Co. Westmeath
- Informant
- Mrs Gunning
- Relation
- Parent
- Gender
- Female
- Address
- Coole, Co. Westmeath
