School: Coolderry
- Location:
- Coolderry, Co. Offaly
- Teacher: L. Mac Conriada
Archival Reference
The Schools’ Collection, Volume 0818, Page 093
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- XML School: Coolderry
- XML Page 093
- XML “The Local Forge”
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- The local forge
There is only one forge in this parish. It owned by a man named William Murray and is situated on a crossroads on the main road from Birr to Roscrea. It has a slated roof and double door very wide. There only one fireplace in it. This smith make horse shoes and repairs plough and harroars and other farm implements. This mans father and grandfather was also blacksmiths. He does not work in the open air often. He has a lot ofinstrumens some of them is an anvil, bellows, nails and many other thing. The blacksmith shoes whells about twice a year. When there are a great many pairs of wheels collected he makes a fire in the open air of brown turf. He then puts the bands of the wheels in the fire to redden them. When they are red he pulls them ou with a gongs with the help of another man and puts them on the wheels tightly and throws water on them to prevent the hot iron from burning the timber. It considered the hardest work of a smith. The smith often works late at night and the local men go in to ramble some of them blow the bellows. And they remain there telling stories for a long time. In the parish ofKilcolman there is another smith whose ancestors made pikes for the men of 98. It said he was flogged for doing so
