School: Tomena
- Location:
- Gortullaghan, Co. Cavan
- Teacher: T. Mac Uidhir
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- XML School: Tomena
- XML Page 541
- XML “Travelling Folk”
- XML “Travelling Folk”
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- Some thirty years ago travelling folk were very common.
Nearly all of them were natives of the Country, and were poor desolated people who had no means to live on.
Especially after the year of the famine 1846-47 there were greater numbers of them travelling around. These people were made very welcome in ever house they went to and they returned their thanks to the people by saying prayers in Irish for their welfare. Every house they went to they made a little ceilidhe. They had no visible means and many of them had to get shelter at night in the houses as they went along. They always travel alone. These are some of the names : - Sweating Bessie, The queen of glengavlin, Margaret Bomby, Phil Cox, Micky the Goat, Peter the rag, Ned Bullbrag, Betty Bra. Any house they lodged in at night the people gathered to hear them telling stories. - Travelling folk still call at all the country houses. The same families come once a year. Some of them sell small articles others sell tin cans, and porringers.
Those of them that make and sell tins are called '' tin men ''(continues on next page)- Collector
- Maire Gilheany
- Gender
- Female
- Address
- Drumcullion, Co. Cavan
- Informant
- Mrs Gilheany
- Gender
- Female
- Age
- 70