School: Knocknagilla

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1. Churning (continued)

   

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   high and one foot nine inches wide at the top and bottom. The sides are round and there are six hoops round them to keep the slats tight together. It is thirty years old.
   The man that made it was Thomas Reilly Ballyjamesduff. His son makes them now. "Butter" is made twice in the winter every week, and once in the week in summer, because the milk is sent to the "creamery" in summer.
   The woman of the house does the churning, and someone of the household might take a "brash" at it. If a stranger happens to go in during the churning, he takes a "brash" because it is said it is right to take a "brash" at the churning.
   The churning is done by hand. It takes an hour to do the churning. Water is poured in during the churning to keep the butter from being "scalded". The woman of the house gets a spoon and takes the milk that comes up on the churn-lid on the spoon, and goes to the light to see is there a "break" on it.
   When the butter is taken off it is put into a basin of spring water and salted. A "butter spade" and a "trencher" are used making the butter. Some people leave a bit of "unsalted" butter for "hacks" on the hands, and it is used for any

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   Transcribed by a member of our volunteer transcription project.

   History Edit

   Topics

   1. activities
      1. economic activities
         1. agriculture (~2,659)
            1. butter and churns (~3,280)

   Language

   English

   Collector

   James Smith

   Gender

   Male

   Informant

   Patrick Smith

   Gender

   Male

   Address

   Beaghy, Co. Cavan