School: Drom an Mhadaidh
- Location:
- Drumavaddy, Co. Cavan
- Teacher: S. Ó Murchadha
Archival Reference
The Schools’ Collection, Volume 0990, Page 032
Image and data © National Folklore Collection, UCD.
See copyright details.
DownloadOpen data
Available under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0)
- XML School: Drom an Mhadaidh
- XML Page 032
- XML “Dyeing”
- XML “Nail-Making”
- XML “Making of Loys - Laigheanna”
Note: We will soon deprecate our XML Application Programming Interface and a new, comprehensive JSON API will be made available. Keep an eye on our website for further details.
On this page
- (continued from previous page)years of the Great war, when continental dyes could not be obtained, home made dyes. One such dye was made by boiling the tops of young ash-tree "shoots". I am unaware what colour of dye this gave.
- Nails though not made locally were made in Cavan town up to circ. 1880. The grandfather of the present Mr. B. Whelan, General merchant, Cavan was a nailer. The nailer used ling thin rods of iron. A number of these were kept constantly in the forge-fire. When red-hot a rod was withdrawn and pushed into a hole the depth of which corresponded to the length of nail required. The nail was then cut off a short piece longer than the required nail and with a few deft blows of the nailer's hammer the head was fashioned and the end sharpened, the whole taking only a matter of seconds. The busiest man to be seen working in those days was the nailer - "As busy as a nailer". Blacksmiths also made their own supply of nails.
- Up to forty years ago loys were used extensively, though now they are not to be seen. The farmer shouldered his loy about 8 a.m. and without a meal went to his field and began digging. At 10 a.m. he ate his breakfast and returned to the field for the day.(continues on next page)
