School: Trentagh (roll number 16331)

On this page

1. Churning

   

   Share Share Post

   Churning.

   We have a churn at home and it is (seven) four feet in height. It is four feet in width at the bottom and it is three feet at the top. This churn was made thirty years ago by an old man named David Wilkin who lived beside Trentagh School. There is a churn staff and a lid belonging to the churn. Some people churn twice in the week and some only once in the week. It is according to the amount of milk that they have. My mother always churns and some-times I help her. Some-times strangers come in and help her to churn because long ago the Irish people thought that if the stranger came in and did not help to churn that she took the butter away with her. It takes the people about an hour to churn. You put the staff in the churn and put the milk in and put the lid on. Then you lift the staff in the churn and put the milk in and put the lid on. Then you lift the staff up and down with your hands working quickly. We know when the churn is finished because the butter gathers at the top of the milk. Then the woman lifts out the butter into a wooden dish and she washes it with cold water

   (continues on next page)

   

   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

   Emma Neely

   Gender

   Female

   Age

   13

   Address

   Dromore, Co. Donegal