School: Fearth Mór (Brooklawn) (roll number 15508)
- Location:
- Fartamore, Co. Galway
- Teacher: Treasa, Bean Mhic Aonghusa
Archival Reference
The Schools’ Collection, Volume 0040, Page 0315
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- XML School: Fearth Mór (Brooklawn)
- XML Page 0315
- XML “Fairs”
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- Long ago the fairs used to be held on the hill sides. There used to be gatherings called "patterns" in certain places and the people used to bring butter and eggs to sell and finally they brought cattle sheep and horses and that is the way fairs began.
It was not then the custom for the buyers to go around from house to house buying stock. As time went on the people began bringing their animals into the town and sell them on the sides of the streets.
There is one special field near every town where there are fairs held. It is called the "fair green". There is always custom paid by the buyer. Sixpence for every bullock and two pence for every sheep.
Custom is paid to pay the rent of the fair green and to pay the men for cleaning the roads after the fairs.
The buyer pays earnest to the seller which means that he pays part of the money to the seller. If the buyer does so he has to take the beast or else forfeit his earnest.
The sheep are marked by the buyer after being bought with raddle on the head or(continues on next page)
- Collector
- Donnchadha Ó hAinnín
- Gender
- Male
- Informant
- Denis Hannon
- Gender
- Male
