School: Aughacashel (roll number 15356)

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1. The Blight of 1846 (continued)

   

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   491

   I think Mohercregg road was made the year after the destruction of the potatoes. The men working on it got, I often heard, only 4d per day, and had to support themselves. They had to work from 6 in the morning till 7 or 8 in the evening in Summer, and later in the year while they had light to work.

   The oats crop was fair enough in this district that year - not that is ever much better than fair. Anyhow only it for people, bad as they were, would be worse. That and the Indian meal, half-rotten potatoes turnips and cabbage helped to keep the life in those that lived through '46 and '47. Many a proud man and woman had to content themselves not only around Slieve-an-Iarainn with that food but on the good land in the other parts of the parish as well.

   The Mullaghgarve (Mullachgarbh) road was made about 100 years ago. I dont know how the people got to their homes on the mountain

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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)
   2. time
      1. historical periods by name (~25)
         1. the great famine (~4,013)

   Language

   English

   Collector

   Joseph Conifry

   Gender

   Male

   Occupation

   Teacher

   Informant

   Mickey Ward

   Gender

   Male

   Age

   94

   Occupation

   Farmer

   Address

   Rantoge Glebe, Co. Leitrim