School: Star of the Sea, Glengivney (roll number 12334)

On this page

1. Food in Olden Times (continued)

   

   Share Share Post

   (continued from previous page)

   on the grass. When it is well bleached it is taken in and boiled for about an hour. Then it is strained and left out to cool and taken with milk and sugar. The carrigean moss is called the "mother of the dulce". Other sea-weed that people used were boiled dulce, boiled famnach, and boiled "sloke" all of which were very good for purifying the blood. Barnacles and winkles were also boiled and eaten with potatoes.
   Before cups were used noggins, or timber mugs, and bowls were used. A piggin is a wooden vessel for holding milk, there are piggins and noggins in Glenagivney yet. Old men drank whiskey from horns. There are a few horns in this district to the present time.
   My father says it is over a hundred years since tea was first introduced into this country but he says that it was known a long time before it became used in every house as it is now. Long ago people used it only on "set" nights and at weddings. A woman in Glenagivney named Doherty who lived about twenty years ago tried to make tea. She put on the tea and let it boil for a long time. Then she took it off again and kept the tea-leaves and threw out the tea. She ate the tea leaves.
   The food used on special occasions were eggs on Easter Sunday, Cruítín or poundies on Hallow een Night, pancakes on St. Brigids Night and tea at Christmas. People always had big feasts on the feast days of the church, such as Christmas and New Year and Hallowee'n. On Easter Sunday people competed or "camped" with each other as to who could eat the greatest number of eggs.
   People in olden times were very strong because of the food they ate and my uncle told me that men could carry two hundred-weight on their backs from Moville to Glenagivney. Even the woman could work all day

   (continues on next page)

   

   Transcribed by a member of our volunteer transcription project.

   History Edit

   Topics

   1. products
      1. food products (~3,601)

   Language

   English

   Collector

   Kathleen Mc Henry

   Gender

   Female

   Informant

   Dan Mc Laughlin

   Relation

   Relative (other than parent or grandparent)

   Gender

   Male

   Age

   75

   Address

   Glennagiveny, Co. Donegal