School: Carrickvallen, Dundalk
- Location:
- Carrickavallan, Co. Louth
- Teacher: P. Ó Dobhaileáin
Archival Reference
The Schools’ Collection, Volume 0668, Page 166
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- Long ago in this part of the country many strange customs were practised on Hallow'een. Nowadays most of these customs have died out, but the old people still remember them. My Mother describes some of these customs to me.
One famous custom was to take an apple, go into a dark room and stand before a mirror eating it. Then you were to see someone standing behind you. This person was supposed to be the form of the person you were to marry.
Another custom was to take a brush a few minutes before twelve o'clock and go outside and sweep the street. Then on the stroke of twelve some person would take the brush from you and it is said that the person represented the person you were to marry.
Another custom was to go into the garden and pull a white head of cabbage and hang it over the door. This was done at midnight. It was believed that the first person that entered the house next morning represented the person you were to marry.
Another custom was to get three saucepans, put dirty water in one, clean water in another and leave the third saucepan empty. Then a person was blindfolded and led to the saucepans. If that person put their hand on the saucepan with the clean(continues on next page)
