School: Whitecross, Julianstown (roll number 3380)
- Location:
- Whitecross, Co. Meath
- Teacher: Criostóir Breathnach
Archival Reference
The Schools’ Collection, Volume 0685, Page 223
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- XML School: Whitecross, Julianstown
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- XML “A Fairy Story”
- XML “A Famine Story”
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- (continued from previous page)He sat there for a while but when he lifted his head again to his surprise he found he was sitting right beside the path.
- At the time of the famine in the years 1847 and 1848 the people of the west of Ireland and the midlands used to work their way to Drogheda in hope of getting a ship to Liverpool and from there to America. Hundreds of people passed every day on foot on their way to Drogheda. At that time the grandfather of the McCullen's of Beamore was working for Mr Smith of Beamore. His occupation was doing sentry in a field of turnips. He walked across the headland with a gun all day if any poor starving people came to steal the turnips. Mr McCullen knew that his occupation would not last long and he thought there was no harm in giving a few turnips to the starving people. When the people came to steal the turnips he told them not to take those nearest the end of the field but to go far into the field where they would not be missed. In this way Mr Smith never found out that his sentry was disobeying him.
- Collector
- Peggy Landy
- Gender
- Female
- Address
- Julianstown, Co. Meath
- Informant
- Dr Mc Cullen
- Gender
- Male
- Address
- Drogheda, Co. Louth
