School: Newtown, Fertullagh

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1. Old Houses (continued)

   

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   the slates were got in Kilkenny.
   The old houses usually had a bed in the kitchen. The beds were put beside the fire. The bed was called a settle bed.
   The fire was always at the gable wall but never in the corner or against the side wall. The front of the chimney was made of mortar and stones sometimes and of clay and wattle in some houses. The old people never heard of houses having no chimneys or of houses having the fire in the centre of the floor.
   There no accounts of the houses which had no glass for the windows. The old floors were made of clay.
   Half doors were common and are still used in the district. Wood and turf were used for the fire. The lights used were dips. rush lights and candles. Candles were made locally. The people used to make them, themselves by dipping a rush into grease and letting the grease dry hard on it. They used to dry a blackthorn stick in the chimney and put grease on it and let it dry hard on it then it would light.

   

   Transcribed by a member of our volunteer transcription project.

   History Edit

   Topics

   1. objects
      1. man-made structures
         1. buildings
            1. residential buildings (~2,723)

   Language

   English

   Collector

   Eric Redding

   Gender

   Male

   Informant

   Mrs Redding

   Gender

   Female

   Address

   Atticonor, Co. Westmeath