School: Headfort
- Location:
- Virginia, Co. Cavan
- Teacher: Miss J.E. Browne
Archival Reference
The Schools’ Collection, Volume 0999, Page 059
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- Old Houses
In Olden times the houses that existed in this district were thatched. When the oats was threshed the straw which was left was put as thatch on the roofs by a man known as a "thatcher."
Turf, wood, sods and deal were used for firewood.
For light at night bog-deal splinters, rushlights and candles were used. Candles were made in the district out of rushes, which were peeled and then dipped in a fat which was melted in a "grisset."
Half-doors are not common in the district, but they were common formerly.
In olden times the bed was in the kitchen, the bed was always placed by a side wall, not in the centre of the floor. The beds were called "taiser-beds", they were almost entirely made of wood and had a wooden roof on them to prevent any dust that might fall from the roof falling on the beds.
Fireplaces were always at the gable wall. Sometimes the fronts of the chimneys were made of mortar and stones, on(continues on next page)
- Collector
- Agatha Lawrence
- Gender
- Female
- Address
- Enagh, Co. Cavan
