School: Ballymahon (B.) (roll number 12690)

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1. Great Famine

   

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   I do not know of any person that has a story about the Great Famine which occurred in the years 1846-47 caused by the blight which destroyed the potato-crop. It affected the district very much. There are several houses in the district that were in use during the famine. The result of the potato-crop failure was starvation among the people. The potatoes rotted in the ground and when the people went to go dig them there were no potatoes to dig. They got the seed potatoes for the following year from Spain especially where the first potato was got for Ireland. They were not sown broadcast like grain. For the want of food during the famine years was to kill cattle, horses, dogs, cats, Asses and all animals that came into hand. Some of the people were seen eating nettle ang grass and thistles along the road sides. The government helped the people as well as they could to save the people from dying. About a million people are estimated to have died from hunger and about another million are supposed to have emigrated to America Scotland England and Canada to escape death from hunger at home. So thickly did the people die of the famine and the famine-fever that sometimes the dead was buried

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   Transcribed by a member of our volunteer transcription project.

   History Edit

   Language

   English

   Collector

   Frankie Nally

   Gender

   Male

   Age

   11

   Address

   Baile Uí Mhatháin, Co. an Longfoirt

   Informant

   Jonnie Mc Dermott

   Gender

   Male

   Age

   96

   Address

   An Tobar, Co. an Longfoirt