General Charles Vallancey (1731-1812) Survey Report 1778
He was sent to Ireland to assist in a military survey, remained and became an authority on Irish antiquities.
He fathered at least 15 children by three wives. He learnt Irish and became fluent in it. Some of his theories are now regarded with a degree of scepticism. He wrote a report on the West Cork area which should also hold true for Durrus at the period: ‘There was only one road between Cork and Bantry; you may now proceed by eight carriage roads beside several horse tracks branching off from these great roads, from Bantry the country is mountainous and from the high road has the appearance of being barren and very thinly populated; yet the valleys abound with, corn and potatoes and the mountains are covered with black cattle. In 1760, twenty years ago it was so thinly inhabited, an army of 10,000 men could not possibly have found subsistence between Bantry and Bandon. The face of the country now wears a different aspect: the sides of the hill are under the plough, the verges of the bogs are reclaimed and the southern coast from Skibbereen to Bandon, is one continued garden of grain and potatoes except the barren pinnacles of some hills and the boggy hollows between which are preserved for fuel’ This would suggest that the major population expansion may have dated from c 1775. Wakefield in 1809 estimated the number of houses on the Muintervara peninsula occupied by Catholics and Protestants at 600. In the 1831 Census the population of Durrus East is 1,620. In 1838 the population was 8,340 of whom around 800 were Protestant
. William Burton Leslie, 1873, Kincraigie (Woodview), Courtmacsherry, Resident, £40, extensive gardens open to the public, listed 1886-6. William Leslie, Committee member Bandon Navigation Scheme 1842. Juror Cork Spring Assizes 1863 address Lislee. Donor to the church bell fund, 1869, St. Nicholas, Cork. 1882 donor to the new Catholic Church,
Barryroe. Clonakilty Board of Guardians 1885, attended by following Magistrates: W. B. Leslie, J. J. Hungerford, H. B.Travers, M. A. T. Becher, C. McCarthy, W. Hungerford, Colonel Longfield. 1885 Clonakilty Regatta Committee. 1885 in an account of Courtmacsherry Regatta praised for his welfare of the people of the area. Attending with carriage 1898, enormous funeral of Dan O’Leary, JP, aged 71, Clonakilty, probably draper. Attended 31 Grand Jury Presentments. Woodview was being leased by the Ladies Boyle to William B. Leslie at the time of Griffith’s Valuation, when it was valued at £19 15s. Lewis refers to the seat of J. Leslie in Courtmacsherry in 1837. The property later became Kincraigie where William lived with his wife, Jane Florence McCartie, the widow of Horace Townsend. Jane’s son, also Horace, owned the house until the early twentieth century. Later the home of the Travers family. On his death Timoleague Petty Session adjourned as a matter of respect chaired by Robert Travers and attended by R. Longfield, E. B. Croker, T. Beamish. Probate 1900 £20,584 to Robert Henry Leslie, Secretary Cork, Bandon and South Coast Railway and his step son Captain Horace Townsend. Bequests to Catholic and Protestant clergy.
Denham Franklin, (1836-1910), Wellington Place, Cork. Native Clonakilty. Married 1871 Ellen Harvey her father John Fennell Harvey Secretary Cork Savings bank his father solicitor, Clonakilty. Railway Company Secretary. 1883 Treasurer to testimonial to departing RIC County Inspector, J. C. Mills, from Clonakilty. Contributor to Cork Historical and Archaeological society, probate 1910 to widow Ellen, £5.
Timothy Joseph (TJ) Canty, (1844-1929), 1887, The Square Clonakilty, son of Timothy, ed Endowed School, Clonakilty, Managing Director Deasy’s Brewery, Director railway Companies, member Cork Co. Council. 1885 Clonakilty Regatta Committee. M Ellen d Dr. P. O’Hea, Clonakilty, Officer Clonakilty Agricultural Show 1901. Secretary to Committee for Testimonial for RIC, County Inspector Mills, Departing Clonakilty. Signed requisition 1905. Cork Junction Railway Bill. Requisition to the Right Honourable The Earl of Bandon K.P., to Call a meeting for the purpose of Approving the Cork Junctions Railway Bill. Cork Co. Council 1901, listed 1921, listed 1922, listed 1916. 1911 executive committee Carbery Show. Attending 1898, enormous funeral of Dan O’Leary, JP, aged 71, Clonakilty, probably draper 1911 Member Cork Historical and Archaeological Society. Week ending Feb. 19, 1887. Car owner 1913. Mr. T.J. CANTY, Square, Clonakilty, has been appointed to the commission of the Peace. His brother in law Pat O’Hea, Cork Solicitor secretary to Parnell Nationalist MMP for West Donegal 1885-1890. Family home originally Ballygurteen later location of O’Sullivan’s pub. 1906 on sub committee of Clonakilty to promote Irish goods. 1910 member Clonakilty Committee Feis and Aeridheach. 1911 everyone in the household has Irish. March 1916 recruitment drive Courtmacsherry.
Robert Augustus Travers, (1830-1904), Timoleague. Gentleman farmer. Magistrate for over 50 years. 1901 four servants. Took a leading part in Cork Grand Juries. Ex-Officio Guardian Clonakilty workhouse. Founded Timoleague Dairy. Attending 1898, enormous funeral of Dan O’Leary, JP, aged 71, Clonakilty, probably draper. On the death of William Burton Leslie Timoleague Petty Session adjourned as a matter of respect chaired by Robert Travers and attended by R. Longfield, E. B. Croker, T. Beamish. 1901 Officer Clonakilty Agricultural Show. Ran unsuccessfully for new County Council his speech was very liberal. Enormous funeral glowing tributes, referred to his belief in the Nationalisatio of the land of Ireland, the promotion of the resources of Ireland. Probate.£8,331.
Death of Colonel Patrick J.Downing, Skibbereen, Famous Fenian Pallbearers included Jeremiah O’Donovan Rossa and Bart Daly of Highfield Skibbereen.
John Francis Levis, (1830-1887) listed at Baltimore Regatta as J.P., mention is made of his steam launch, merchant, Skibbereen, probate 1887 to widow Alice, £4,020. Married 1856 Alice Beamish, Skibbereen, her father George Beamish, corn merchant.
Coutts, Angela Georgina Burdett
Contributed by
Clarke, Frances
Coutts, Angela Georgina Burdett- (1814–1906), Baroness Burdett-Coutts, philanthropist, was born 21 April 1814 in Piccadilly, London, the youngest of the six children of the one-time radical politician Sir Francis Burdett (1770–1844) and his wife Sophia, daughter of the London banker Thomas Coutts. In 1837 she inherited the Coutts fortune from her grandfather’s second wife, the former actress Harriot Mellon, then duchess of St Albans. Having succeeded to this fortune, then that of her parents, who both died in 1844, she took the name Coutts by royal licence. As one of the most famous and wealthy heiresses in England she was a familiar figure in leading literary, social and political circles, but to the British public she was always best known for her philanthropy. While grieving the loss of her parents she became so friendly with Arthur Wellesley, duke of Wellington (qv), that rumours circulated they would soon marry, despite the substantial difference in age. She flouted convention by proposing herself, and, while Wellesley refused, they remained close, though their views on Ireland differed. He offered sound advice on financial matters, which proved useful in her philanthropic work.
Among the causes she assisted were the Church of England, ragged schools, the rehabilitation of prostitutes, scientific research, colonial missions and programmes for rehousing people living in poverty in London’s East End. With Charles Dickens, with whom she collaborated from 1840 to 1857, she founded Urania Cottage for former prostitutes and homeless women in Shepherd’s Bush, Middlesex. Dickens dedicated Martin Chuzzlewit to her. An energetic member of the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals and president of the ladies’ committee, she provided many drinking troughs in public places. As president of the British Goat Society, she promoted goat-keeping among the disadvantaged to encourage self-reliance.
Like her father before her, she was committed to the notion that Ireland should have its own viable economy, and that measures to relieve distress should go hand in hand with lasting improvements. Her connection with Ireland lies in the support she provided west Cork from 1862, when she first received an appeal for financial assistance from the parish priest of a distressed district, Fr Charles Davis (1827–92). In keeping with her policy of avoiding the ‘demoralising effects’ of handouts, she funded relief stores where basic foodstuffs were sold at minimum cost at Cape Clear and Sherkin Islands, still distressed by the famine. In 1863 she financed the first of three Canadian immigrant parties from the region. Her long-term plan was to promote local industries and agriculture, and with this in mind she sent over a flock of sheep and encouraged an English market for Irish crafts, embroidery in particular. With west Cork facing renewed crisis in 1879 she was again contacted by the local clergy. Acting on the advice of Fr Davis, parish priest of Baltimore, she provided interest-free loans of up to £10,000 to fishermen to obtain the latest boats and fittings for mackerel fishing. The scheme proved highly successful, so that much of the loan was later repaid, leading The Times to comment in 1887 that ‘her confidence in the honour of the poor people has been amply justified’.
Visiting Ireland for the first time in 1884, she was received enthusiastically by the local people, who affectionately dubbed her the ‘Queen of Baltimore’. She returned in August 1887 to open an industrial fishery school in Baltimore, which provided instruction in navigation, boat-building and net- and rope-making. Funded by the government, she and Sir Thomas Brady (d. 1904), the fisheries inspector, had encouraged its establishment. Though in 1880 the British government did not accept her offer of an advance of £250,000 for the purchase of potato seed on the failure of the crop, it took its own measures. In all her dealings with Ireland she remained politically neutral. One of the first women to receive a peerage in her own right (in 1871), she was also the earliest woman to receive the freedom of the cities of London (in 1872) and Edinburgh (in 1874). Despite the disapproval of many relatives and friends, among them Queen Victoria, she married her American-born private secretary, William Lehman Ashmead Bartlett (1851–1921), in February 1881. She died 30 December 1906 at her London residence, and was buried in Westminster Abbey.
Sources
Times, 18 Aug. 1887, 31 Dec. 1906; DNB, suppl. 2; Micheal O’Riordan, Catholicity and progress in Ireland (1905); Edna Healey, Lady unknown: the life of Angela Burdett Coutts (1978) (with portraits and photographs); Diana Orton, Made of gold: a biography of Angela Burdett Coutts (1980) (with portraits and photographs); John De Courcy Ireland, Irish sea fisheries: a history (1981); ODNB
Originally published October 2009 as part of the Dictionary of Irish Biography
Last revised October 2009
F. H. De Burgh, possibly Ms. Frances Hussey de Burgh of Kilfinan Castle, Glandore, her father:
The two vast tombs stand side by side (above) in an odd juxtaposition. We scratched our heads in wonder and searched for clues of names and dates while we were there in the churchyard and, later, in records online. Very little is revealed. There are several inscriptions set on carved stone plaques on the pyramid – all impossible to read because of the moss and lichen growth. Over the iron doorway is a lintel inscribed with – I believe – the name John Hussey de Burgh.
Later searches revealed the following:
. . . John de Burgh was born on 10 June 1822 and died 25 April 1887. Page 159 of The Calendar of Wills and Administration 1858-1922 in the National Archives of Ireland records that the will of “John Hamilton Hussey de Burgh late of Kilfinnan Castle Glandore County Cork Esquire”, who died on 25 April 1887 at the same place, was proved at Cork on 6 July 1887 by “Louis Jane de Burgh Widow and FitzJohn Hussey de Burgh the Executors”. Effects £1,246 11s 1d . . .
Isaac Shipsey, fish merchant, Skibbereen. Extended family doctors heavily involved in nationalist politics.
Father Davis:
The reason for Baltimore’s emergence as the leading centre of the mackerel industry towards the end of the 19th century and the accompanying prosperity – after more than two centuries of social obscurity and economic stagnation – are explored in this work. Baltimore’s importance as a landing place for mackerel was primarily dependent on non-local fishermen with superior catching power. English fish buyers dominated the marketing and distribution of fresh mackerel to England and cured mackerel to America in the absence of a viable home market. However, the arrival in 1879 of Fr. Davis in Baltimore as parish priest and his collaboration with English philanthropist Baroness Burdett-Coutts, enabled Baltimore to capitalise on the new opportunities afforded by fortuitous changes in the mackerel industry. Despite the short term nature of the economic success of Baltimore as a centre of the mackerel industry, the author shows how this industry created a cosmopolitan blend of people and saw the development of its marine infrastructure and onshore services.
Cave. Probably Cave, Arthur Saunders Oriel: His father, Thomas Saunders Cave, had developed mines at Ballycummisk and Cappagh in the 1850s and 1860s (Cowman and O’Reilly 1988, pp 115-6). Arthur was born in 1854 and his father died unexpectedly in a railway station when the boy was 13. At some stage Arthur lost his sight in a shooting accident (Macay typescript) and was recorded as blind in 1901. He registered himself then as a “mining agent” with his 17 and 18 year old sons as “assistant mining agents”. He had a younger son and older daughter and along with his wifeJane, and two servants lived in a ten to twelve roomed house at Coosheen. In 1889 he commenced mining for baryte on Mount Gabriel and took over Dereenalamone in 1899 in which year he also built a baryte mill on his land as described below. Much of his energy went into raising capital in London but is unlikely that he or anyone else made money out of the mines. By 1911 none of the Cave family were in County Cork.
From the mid 19th century in rural Ireland events such as Regattas, Agricultural Shows, Ploughing Championships were and are still are popular. What is of interest are the organising committees composed of local ‘big shots’. In these cases nearly all men, parking their political and religious differences for the objective of having a successful show.
In relation to agricultural shows, many of the 19th century winners have families who in the 21st century are still active in stock breeding and emerging as prize winners.
1832 Charles Armstrong, Formerly 1832 Bantry Cholera Hospital, Medical Officer Crookhaven Dispensary, Physician Cork General Dispensary, Surgeon Constabulary and Coast Guard Goleen and Rock Island. Author of Petition Preying on Medical Grievances (Non payment or minimal payment for quasi legal services) presented to both Houses of Parliament in UK
MD Glasgow 1838, MRCS England 1833, FRCI 1844. Doctor, formerly Medical Officer Crookhaven Dispensary, Physician Cork General Dispensary, Surgeon Constabulary and Coast Guard Goleen and Rock island. 1857 Medical Referee various Assurance Companies During cholera epidemic 1832. 1857 Cork 34, King St. Author of Petition on Medical Grievances presented to both Houses of Parliament in UK
1849. 49 Cholera Deaths at Crookhaven, Death of Alexander O’Driscoll, Esq., Son of Tim The Gauger. Middleman and Magistrate, Norton Cottage, Skibbereen from Cholera
1849. 49 Cholera Deaths at Crookhaven, Death of Alexander O’Driscoll, Esq., Son of Tim The Gauger. Middleman and Magistrate, Norton Cottage, Skibbereen from Cholera
1832. Cholera Outbreak. Response Parish Boards of Health, West Cork
These investigations and responses in relation to Cholera appear to have been prompted by a circular letter from the Chief Secretaries Offices to the Select Vestries of the local Church of Ireland parishes. Prior to Disestablishment the Church of Ireland was Ireland’s State Church and performed many civil functions. The Select Vestry had parallel function as did the parish Clerks and Churchwardens religious as well as Civil. For the Civil function the Select Vestry was often slightly reconstituted to include influential local Catholics.
Officers of health for civil parishes were elected at vestry meetings. They normally consisted of five individuals and sanction was not need from the government to approve them. On foot of a cholera epidemic in 1832 central government introduced the option for local boards of health to be formed. Boards mainly consisted of 13 individuals and their jurisdiction often covered a parish or ecclesiastical union or a town and its hinterland. In order to have a board appointed to a specific area a public meeting had to be called by two magistrates, from which the names of nominees were submitted for approval to the Lord Lieutenant. Local boards of health had powers to introduce measures to prevent the spread of cholera and could request constabulary assistance to deal with forced burials etc. The appointment of such boards could occasionally stir up local party rivalry (CSO/RP/1832/1598).
One of the formats adopted:
Requisition signed by six householders Directed to the Magistrates of the Purpose of Appointing a Board of Health for… agreeable to the 58th George 3rd Cap 47 Section 10…
Should be made by two Magistrates authorised by meeting.
The procedure was for the agreed resolution voted or agreed on with a list of those to serve to be sent to Dublin Castle. They were if approved Commissioners for the relevant parish. The application should be signed by two or more magistrates following a meeting.
There was a central board in Dublin coordinating responses which looking at date sequences was very rapid.
The matter concluded when a warrant was sent presumably to the person making the parish application.
To understand the nature of the administrative system it is important to understand the dual role of the Church of Ireland and select vestries. Until disestablishment in 1859 the Church of Ireland was Ireland’s state church. Many ministers were magistrates. Part fro religion it had significant civil function such as Probate, the regulation of Marriage and in the day before the rolling out of dispensaries various health function. So here the select vestry which is the local parish assembly interact with the local Magistrates and report to Dublin Castle not the local diocesan office or registry.
Where records have survived for West Cork it was common to hold two select vestries, the first confined to Church of Ireland members to discuss religious matters. A later Vestry often had prominent local Catholics and dealt with civil matters.
1832, Cholera in Bantry, some Background on the Members of the Board of Health.
Francis Evans Bennett, 1853, dyed 1888. Cregan Manor, Clonakilty,The Square, Clonakilty, listed 1875-6. Resident, £48, Bantry Quarter Sessions 1862. 1884, signed a protest against the dismissal of Lord Rossmore, Head of Orange Order, Monaghan. Chaired Rosscarbery Petty Session poteen prosecution 1885. 1886 Attempted Eviction and Siege at Tim Hurley’s Castle (Mill and Farm) , Castleview, Clonakilty. Landlord Francis Evans Bennett, (1824-1888), Cregan Manor, Rosscarbery. The eviction eventually succeeded but was a pyrrhic victory as all the mill machinery had been moved and no one could be found to take the evicted farm. To the present day relations of the extended Hurley thrive in various businesses in the locality. Probate 1888 to widow Mary Hungerford Bennett, £816
George Roche Cronin (1831-1902), R.M., born Kerry. Pre 1874, Bandon district, Ballinadee, Bandon, 1874, 35 when appointed, had been 11 years RIC officer £300 per annum. 1884 donor Presentation Convent School, Bandon. 1895 Cobh £675, Lord Lieutenant has expressed himself satisfied of his legal knowledge under the meaning of ‘The provisions of Crime Act (Ireland) Act, 1882. 1902 probate £7,393.
Henry (Harry) Jones Hungerford, TCD, (1825-,1903) 1856, Cahermore House, Rosscarbery, Resident, £454, 1870 return 3,532 acres. Henry Jones Hungerford, the last effective owner and resident landlord of the Cahirmore Estate. He qualified as a Barrister and had little interest in the Estate. His income from rental was foolishly spent and on his death the Land Commission took it over. Mary Boone Cowper Hungerford, English.. Wife of Henry Jones Hungerford. (1870). They had nine children, most of whom emigrated. Attending the funeral, (listed as H.M. Hungerford, brother in law) 1882 Thomas Somerville Esq. D.L. (1797-1882), Drishane House, Castletownshend. 1884, signed a protest against the dismissal of Lord Rossmore, head of Orange Order, Monaghan. At the time of its destruction in 1921 Cahermore was owned by a merchant named Regan, who had purchased the property from representatives of the Hungerford family “some years” after the death of Henry J. Hungerford, J.P. Probably father 1863. We Hope We May Never See Carbery Without A Pack of Hounds. Dinner to Henry Jones Hungerford Esq., Cahermore, Rosscarbery, West Cork. 1861 executor, £13,000. Thomas Hungerford Esq, TCD, Island House, Clonakilty
1778. Page 109 dinner with Celebrated Father O’Leary, born Acres, Dunmanway, West Cork, His Father a Scholar. Salmon, Lamb, Braised Hare, Poteen, Gooseberry Wine. The Mad Parson, Poet Rev. De La Cour.
A touch of Spike Milligan’s ‘Puckoon”. life as a young RIC recruit (one of 80,000), collecting the Tillage Census in 1910 rounding up the chickens and avoid half acres, keeping an eye on ‘Returned Yanks’, searching for Poteen on Innismurray island, over policing in Cooloney, Co. Sligo from the Memoir of Jeremiah Mee
12 great Irish proverbs (seanfhocail) to use this year 0 8 Comments The Irish language is something that’s so rich in metaphor and meaning, wit and wisdom that it’s hard to compare its lyricism to anything else. There’s nothing quite like it, especially when it comes to our great Irish proverbs (seanfhocail). Here are 12 great Irish proverbs you can use throughout the year. If you’re stuck on the pronunciation check out Abair.ie here.
1. An donas amach is an sonas isteach. This is particularly apt following what was a tough year and basically means out with the badness and in with the goodness.
2. Faigheann cos ar siúl rud nach bhfaigheann cos ina cónaí. This means that ‘a walking foot comes upon something that a resting foot wouldn’t.’ In a nutshell, the most important aspect in doing so successfully is to just lift one’s foot and start a journey.
3. Leagfaidh tua bheag crann mór. This literally means that a ‘small axe can fell a big tree’ and with that in mind, it is possible to do great things through small deeds.
4. Ná bris do loirgín ar stól nach bhfuil i do shlí. This translates literally as don’t break your shin on a stool that’s not in your way but essentially means don’t go out of your way to get in trouble.
5. Is leor ó Mhór a dícheall. This means that ‘all one can do is one’s best’. Another way you could phrase it is, ‘Is é do dhícheall é’ which means that it is as much as you can do. 12 great Irish proverbs
6. Níor bhris focal maith fiacail riamh. A good point to remember when you find yourself getting the itch to throw down some words, this proverb means that a ‘good word never broke a tooth’. Another similar one is “Ní mhillean dea-ghlór fiacail” which literally means a sweet voice does not injure the teeth or that it wouldn’t kill you to be nice.
7. Is fearr clú ná conach. This straightforward proverb means that one’s character and good reputation is better than wealth.
8. Chíonn beirt rud nach bhfeiceann duine amháin. Two people see a thing that an individual does not see. In other words, two heads are better than one.
9. Ar scáth a chéile a mhaireann na daoine. One of the great Irish language proverbs whose literal meaning is ‘it is in each others’ shadow that people live’ but on reflection invokes a sense of community.
10. Aithnítear cara i gcruatán. A wise phrase that means that a good friend is known in hardship.
11. Maireann croí éadrom a bhfad. This lovely proverb means that a light heart lives long. *Note about ‘a bhfad’ instead of ‘i bhfad’. This is just an older/alternative spelling, you’ll find things like a nÉirinn for ‘in Ireland, in Éirinn’ in older texts too; since i is just pronounced as unstressed /ə, ɪ/ anyway, it doesn’t make much difference whether you write it i or a and you’ll see both.
12. Ní bhíonn an rath, ach mar a mbíonn an smacht. There is no prosperity unless there is discipline. In other words, to fully excel at something regardless of what it may be, you must be fully committed to it. BONUS: Níl aon tóin tinn mar do thóin tinn féin There’s no sore arse like your own sore arse. This is a play on the classic Níl aon tinteán mar do thinteán féin (there’s no place like home).
Also is fearr focall sa chuit ná punt sadn sporran. ‘A friend in court is worth more then a pound in the purse’. Hence lobbying.
20. “Aithníonn ciaróg, ciaróg eile” We start off nice and simple. This Irish saying translates to: “It takes one to know one.”
19. “Ní dhéanfadh an saol capall rása d’asal ” Irish people love a bit of humour to keep you going. This proverb means: “You can’t make a racehorse out of a donkey!”
18. “Fillean an feall ar an bhfeallaire” This proverb acts as a warning for the reader and means: “The bad deed returns on the bad deed-doer.”
17. “Tús maith leath na hoibre” Everyone has faced a task that seems almost impossible, but the Irish language becomes a motivator here, telling us, “A good start is half the work.” This is one of the most well-known Irish proverbs and sayings.
16. “Níl saoi gan locht” “There’s not a wise man without fault.” Everyone has their faults no matter how perfect they may seem—even you! “There’s not a wise man without fault” is a saying from Ireland
15. “An rud is annamh is iontach” “The thing that is seldom is wonderful.” Much like Ireland’s landscape, this Irish proverb tells us that the rare things in life are best.
14. “Is treise an dúchas ná an oiliúint” “Nature is stronger than nurture.” No matter how much people are taught, the Irish language informs us that nothing is as good as a brush with nature.
13. “Níl aon tinteán mar do thinteán fhéin” Translating to “There’s no fireplace like your own”, this proverb means there is no place like home. We can all appreciate that.
12. “Ní bhíonn an rath ach mar a mbíonn an smacht” To fully excel at something, you must be fully committed; “There is no prosperity without discipline.”
11. “Ní thuigeann an sách an seang” “The well-fed does not understand the lean.” This proverb is telling us that those who have may not understand the concerns of those who don’t have, and that you may need to lose a little to understand what it is like to have nothing. The top 20 Irish proverbs and their meanings include: “The well-fed does not understand the lean.”
10. “Ní neart go cur le chéile” When it comes to Irish proverbs and their meanings, this is one of the most heart-warming: “There is strength in unity” or “we are better together.” It is telling us that we can do more if we work together.
9. “An té a bhíonn siúlach, bíonn scéalach” A trip across the Emerald Isle will leave you with a bucket full of memories to pass on, and the Irish language recognises this, telling us, “He who travels has stories to tell.” This is one of the most uplifting Irish proverbs and sayings.
8. “Níor bhris focal maith fiacail riamh” “A good word never broke a tooth.” This proverb proclaims that saying a kind word never did anyone any harm.
7. “Is fearr an tsláinte ná na táinte” “Health is better than wealth.” Don’t worry about the money; look after yourself first, and you’ll be happier!
6. “Is minic a bhris béal duine a shrón” “Many a time a man’s mouth broke his nose.” Back with a bit of humour, this proverb warns that a misspoken word will have a consequence or two for your face! “Many a time a man’s mouth broke his nose” is one of the top 20 Irish proverbs
5. “Nuair a bhíonn an fíon istigh, bíonn an chiall amuigh” “When the wine is in, sense is out.” One we can all relate to!
4. “An té a luíonn le madaí, éireoidh sé le dearnaid” This proverb explains to us the dangers of mixing with the wrong people: “He who lies down with dogs comes up with fleas.”
3. “Ar scáth a chéile a mhaireann na daoine” “Under the shelter of each other, people survive.” A very Irish tradition is to look after one another, and this proverb champions this idea.
2. “Mol an óige agus tiocfaidh sí” “Encourage young people and they will get there.” A famous saying across Ireland, this is a visionary message that tells us our young people, who are the future, will do well, so long as we do our bit to help them along the way.
1. “Is fearr Gaeilge bhriste, ná Béarla cliste” You may have heard this famous saying, which translates to “Broken Irish is better than clever English.” It is a call to maintain the Irish heritage and language, and a cry to everyone to speak Irish whenever they can, no matter how well they can speak the language. Ireland has a lot to offer, from the friendly Irish people to its landscape and cities to its sports and history, and its native language is no exception. In just a single sentence, Irish proverbs and their meanings can teach you a lot, and you are sure to come away wiser. Some bonus Irish proverbs and sayings “Ní hé lá na gaoithe lá na scolb” means “a windy day is not a day for thatching.” This metaphorical saying warns the listener against future planning in times of uncertainty. “A misty winter brings a pleasant spring, a pleasant winter a misty spring” is a poignant reflection on the nature of life’s periods of ups and downs. Did you enjoy these great Irish proverbs? Want to indulge in more Irish language content? Check out 13 Irish audiobooks you can listen to for free here.
Sloe jelly (or sloe jam, if you prefer) is almost unknown, which is a shame because it’s quite possibly the finest fruit jam you can make; tart, tangy and mysteriously dark. Sloes grow on blackthorn bushes, which are prickly customers at the best of times, and ordinarily you wouldn’t get much jelly for your trouble. Happily there’s a cheat, which is the addition of cooking apples. Apple brings out the flavour of the sloes and mellows their bitterness, helps the jam to set, and plumps the jam out to three times its original volume, making those prickly little prizes go a lot further. You can also get very similar results using bullaces instead of sloes; the flavour isn’t quite so good but the bushes are less thorny and tend to yield more heavily.
How to make sloe jelly
Weigh your crop of pricked, frozen or frosted sloes in a saucepan. Add just enough water to cover the fruit, bring to the boil, and simmer until the berries are pulpy (you may need to mash them a bit).
Add twice the weight of washed, chopped apples (peel, core and all), and the juice and peel of half a lemon for every kilo (2 lbs) of apples. Bring to the boil, simmer until pulpy again, and leave to cool down a bit.
Strain the pulp through a scalded jelly bag or fine muslin into a suitable container. You shouldn’t squeeze the bag to hurry it up or you will have cloudy jelly, so leave it to dribble through overnight.
The next day, measure the juice and add 400g of sugar per 500ml (1 lb per pint). Stir it over a medium heat until it comes to the boil, and skim off any scum.
Boil the liquid until it reaches setting point (you can use a sugar thermometer for this, or just keep checking it with a cold plate), then ladle into hot jars and seal
Sloe Cordial
1kg Sloes
1 litre water
Juice of 1 lemon
Granulated Sugar (80g per 100ml liquid)
1. Bring the sloes, water and lemon juice to the boil and simmer for 5 minutes.
2. Break up the cooked sloes with a wooden spoon or potato masher, don’t bother about the stones as they will be sieved out later.
3. Simmer for a further 10 minutes.
4. Pour the mixture through a sieve. If you want your cordial to be clear you should line your sieve with a muslin and don’t push the pulp through. I didn’t do that and although the cordial is perfectly fine it isn’t clear.
5. Clean the pan and pour the juice back in, add the sugar and heat gently until the sugar has dissolved.
6. Bring to the boil and simmer for another 10 minutes. Cool and bottle in sterilised bottles.
Sloe gin is just the tipple for warming up cold days, but you have to think ahead and make it now so the rock-hard, purple-black fruits have time to flavour the gin. Your gin isn’t ready until the colour resembles a decent Beaujolais.
THE RECIPE
Prick your sloes, about 450g, with a needle or freeze them and bash with a heavy weight. Tip them into sterilised bottles, the fruit coming a third of the way up. Divide 350g of caster or granulated sugar among them then top up with gin or vodka. It will take about 750ml. Little point in using an expensive brand, by the way. Place the sealed bottles somewhere cool and dark. Leave for 8-10 weeks, turning the bottle occasionally, giving it a shake every week.
THE TRICK
For me, the hardest part of making sloe gin is keeping my patience while it mellows. Well, that and finding enough sloes. I take great pleasure in pricking each berry with a needle in several places then dropping them into a bottle with sugar and gin, but others like to freeze the sloes in a plastic bag then bash them hard with a hammer or rolling pin. It is an effortless, kind-on-the-thumb way to get the best out of your hedgerow booty, though I much prefer the slow, non-violent way. Sloes are notoriously evasive. Forage for your own or try local farmers’ markets. I found this year’s supply in a greengrocer in Bristol.
THE TWIST
Yes, warming in a glass, but have you ever thought of using it in the kitchen? Even a tablespoon will add fruit depths to everything from gravy for game birds (pour it into the roasting tin and stir over a high heat to dissolve all the roasting debris into the gravy) to a major injection of flavour to a fruit crumble. Try it with plums or – best of all – with blackberry and apple. Not a gin type? Then use vodka. Suggest a drop of vanilla
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Autumn is the perfect time to make sloe gin or vodka. Hedgerows are full of ripe, juicy sloes and the delicious fruity liqueur will be ready in time for Christmas. So why not give it a go? It’s so easy to make and you certainly won’t regret it when, feet up in front of the fire with the wind and snow howling outside, you treat yourself to a warming tipple. Why not try one of the other Allotment Heaven easy recipes?
1 litre bottle of gin or vodka (no need to buy an expensive brand!)
450 grams of sloes
250 grams of white sugar, whose purpose is not only to sweeten the liqueur but to also extract the maximum amount of juice from the sloes.
Method
1. A few days before you’re ready to start put the sloes in a plastic bag and place them in a freezer. This will break the skins.
2. Let the sloes defrost before using.
3. Put the sloes, sugar and gin or vodka into the preserving bottle and seal.
4. Give the contents a thorough shake.
5. Shake the bottle every other day for a month.
6. Shake once a week for the second month.
7. When you’re ready to drink (see below) strain clear the liquid into the 1 litre sterilised gin or vodka bottle.
8. Add more sugar if necessary according to preference.
9. The liqueur can be drunk from the third month onward, though will improve with age.
The leftover sloes can be used to make jam.
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To drink, add 10 parts water to one part cordial.
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Words in Irish from Dunmanway, West Cork from Flor Crowley N.T. (National Teacher), Behigullane, Dunmanway. Flor is the short for Florence the old version of the name in Irish is Finín, Fineen, Finghín.
Pre 1965 farming practices West Cork, Red Elephant and Epicure potatoes, working with the grufán, threshing with the steam engine, winnowing of wheat and oats, working in the bog.
Flor Crowley NT, Behigulane describes farming practices in Dunmanway for small to middling farms which would have been common to Protestant and Catholic farmers from the Famine to the early 1960s. From then on, reclamation, rural electrification and specialisation spelled the end for many of the prctices described.
The page sequence in the PDF is out, note the bottom page number.
Bowlers Aughaville, Dromore, Colomane, Durrus, West Cork. Bill Barrett, Patrick O’Driscoll, Richard Barrett, John Connolly, Jimmy Crowley, J.j. Sullivan, Donald Crowley, Eugene Daly and Possible Origins in Co. Armagh and The North of England.
It has been suggested that road bowling was introduced to West Cork by weavers who came in in t18th century from the North of England.
Flor Crowley, a National Teacher from Dunmanway who taught in Bandon founded An Bol Cumann. He wrote extensively on local matters and is books are now collectors items.
Thanks to Peter O’Driscoll, San Francisco and Donal O’Mahony, Cobh.
Bill Barrett who always wore white tennis shoes. Patrick O’Driscoll of Aughavile was recognised as a reasonable good bowler he was the man that guided Bill Barrett during his early days as a bowler.
His grand son Peter O’Driscoll was told by Tom Hayes from Aughaville whom he met in San Francisco. Tom Hayes came to America & San Francisco in 1910, at the age of 17 years he was in the first World War, he died in 1974 and is buried in the Golden Gate National Cemetry. He never married. Bill Barrett in his younger days was a senior class bowler. This was before you had tar and crushed rock surfaced roads.
Richard Barrett from Colomane Wood he would be a cousin to Bill Barrett, Richard brothers were Pat, Bob, Steven and John. Older men around Colomane often said that John Barrett had the ability to a great bowler. Richard was a local good bowler not quit a senior class bowler.
John Connolly of Colomane West was a senior class bowler. Jimmy Crowley of Colomane was a local good bowler He was from the family that owned the trashing machine. Donald Crowley of Colomane Pub was a local good bowler.
J.J. Sullivan of Coomane north was a local good bowler, he came to America about 1958 he was a cousin to John Crowley’s family. My best guess is that John Crowley’s mother was J.J. Sulivan’s aunt.
The up and coming star was Eugene Daly of Dromore in 1960 and the later arrivals in San Francisco have told Peter O’Driscoll that Eugene was a senior class bowler.
Around Drimoleague and Drinagh, there was a family of Sheen’s (Sheehan?) three brothers John, Jerry and Michael. also a Humphrey O’Leary was a senior class bowler. These are bowlers that that bowled on a Sunday evening along the main road from O’Driscolls pub in Aughaville to Crowleys pub in Colomane.
The score of bowl started from the roadside sign post about two hundred yard east of the Aughaville cross-roads and ended at the sign post about two hundred yards west of Colomane pub, a distance of two miles. There are other bowlers that came from Bandon and places near Cork City to bowl from Aughaville to Colomane.
In the Durrus area Danny O’Mahony of Ahagouna reckoned to be the best 84 yard loft with Mick Barry. In his early years on the Dunbeacon Road sometimes Bill Barrett would mark for him.
In the local folklore a son of one of the O’Donovan Landlord families (either That of Timothy of the Cove or Richard of the Fort) was reckoned to be a good bowler. There is an excellent painting in the Crawford Art Gallery Cork of a member of the landlord Smith Barry family of East Cork bowling early 19th century in all his finery.
It has been said that road bowing was introduced to West Cork by weavers from the North of England. In the Durrus/Schull are the Crostons were a weaving family who may have originated in Croston, Lancashire. Another location for bowling is Armagh. Here too there were may families introduced in connection wiht weaving/linen/flax to West Cork in the early 18th century from Co. Armagh, names such as Johnson, Richardson, Shannon. Williamson adn Young among others..
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West Cork History 