Banna , Convent Street and Flavin's of Church street

Banna by Bridget O'Connor

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Convent Street, Listowel

The sign is on the wall at the entrance to the hospital. I've discussed this at length on the blog but it still fascinates me to see street signs where the Irish has absolutely no connection whatsoever to the English name. In most cases the English street name is an English Christian name, thought to be named after Lord Listowel's sons, e.g. William and Charles. In this case however and in the case of Church Street the English name refers to a well known building, a landmark located on the street. The Irish name refers to an older superstition. One didn't mess with the Púca. He was a wicked spirit who rode around the countryside after dark spiriting away anyone foolish enough to be out late.

The entrance to Listowel hospital grounds

They are making great progress with the dementia day care centre. The organising committee are still looking for volunteer cyclists to do the Ring of Kerry Cycle to raise funds for them. If you can't do the cycle, please sponsor one of the cyclists.

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Bryan MacMahon and  Flavin's Bookshop

Dan Flavin and his son, Micheál at the door of the shop sometime in the 1950s. The photo appears in Vincent Carmody's Snapshots of a Market Town.

Flavins is closing tomorrow, Saturday February 8 2020

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Famine Poverty and a Kind Landlord

from the Schools' Folklore Collection

The Quarter field is situated on the side of a hill. It contains nine acres in the begining of the nineteenth century many families lived in this field The field was owned by a Land Lord and he allowed these poor people build houses in it. Each family got a quarter of ground. There was no division between the quarters only paling. They used to set potatoes in the quarter every year and used to get the manure from the neighbouring farmers. These people had no other way of living only when ever they would work for another farmer for small hire. When the potatoes failed in the years 1845 to 1847 all these people died of starvation. When they were gone my grandfather bought this field with more land surrounding it and my father is in possession of it now My grandfather threw the remains of the houses away and it is all one level field at present. If you walk through parts of it on a Summers evening you could see the form of the houses and the little gardens alongside it

COLLECTOR

Liam Ó Duilleáin

Gender

male

Address

Gortacloghane, Co. Kerry

INFORMANT

(name not given)

Relation

parent

Gender

male

Address

Gortacloghane, Co. Kerry