'The fair day in Dromahair was mentioned in one of Yeats' poems'

'The fair day in Dromahair was mentioned in one of Yeats' poems'

Margaret remembers the days of the annual fair in her village.

Margaret McLoughlin

Trinity College Dublin

1940

This item is protected by original copyright

This content may be downloaded and used (with attribution) for research, teaching or private study. It may not be used for commercial purposes without permission.

Margaret McLoughlin

Childhood and Early Life

Life Story

Dublin

1960s

There were lots of exciting days growing up in Dromahair. The fair day was very exciting because it spanned two days. The day before was taken up with the bustle of the business people and the ordinary households getting all sorts of '_'_'_ out to guard our properties. As the cattle were all on the streets, there was always a danger of some of them being spooked and jumping over walls. We children had to stay in the garden. On the morning of the fair, drovers were on the roads very early bringing in their cattle. Mostly on foot and they would have travelled many miles. I don't know what way the pitches were. I think maybe they just pitched up wherever they got space. All day long one could hear the bargaining going on from the clapping of hands to the calls of the bidding from the drovers. There was also a street singer or two singing ballads and selling the leaflets of the songs for a penny. I loved listening to them. Our house was a hive of activity as the early birds would be in for a quick cup of tea with bread and jam. Cost 1/6P and later, when business was done, they would be back for the meat tea 2/6 which consisted of hot beef in gravy. The day before my mother would have roasted 20 lbs of beef and it was my father's job to slice the beef on the morning of the fair. My mother saved the fat in special dishes, which formed a hard dripping on top with a gravy underneath. We loved the fried bread made with the heels of the bread the next morning. The fair day in Dromahair was mentioned in one of Yeats' poems...when he stood among the crowd at the fair in Dromahair'_

Irish Research Council for Arts, Humanities & Social Sciences (IRCHSS)

Dr Kathleen McTiernan (Trinity College Dublin)

Dr Deirdre O'Donnell (Trinity College Dublin)