Maureen remembers her school days in 1930s Milltown, County Kerry in this poignant and extremely topical story.
Tag Archives: Milltown
Gathering Spotlight
In case you haven’t heard, 2013 is the year of The Gathering in Ireland. Hundreds of reunions, festivals, and celebrations are on the books, and more are planned every day. From time to time, I will turn the spotlight on Gathering attempting to trace and invite American relatives. And sometimes I will feature Gatherings that just look like a good time! Email me if you would like to have your gathering featured on The Irish in America.
Power Family Gathering
The Power Clan Gathering is a weekend of events for all the Power families across the world to celebrate their ancestral homeland and to meet with your family members and friends – new and old – in your historic homeland.
This is an opportunity to visit major landmarks throughout Tír Paorach and there will be lots of entertainment including traditional Irish music, song, dance, storytelling and folklore.
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Stradbally Girls School
The Convent School, Stradbally, has been in existance since 1885. We are inviting parents, pupils and past-pupils to a School Gathering to celebrate the educational heritage of this small Waterford community. Bígí linn.
Maureen’s Memories: Fair Day in Milltown
As Maureen remembers the excitement of fair day in Milltown, she introduces us to a few more of the Milltown villagers, and provides another peek at Ireland in the 1930-40s…
Fair Day in Milltown
When we were children, fair day was always an exciting event. Early Saturday morning the farmers drove their animals to town to be sold on the streets. Our front door was bolted securely lest a younger child should wander out. We took our places at the front window, elbowing each other for a better view. As we watched the buyers (cattle jobbers they were called), some wearing plus fours—a certain type of trousers (knickerbockers) that were a sure sign of affluence. At first, it appeared that nothing would ever happen. Would any sale take place, we wondered? Finally, a flurry of action from the out-of-town jobbers. A great deal of haggling, followed by the hand stroke that meant a deal was struck! It wasn’t a handshake as we know it; one man offered his hand held palm-out, parallel to the ground. The other met it in an upward/downward chopping motion. An actual slapping sound could be heard. There was no written contract; none was needed in a time when a man’s word was his bond.
Among all the men stood one lone woman, Miss Emma. She was an old, grey-haired lady walking with a cane. Although she was about 70 years of age, she did not seem out of place to us young children, selling her few head of cattle at the temporary mart. Fair day was the rare time when her beloved dog, Laddie, wasn’t at her side. Emma Eager of Ivy Lodge—a quaint, old two-story house with an orchard and beautiful, lush garden–sold the flowers for funerals to make ends meet. She may have also supplied some of the lovely white lilies that always adorned our Church of the Sacred Heart. It’s said Miss Emma and her sister, Miss Millicent (a retired nurse) inherited the Lodge when their brother was disowned for marrying a Catholic. Their Aunt, Nano Eager, was the first wife of Jeremiah O’Donovan Rossa, born 1831 Rosscarbery, Co. Cork. He was the famous “Fenian” of the (IRB) Irish Republican Brotherhood.
As the pace picked up and all the sales were concluded, the cattle were driven off. Our door was opened and the streets were ours once again. Somehow Main and Church streets were washed down of all signs of what had just transpired. Later, modernity came to Milltown; they tore down Ivy Lodge with a wrecking ball and put the cattle mart in its place. Now, no child will experience the simple pleasure that we did gazing out our window at the fair some eighty years ago!
About the author…
Maureen Angela Teahan was born in September 1928, Milltown, County Kerry, Ireland. She was the firstborn of a large family. The household included a maternal grandfather and an older cousin, all living in a small thatched home. Maureen was educated at Presentation School and received her Leaving Certification from Presentation Secondary School, Milltown, 1944. She emigrated from Ireland in 1947 and lived in Lawrence, Mass. Maureen worked at the Wood Worsted Mills for two years until they closed and moved their operations south. After that she was employed as a nanny for a year, also in Lawrence. Then she moved to Boston and worked for the First National Stores (FINAST) in the meat department. During that time she met her future husband and left FINAST when she married Patrick Murray in 1952. Maureen raised three children and was active with volunteer work, the church and community. Her hobbies included reading, sewing, cooking and gardening for as long as she was able.
For more of Maureen’s Memories…
Click here for Nono Goes to the Circus
Click here for An Orange for Baby Jesus
Click here to read about Maureen’s first days in America
Maureen’s Memories: Nono Goes to the Circus
Maureen takes us back to 1930s Milltown, County Kerry, when the circus came to town. She recalls the excitement surrounding the circus, as well as the kindness of her neighbors.
Nono Goes to the Circus
To give you an idea of how small the children were, here is a photo of Maureen’s sister Helen (blond, third from left on bottom) and the infants’ class in the early 1940s. (You must receive author’s written permission to reproduce photo.)
Duffy & Sons Circus was coming to Milltown! I knew I would be going as grandfather (who lived with us) would always take my sisters, Joan and Kitty, and me. We were all very young—toddlers, six and under. This was in the early 1930s. In those days, if you could walk, you were encouraged to attend school. Any student below first class attended the infant’s room (kindergarten) in our school, Presentation Convent. Our whole class was abuzz. More importantly, the nuns approved. When they asked, “Hands-up, who is going to the circus?” the only child who didn’t raise their hand was little Nora, who was called “ Nono”. Our Sister asked, “Why not?” and she replied childishly, “Me no tickee”. Children’s tickets cost about four old pence. The following day the Doctor’s daughter announced that her mother would buy Nono’s ticket. The Nun gushed to all of us what a great act of Christian charity the Doctor’s wife had performed.
Nono was asked the next day, “Was your mother delighted that you are going to the circus”? She replied in her usual manner, “Me no coatee”. The following day Nono was given a coat from a schoolmate’s mother. She may not have been well spoken, yet she was going to the circus in a nice, new coat.
I’ll always remember that each afternoon before going to the circus my Mammy cooked home fries. She had the knack for making the simplest dishes delicious. After relishing the tasty meal, we were off to see the many exciting acts. Grandfather always dressed in his best blue serge suit. I no longer recalled if the great circus tent was set up in town, or in a field. I do recall the pungent smells, a mix of sawdust and animals, the colorful costumes and the bright fabric of the ring around which we sat, my little sisters and Nono. My favorite entertainers were the barebacked riders. Out they rode in their shimmering pink outfits, and I decided right then and there what I wanted to be when I grew up! Luckily, I didn’t run away with the circus, and I’m content with the way my life turned out.
I have fond memories of Nora and her baby brother, Patrick Joseph (called “Packy Joe”), always walking hand-in-hand. Not long afterward Nora and Patrick Joseph, along with their entire family, who lived by the river, left County Kerry. The father had a hard time finding work, and was forced to do odd jobs. Their mother took in washing and cared for the ill in their homes. Talk was that they left to find better work in England, and we hoped they did well and could go on to afford to buy Nono and Packy Joe many fine things in life.
About the author…
Maureen, 1953
Maureen Angela Teahan was born in September 1928, Milltown, County Kerry, Ireland. She was the firstborn of a large family. The household included a maternal grandfather and an older cousin, all living in a small thatched home. Maureen was educated at Presentation School and received her Leaving Certification from Presentation Secondary School, Milltown, 1944. She emigrated from Ireland in 1947 and lived in Lawrence, Mass. Maureen worked at the Wood Worsted Mills for two years until they closed and moved their operations south. After that she was employed as a nanny for a year, also in Lawrence. Then she moved to Boston and worked for the First National Stores (FINAST) in the meat department. During that time she met her future husband and left FINAST when she married Patrick Murray in 1952. Maureen raised three children and was active with volunteer work, the church and community. Her hobbies included reading, sewing, cooking and gardening for as long as she was able.
Did you know that Duffy&Sons Circus is still in operation? Now it is Tom Duffy’s Circus, but it is the same family who put on the circus that came to Milltown. Click here to visit the website and read about the history of the circus.
An Orange for Baby Jesus
Maureen Teahan Murray helped us kick off the holiday season by sharing her Thanksgiving memories a couple of weeks ago, and she is back with a special story, just in time for the first Sunday of Advent…enjoy!
Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade Welcomes Two Girls From Milltown
Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade debuted in 1924. Macy’s began the parade in order to promote their department store for the Christmas season. Most of the participants in the parade were Macy’s employees who donned costumes, marched, and rode on floats pulled by horses, tracing the route from Harlem to Macy’s Herald Square store. Over 250.000 people watched the parade that first year and it became an annual event.
1940 Hippo balloon at Macy’s parade (photo from theweek.com)
The famous helium-filled balloons of animals first appeared in 1927, replacing the real animals that were sprung from the Central Park Zoo to march in the parade. By 1942, the rubber and helium from the balloons became necessary for the war effort and the parade was called off until 1945.
The November 28, 1947 s New York Times article describes the parade in great detail. The parade had clearly hit its pre-World War II stride with crowds, bands, floats, and the return of the giant balloons. The headline reads:
2,000,000 THRILLED BY MACY’S PARADE
Gas-Filled Giants Prance Again to Delight of Throngs Who Forget Cold
CLOWNS ADD TO THE FUN
Three Little Pigs, Peter Rabbit in the Line — Santa Bestows a Greeting.
What a line-up! The two million spectators lined the sidewalks of the parade route and “peered from open windows, crowded roof-tops, and marquees” to catch a glimpse of Humpty-Dumpty, the Pumpkin Float, and a gigantic panda balloon. Five-year-old Katharine had this to say about the parade: “I like the Jack O’ Lantern, I like the Funny Cop, I like loud music, I like the dancers, I like everything.”
Among the two million people gathered that Thanksgiving morning in 1947 were Maureen and Joan Teahan. Maureen and Joan were sisters who had just arrived in New York the previous day, November 26th. The sisters left their home in Milltown, County Kerry about a week earlier to begin new lives in the United States. Milltown’s population? About 100 people.
The girls experienced just a bit of culture shock upon arrival in New York City. Their Uncle Dan sponsored the sisters’ passage to the United States and made a point of telling them to lock the hotel room door. Maureen recalls that this was something she and Joan had not even considered.
So, what did Maureen think of the two million people plus a rocket ship from Mars full of blue invaders who were “mocked” by Peter Rabbit and the Mad Hatter while the Three Little Pigs “sang the praises of Thanksgiving” and the steady pounding of drums filled the air? Maureen admits she was overwhelmed.
What an introduction to the United States for Maureen and Joan. They walked right into one of the most cherished Thanksgiving traditions for families all over the United States – the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day parade, on a day that is uniquely American. That is a lot to process within the first forty-eight hours in a country.
Maureen and Joan stayed in New York for a week – shopping and seeing the sights – before settling in Lawrence, Massachusetts.
In a couple of weeks, I will publish a lovely story written by Maureen. It’s a Christmas story. But for now, a Happy Thanksgiving to all and enjoy the parade!
Special thanks to Mary Power for sharing the New York Times article, as well as her mother Maureen’s memories of the 1947 Macy’s Thanksgiving parade.
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