Browse Items (322 total)

Location: North-east, especially Clonmore
Eddie wrote this poem out of respect for a kindly pastor who cared for his people all his life.

Location: North-east.
One of many pieces written by McCall about the events of 1798.

Location: Borris area.
MCN was from the Borris area. The poem is a simple prayer of trust in God.

In winter dawn in years long gone
Our forefathers adored the sun,
Druids offered gifts to golden Fionn
So crops might grow and male babes come.

Then Patrick came and changed our ways;
Replaced the gods of older days.
He fanned a fire up high…

The song is one of those gems of the Oral Tradition that narrates in ballad form an actual event that is generally missed in the larger historical picture.

Irish Liberty
Ye friends of Irish Liberty and sons of Granuaile
Be not afraid of England’s bull, his horns, his head or tail;
He’s but a shadow on the grass reflected from a tree,
So break the branches bare, brave boys, and plant the…

Location: South Carlow, Myshall area
The men were slain during the Irish civil War in 1922, at Shean, near Myshall. It seems fitting to have both poems side by side.

The roll is called, Big Jim is gone, his voice we’ll hear no more,
But his name is etched forever on the pages of folklore.
For those who knew this gentle giant, he was an easy friend to love
And on Good Friday evening Jim was called to Heaven…

Location: South Carlow, especially the Mount Leinster area.
Eddie wrote this as a mark of respect for his good friend Jim Nolan, the well-known storyteller from Ballinrush, Myshall.

Location: South, Barrow valley
While people in Newfoundland claim ownership of this song, it is more likely that it was brought to Newfoundland by emigrants from the south Carlow area.