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Derryhallagh

Rath

Folklore

There is a fairy forth in the town-land of Derryhallow. It is about a mile from the town of Drumshanbo and a half mile from the school. The name of the forth is Cruckawn. It is situated a long the side of the road leading to Slieve An Iarainn mountain. The forth is on a high mound over grown by white thorn bushes and it is surrounded by a low grassy ditch. Many stories are told in connection with this forth but I only heard a few of them.

There was once a man who was fencing and he cut a bush in the forth and put it in a gap. On his way home he felt his eye getting very sore. When he arrived home his eye was still worse. Doctors were attending him for some time but they could not give him any cure. Finally he went to the priest the priest looked in his eye but he could not see anything in it. Thenhe asked him did he do any work that would harm his eye. The man said he cut a bush in the forth and put it in a gap. The priest told him to go at once to the forth and put the bush where he got it. The man did so and on his way home he took the patch off his eye and it was as good as it had ever beed before. Another story is told about this forth.

Once a man was taking a bag of turf from beside the forth. When he was ready to go home with the turf a voice cried out to him "Leave down them turf. The man looked a round him but he could not see anyone. Then he proceeded on his way, but to his surprise the bag of turf was taken off his back. He told the story when he went home. Next morning his brother went to the forth for the turf but to his surprise he found the bag emptied on the top of a ditch.

There is a story told about Mr Booth the owner of the land surrounding the forth. One evening he went for his eight cows to bring them home to be milked but he only could get seven cows. He searched the land untill night fall but could not find her and then he went home. Next morning he came down the land to look for the cow again. He was attracted by great singing in the forth and he went in to it, and there stood the cow chewing her cud. He brought her home to milk her. The wife began to milk her but she had not a drop.
From the Schools Collection, made by the National Folklore Collection in the 1930s and currently being digitised at duchas.ie.

Here's another story about the same place:
On the farm of Thomas Boothe Derryhallow a fort stood. This man was one harvest day preparing hay for tramping very close to a fort. When ready to make into rooks there came a blast of wind and lifted the hay up into the air and carried it away to another fort.
When out spoke Boothe into the fort, "Come my fairy Queen" and bring back my hay. After a couple of hours manouvering in the air the hay was lift back in its original position.
Rhiannon Posted by Rhiannon
2nd April 2016ce
Edited 2nd April 2016ce

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