12 20 249 https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/files/original/34d5d7f73a1ae964ee68e91975ba9445.jpg 84ab4ede9d5baef4d8dbb60bb8e18e9a https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/files/original/aebd40db7d4bfe3aec0b75755df95b16.mp3 ea6f56dcdcbd45dbbe114549e0bc6728 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Life Journeys: Living Folklore in Ireland Today Subject The topic of the resource Life history interviews from the inhabitants of Cork city's Northside. Description An account of the resource 27 oral history interviews focusing on the life of Cork city's Northsiders. This interviews in this collection were used in the Cork Folklore Project's (then the Northside Folklore Project) first book; Life Journeys: Living Folklore in Ireland Today. The book, published in 1999, was compiled and edited by former Cork Folklore Project researcher Stephen Hunter. Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1996-2001 Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Interviewees: Willy Good; Margaret Farmer; Eileen O'Sullivan; Tina Noonan; Michael Murphy; Sheila Dalton; Eibhlis deBarra; Denis P. Long; Catherine McCarthy; Helen Donovan; Billy McCarthy; Maria Lopez; Nicholas Hennessy; John Connolly; Liam Foley; John Collins; Jack Byrne; Thomas McCarthy; Rev John Farris; Brother Higgins; Mary Healy; Helen Prout; Eddie Daly; Alan Kennefick; Kay Dunne; George Glendon; Colin Rynne: Interviewers: Stephen Hunter (16); Caroline Crowley (4); Caroline Cronin (3); Lorraine Cahalane (1); Catherine Fray (1); Valarie Kelly-Curtain (1); Liam Hurley (1); Martin O'Mahony (1): Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context CFP_SR00002_good_1996; CFP_SR00104_farmer & osullivan_1997; CFP_SR00127_mccarthy_1998; CFP_SR00134_noonan_1998; CFP_SR00140_murphy_1998; CFP_SR00154_dalton_1998; CFP_SR00176_debarra_1997; CFP_SR00177_long_1998; CFP_SR00181_farmer,mccarthy & donovan _1997: Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant Cork, Ireland: 20th Century Relation A related resource Published Material: Hunter, Stephen (1999), Life Journeys: Living Folklore in Ireland Today, Cork: The Northside Folklore Project. Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Cork Folklore Project Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Cork Folklore Project Audio Archive Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Cork Folklore Project Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource Cork Folklore Project Language A language of the resource English Type The nature or genre of the resource Audio Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource .wav Oral History A resource containing historical information obtained in interviews with persons having firsthand knowledge. Interviewee The person(s) being interviewed Mick Moriarty Interviewer The person(s) performing the interview Stephen Hunter Duration Length of time involved (seconds, minutes, hours, days, class periods, etc.) 60min 13sec Location The location of the interview Great William O'Brien St., Blackpool, Cork Original Format The type of object, such as painting, sculpture, paper, photo, and additional data Cassette Transcription Any written text transcribed from a sound The following is a short extract from the interview transcript relating to the audio extract above. Copyright of the Cork Folklore Project. If you wish to access further archival material please contact CFP, folklorearchive@gmail.com SH: Can you remember any things done on big festivals like Halloween or Midsummer’s Eve, stuff like that, people lighting bonfires or playing games? MM: Well, of course, the longest day of the year now is next Monday, the 21st of June. I remember up here on Broad Lane, we’ll always have Bonfire night and we’ll have our cakes and we’ll have Chester cake and we’ll have razza. A small drop of razza with loads of water inside in it, but of course we’ll be carrying trees and sticks and tyres for weeks and weeks and weeks, and no one could touch the place. Nobody would even dream of lighting the fire until bonfire night. But then again our parents were there and they were observing the whole situation as regards bonfire night. SH: Was this out in Ballincollig? MM: This was here. SH: Can you remember anything about that in Ballincollig? MM: No. No, I wouldn’t remember that much of it now, it was - - there was a bit of it in Ballincollig alright but I suppose there was a lot more of it than I would’ve realised. SH: Around here, where did they have the fires? MM: Up in Broad Lane. We used have it in Broad Lane at the time, but of course, there was different gangs. We had the Broad Lane gang and we had the Hattons Alley gang SH: I’ve heard about them. MM: Yeah, so we had some great times, you know. Actually, the very funny thing about the Broad Lane gang Steven, and the Hattons Alley gang was this; we’d walk all the ways out to the Gouldings Glen, which is now built up as a corporation estate, and there could be about eighteen of us walk out, nine aside, you know? Or you might have ten and nine or maybe - - there might be an odd one you know, on one side, one too many. And we’d go out there and we’d fight away, and then we’d come back again because we couldn’t have a fight in our own area because our parents would come out and give us a hiding, you know. We’d go out and we’d have a good fight and we’d walk back the road again together, which was great, you know, it was all over. That’s it. SH: Liam Foley, he told me - - he came from up that way - - MM: That’s right Liam was from Broad Lane. SH: Slightly older generation - - back then, the Broad Lane and the Hatton’s Alley, and he was involved in that himself as a teenager. Or not even as such a teenager, I think around eleven, twelve, that sort of age. MM: Oh, we went a bit older than that. We did yeah, oh we did, we went out to Goulding’s Glen and I tell you something - - I remember then we had the Lido cinema here at the back, you know and we used to have Batman and Robin. I remember a guy called John Hennessy, and he dressed up as Batman, and he made me dress up as Robin. And where the parish priest houses are over, didn’t he jump out the window. It was an old derelict building. Jeez, there was a poor woman going down the road, she nearly lost her life over it. Course we got hauled in over it. SH: Who was going down the road? MM: One of the old ladies around the corner. Around the street, and he shouting ‘here comes Batman’, you know. I tell you something, we got Batman and Robin for about two weeks, we weren’t left outside the door. We went up to school and that was it, end of story. But they were great days. Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Mick Moriarty: Barbershops, Fashion, Childhood Subject The topic of the resource Life History; Description An account of the resource Mick has spent his life in the hairdressing trade. He talks about changes in the trade and recounts some stories from his working life. Mick is known as ‘The Baldy Barber’. He was born in Ballincollig in 1948. His father was a hairdresser and had opened his first shop in 1937. He comments on the population explosion in Ballincollig between the time he left and the present day. As a child, he swam in a pool called Hell Hole, and played marbles (known as Glassy Alleys). There were also two gangs who fought each other, the Broad Lane Gang and the Hatton’s Alley Gang. He talks about the emergence of long hairstyles in the 1960s and says that a number of barbershops in Waterford closed down as a result. He describes the cost of a haircut and of running his business over the years. He used to work early in the morning to serve night workers coming off their shifts. He tells some funny stories about awkward or amusing situations with customers. Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 15 July 1999 Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Interviewee: Mick Moriarty Interviewer: Stephen Hunter Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context CFP_SR00298_moriarty_1999 Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant Ireland; Cork Relation A related resource Published Material: Hunter, Stephen (1999), Life Journeys: Living Folklore in Ireland Today, Cork: The Northside Folklore Project. Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Cork Folklore Project Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Cork Folklore Project Audio Archive Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Cork Folklore Project Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource Cork Folklore Project Language A language of the resource English Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource .wav Type The nature or genre of the resource Sound Baldy Barber Ballincollig Blackpool Dagenham Ford Hairdressing Mick Moriarty https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/files/original/02191f51ffacf0dcd4e1b7009584d96d.jpg 84ab4ede9d5baef4d8dbb60bb8e18e9a Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Life Journeys: Living Folklore in Ireland Today Subject The topic of the resource Life history interviews from the inhabitants of Cork city's Northside. Description An account of the resource 27 oral history interviews focusing on the life of Cork city's Northsiders. This interviews in this collection were used in the Cork Folklore Project's (then the Northside Folklore Project) first book; Life Journeys: Living Folklore in Ireland Today. The book, published in 1999, was compiled and edited by former Cork Folklore Project researcher Stephen Hunter. Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1996-2001 Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Interviewees: Willy Good; Margaret Farmer; Eileen O'Sullivan; Tina Noonan; Michael Murphy; Sheila Dalton; Eibhlis deBarra; Denis P. Long; Catherine McCarthy; Helen Donovan; Billy McCarthy; Maria Lopez; Nicholas Hennessy; John Connolly; Liam Foley; John Collins; Jack Byrne; Thomas McCarthy; Rev John Farris; Brother Higgins; Mary Healy; Helen Prout; Eddie Daly; Alan Kennefick; Kay Dunne; George Glendon; Colin Rynne: Interviewers: Stephen Hunter (16); Caroline Crowley (4); Caroline Cronin (3); Lorraine Cahalane (1); Catherine Fray (1); Valarie Kelly-Curtain (1); Liam Hurley (1); Martin O'Mahony (1): Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context CFP_SR00002_good_1996; CFP_SR00104_farmer & osullivan_1997; CFP_SR00127_mccarthy_1998; CFP_SR00134_noonan_1998; CFP_SR00140_murphy_1998; CFP_SR00154_dalton_1998; CFP_SR00176_debarra_1997; CFP_SR00177_long_1998; CFP_SR00181_farmer,mccarthy & donovan _1997: Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant Cork, Ireland: 20th Century Relation A related resource Published Material: Hunter, Stephen (1999), Life Journeys: Living Folklore in Ireland Today, Cork: The Northside Folklore Project. Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Cork Folklore Project Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Cork Folklore Project Audio Archive Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Cork Folklore Project Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource Cork Folklore Project Language A language of the resource English Type The nature or genre of the resource Audio Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource .wav Oral History A resource containing historical information obtained in interviews with persons having firsthand knowledge. Interviewee The person(s) being interviewed Colin Rynne Interviewer The person(s) performing the interview Stephen Hunter Duration Length of time involved (seconds, minutes, hours, days, class periods, etc.) 46min 12sec Original Format The type of object, such as painting, sculpture, paper, photo, and additional data Cassette Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Colin Rynne: The Butter Museum, Archaeology, Subject The topic of the resource Life History; Description An account of the resource Colin was born in Liverpool, England. His parents were both Irish. In 1975 they returned home to Ireland to his father's townland in Co. Limerick. As a child, he used to spend his summers in Co. Meath. After his schooling, Colin studied Archaeology at University College Cork under Professor Michael (Brian) O'Kelly. After his time in UCC Colin found employment in the Bunratty Folk Park. later he became a consultant to mostly doing post-medieval surveys. in the mid-90s he took charge of the Cork Butter Museum. Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 10 August 1999 Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Interviewee: Colin Rynne Interviewer: Stephen Hunter Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context CFP_SR00318_rynne_2001 Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant Ireland; Cork; England; Liverpool Relation A related resource Published Material: Hunter, Stephen (1999), Life Journeys: Living Folklore in Ireland Today, Cork: The Northside Folklore Project. Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Cork Folklore Project Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Cork Folklore Project Audio Archive Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Cork Folklore Project Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource Cork Folklore Project Language A language of the resource English Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource .wav Type The nature or genre of the resource Sound Archaeolgy Bunratty Folk Park Colin Rynne Limerick Liverpool Meath The Butter Museum https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/files/original/e93f364b532c7cedf1fd0711b50425c6.jpg 9a25f4817c8a142c3ffe1979e69ff98f https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/files/original/6cdc027b4cd508cd791d512db6560d05.mp3 6f378d18b37146db62d69205867fdf30 Oral History A resource containing historical information obtained in interviews with persons having firsthand knowledge. Interviewee The person(s) being interviewed Mary Morgan Interviewer The person(s) performing the interview James Furey Duration Length of time involved (seconds, minutes, hours, days, class periods, etc.) 1 Hr 3 mins Location The location of the interview Glasheen Road, Cork City Bit Rate/Frequency Rate at which bits are transferred (i.e. 96 kbit/s would be FM quality audio) 24bit / 48kHz Time Summary A summary of an interview given for different time stamps throughout the interview <table> <tbody> <tr> <td> 0.00.00 - 0.09.30 </td> <td> On Mary’s childhood. Her birth in West Cork and her family. On how the threshing of corn in particular was a big social occasion. Mary spent her early years in Kilmichael before moving to Cork city with her sisters, who owned a number of pubs. Mary was born in Kilmichael on the 18th of March 1922. Her family were farmers. There were eight children. Five girls and three boys. Mary was the third girl. Her mother’s maiden name was Mary Hurley and she was from the same area. Her fathers name was Patrick Murphy. She describes her childhood as very happy. They lived at a crossroads and kept a very open house. Every night people came to play cards. Mary’s mother played the concertina. There was no electricity in the house and no running water, only a well down the road. Despite this, Mary says they were very happy for a long time. The first bad thing Mary remembers is the Economic War. They couldn’t sell their cattle and money became scarce. Mary always had an interest in the farm and worked on it until she got married. They had a lot of land, a hundred and something acres. A lot of it was rough land. The threshing of corn every year was a big event. Usually there would be dancing and singing in the house afterwards. In the summer the men would cut turf from the bogs. Mary remembers bringing tea and sandwiches to them. Two of the turf cutter’s dogs started fighting and their owners nearly came to blows over the dogs. Two of her older sisters worked in a local shop. Another sister worked in Bandon with an aunt who owned a shop and a pub. Later they all came to live in the city and opened pubs themselves. The Gables in Douglas was one of the pubs. The Phoenix was another one. A third sister had a pub on the quays called the Green Bow. That was sold and her sister bought a shop on the Western Road, opposite Jury’s Hotel. Mary worked in the Gables for a bit before her mother died. Back then you could put up a notice saying ‘No Ladies Served’ but you can’t do that nowadays. One of her brothers stayed home on the farm. Another brother worked in the County Hall but then left for Dublin to lecture in the college. He’s only dead with a year. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.09.51 - 0.13.33 </td> <td> Mary talks about the Economic War and how that made it difficult for her own family to sell their cattle. Despite the Economic War, her father was still a supporter of Fianna Fail, while most of the other nearby farmers supported Fine Gael. She talks about how WWII meant better prices for farmers. Mary’s son Pat entered and after some introductions, Mary continued to talk more about the Economic War. Most of the farmers, especially the big farmers, were very opposed to Fianna Fail. Mary’s describes her father as a rabid Republican. Only a few of the other nearby farmers would have supported Fianna Fail. The local priests were going mad over Fianna Fail and comparing them to Bolsheviks. One of the priests, Canon Goold, used to ride around on a horse and often argued with Mary’s father over his support for Fianna Fail. Despite DeValera being responsible for the Economic War, Mary’s father still blamed England for the tariffs on cattle. Mary remembers being down in Ballineen selling cattle with her brother. Mary’s father had two heifers for sale but had trouble selling them. Mary was terrified of going home to her mother without money. The heifers ran off and Mary got them back, eventually being able to sell them for £6 each. In 1939 when the tariffs were removed, prices on cattle went up again. Mary remembers her father later selling two heifers to a buyer at home for £40. After that life became comfortable again. 1933 to 1939 were hard years according to Mary. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.13.33 - 0.17.37 </td> <td> Mary talks more about her parents and how they survived the flu epidemic of 1918. The beginnings of the War of Independence and the use of safehouses in the area by the IRA. On some of the local men who were arrested on suspicion of IRA membership. During the First World War and just after, farmers got great prices for everything. Mary’s parents married in February 1918 and were able to live comfortably because the war meant they were able to sell anything. Mary’s parents both contracted the Spanish Flu while her mother was expecting her first child in 1918. The child had been due in February but arrived early in December. Because the flu was so contagious, people were terrified to enter the house to help. Both Mary’s parents survived. The two brothers renting the farm next door died from the flu. A local doctor told Mary that anyone who contracted the flu didn’t live to be old because it damaged their hearts. Straight after that, the trouble started according to Mary. A nearby house was used as a safe house by Republicans. Mary remembers her mother telling her how the Republicans would bring in straw and spread it all over the floor in the upper room. One night ten men slept there. Scouts stood by the windows and would tap with their guns if they saw anything. Mary’s son Pat points out a photo of a group of IRA suspects in Dunmanway Workhouse. Mary knew one of the men in the photo, Tim Buckley, who went to live in the United States. The other men in the photo were Richard Donovan, William Bohane and Jim Donovan. Tim Buckley married in the United States but his wife died from tuberculosis. They had one child. Tim came back to live in Ireland with his child because they couldn’t afford to live in the United States. He used to work on Mary’s farm sometimes. The day Tim Buckley was arrested he was carrying turf across the bog. The police had local information that he was helping the IRA but he wouldn’t have been very active in the IRA. They took him and others to the barracks in Cappeen. The Donovan’s weren’t with them because they weren’t local. William Bohane had no connection to the IRA but any young man found at home was suspected of being in the IRA. There was another young man who was a shoemaker, arrested at home in bed after being drunk. The Tans began questioning Tim Buckley and one of them hit him with his rifle in the mouth, knocking out his front teeth. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.17.50 - 0.20.25 </td> <td> On Mary’s paternal grandmother and their connections to Republicanism. How one of her cousins was almost caught by the Black and Tans and how some help from a local shopkeeper and the quick thinking of Mary’s mother saved them. Mary’s paternal grandmother was from beyond Macroom and there might have been a Fenian tradition on that side of the family but not from her grandfather’s side. Her grandmother’s maiden name was also Murphy. Her neighbours fought against the Black and Tans near Macroom. Mary’s first cousin on her father’s side, Jim Murphy and another man named Charlie Brown came into Cappeen in a horse and trap with revolvers in their pockets and drove into a place full of Black and Tans. Even though the two men nearly died of fright they had to keep going. They tied up the horse and pretended to be going shopping. The shopkeeper saved their lives. Mary describes the shopkeeper as being well in with the Tans. Because of the shopkeeper, the Tans never searched the two men and let them go. They drove back up to Mary’s house and were met by Mary’s mother, who warned them that the Tans had just gone up the road. That was where they arrested Timmy Buckley. When Jim Murphy and Charlie Brown heard about the Tans, they tied the horse up and Mary’s mother put on her jacket, pretending she was going somewhere with the horse. The two men ran off down the fields. The Tans never came down as far as the house but instead went back the way they originally came because they had arrested Tim Buckley and the other men. They kept Timmy Buckley and the Donovan man for a week but let William Bohane go home. They must have had local information that William Bohane wasn’t in the IRA. They knew who was in it and who wasn’t. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.20.26 - 0.25.33 </td> <td> More on the War of Independence and the Civil War. Living not far from Kilmichael when the ambush took place. How a local man was suspected by the IRA of informing against them but later released thanks to information supplied by a local postmaster. On how fear of the IRA made people give them shelter. Mary’s grandmother gave shelter to the IRA but also had a daughter married to a member of the RIC. According to Mary, her parent’s house was never raided by the Tans. But it did get raided by the Free State soldiers during the Civil War. Her father had guns hidden under the hay and got a fright. There was a heavy shower and the Free State soldiers took shelter with the hay. They were sitting on top of the guns but never realised. The reason the Tans never raided the house was because they didn’t like going down the narrow roads if they could avoid it. It was too dangerous for them. The house was only a few miles away from where the Kilmichael ambush took place and Mary’s father heard the guns going off. There was an old notebook found on one of the Tans and Mary bought it off the Southern Star. She still has it in the house somewhere. After the Truce, when the British troops were evacuating Dunmanway, an Irishman took a diary out of a Tan’s pocket. The notebook contained information about the local IRA. Where they slept at night, how many guns they carried and descriptions of them. One man was arrested by the IRA on suspicion of being an informant and kept him for three days. His mother was searching the area, worried the IRA had shot him. A cousin of Mary’s father saved his life. He worked at the post office in Cappeen and knew who was really informing because he read the letters going to the Tans. Most of those letters were confiscated by the postmen. Mary thinks it was a woman who was informing. While most people in the local area weren’t Republicans, they still wouldn’t inform on them. Mary’s very near neighbours were more interested in making money and putting it into big farms. But there were some nearby who were very pro-IRA. People had no choice but to keep the IRA if they came because they would be afraid of them as well. Mary’s grandmothers house was further up into the hills and was also used as a safehouse by the IRA. One of her daughters was married to an RIC man in Dublin. But he had died before the War of Independence and she was living at home. One time, her husband’s brother, who was also in the Dublin Metropolitan Police, wrote to her asking could he visit for a holiday. He was fed up in Dublin and wanted to get away for a bit. Her grandmother wrote back to say he was welcome but he might have to share the house with people he wouldn’t agree with. He sat in the parlour with his hat on the table and a revolver under it, while IRA men ate in the kitchen. He didn’t say anything. Many of the RIC were sympathetic but still had to do their jobs. A lot of them didn’t want the Tans around either. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.25.35 - 0.28.44 </td> <td> On hearing stories about the War of Independence when she was young and trying to get relatives to talk about it. On a man who used to come into her sisters pub who told her about his involvement in killing three British soldiers. Mary remembers hearing these stories when she was young. When Timmy Buckley came back from America, he was always telling stories. Mary’s cousin, who was involved in ambushes during the War of Independence, never spoke about it. Mary tried to get him to talk about it. He was arrested during the Civil War and sent to Cork Gaol. He was among those who broke out of the prison. Mary thinks those who were very involved with the fighting didn’t want to talk about it. She thinks they hated what they had to do. Jim Murphy was involved in an attack on the Kilmurray barracks but they didn’t succeed. The barracks was burned down later. There was another man who used to come into her sisters pub and he was also very involved in the War of Independence. She thinks he shot a lot of people. One day, Mary was alone with him and kept asking him to talk about it. He told her about the Tans killing some people at a match in Glanmire and how the IRA were told to kill a British soldier for each person killed by the Tans. He described the three soldiers that they shot. They took the soldiers out to Blarney and shot them there. Mary thinks it had an awful effect on the man. He talked to himself a lot and was a bit daft from it. Mary thinks Ireland would have been worse off under England because we would have been bombed during WWII. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.28.45 - 0.37.47 </td> <td> Mary talks about going to school until she was 15 and the stories she would have heard at home. She recalls the local tailor and how the children would play with the empty reels. Mary’s father was a big believer in hospitality and often welcomed tinkers to stay in exchange for them making household items. Tramps were also invited to stay, although Mary’s mother didn’t approve. Some of these were WW1 veterans dealing with shellshock. There was a story about a farmer down in Kerry who murdered his wife and tried to cover it up. Mary attended school until the age of 15. There wasn’t much talk about the War of Independence period in school. One teacher might have talked about it. Mary would have been hearing the stories at home around the fire and she considers her home to have been a ‘rambling house’. John Hennessy, the shoemaker, along with a tailor, another shoemaker, a carpenter and a harness maker would all come to visit. The harness maker would come every few years to do the harness and would spend the day stitching up different things. They would take their shoes over to be repaired and getting new soles put on them. The tailor would make her fathers suit. The tailor has his own house up the road. The table took up the entire kitchen and there were big reels of thread on it. He kept all the empty reels for the children and they would put twine through them to make horses. Tinkers used to come and stay during the summer. Mary’s father would never refuse anyone. They would bring straw down from the haggart and put it into the trap. A big family would sleep in it for a week. The Tinkers would make tins, cups, jugs and milk containers to sell around. Mary thinks they had a place in Dunmanway. Around twenty years ago, Mary’s brother was at home one day. A big heavy woman came into the door. She wanted to show her son, who was home from England, where they used to spend their summer holidays. The house she used to stay in was gone. It was on the side of the road and had been knocked. It had been a big, long open shed. Mary’s father would never refuse anyone and he kept a lot of tramps. He didn’t like to see anyone else without a bed. These people would never come into the house, except the girls at night. Mary’s mother didn’t like them playing with the girls but her father encouraged it. Mary’s father felt you should be as nice to the tramp as you would be to the Bishop. Everyone should be treated equally. He wasn’t afraid of anyone. A man came one night, just after WW1, and a lot of them were suffering from shell shock. Mary’s mother refused to allow him to sleep in the house. They set up a mattress for him in the barn. He had a box of matches in his pocket and he spent the night cracking matches. The floor was covered in burnt matches. There was thunder and lightning during the night. Mary’s mother woke up and seeing the lightning, thought the man had set fire to the barn. She looked out and could hear him singing at the top of his voice at the thunder and lightning. Mary’s mother went off to mass the next morning, leaving her father and the young children at home with the man. He sang for them. Mary recites the words of the song. Mary’s father took an interest in everyone and they would all tell him their stories. Mary’s not sure if it’s fair to repeat some of the stories, in case these people have descendants in the area. Mary tells a story about a murder down in Kerry involving a very wealthy farmer. It was rare to hear about a murder in the paper back then. This farmer murdered his wife and tried to pretend that she died attempting to rescue a turkey from the well. But he was charged with the murder. A tramp came to Mary’s house and it was his aunt who was the murder victim. The tramp’s father was another wealthy farmer but the he left home because his father beat him when he was 16. He went down to a nearby town and enlisted in the British army. He described the Battle of the Somme. He began to smoke opium as a way of coping with the horrors of war and became addicted. When he was discharged he was offered either a pension or a lump sum. He took the lump sum and spent it all on drugs. That’s how he ended up going from door to door. Mary’s father would sometimes offer to give the tramp a shilling but he refused to take it. Mary doesn’t know what happened to the tramps. One tramp nearly died at their house but the ambulance came and took him away. They brought him to Clonakilty where he died there. Many of the tramps were very neglected. A lot of people would feed them. Some of the tramps would demand food. One of them was an ex-teacher who had fallen on hard times. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.37.52 - 0.39.07 </td> <td> On reading a book about Brendan Behan by Ulrick O Connor Mary was reading a book about Brendan Behan written by Ulrick O Connor. According to the book, Brendan Behan saved the farmer who murdered his wife from the gallows. He was to be hanged but Brendan Behan drove him mad. Behan used to torment the man in the exercise yard of the prison. One day the man got so mad that he had an epileptic fit. He was taken away in an ambulance and sent to hospital. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.39.14 - 0.42.33 </td> <td> Despite Republican connections in the family, there was no involvement with Cumann na mBan. On some aunts who were married to men in the Dublin Metropolitan Police. On how one of Mary’s aunts helped an IRA member get out of police custody by pretending he was her brother. She had to leave Cork afterwards and return home to West Cork until the Troubles ended. None of Mary’s family was involved in Cumann na mBan. One of her aunts was married to a member of the Dublin Metropolitan Police. Another aunt was also married to another DMP member but he left it because his family’s shop was being boycotted. If he didn’t quit the police the shop wouldn’t survive. Her aunt Peggy married in Cork at the same time as her mother. One of Mary’s uncles went to live in America and Mary’s mother was delighted with this. One day, Mary’s aunt was visiting other cousins who were also in the IRA and met with Charlie Brown. She thought he was the image of her brother Willie, who was in America. A few weeks later, Charlie was arrested and he gave Willie’s name and address, claiming that he was Willie and was working in Fords in Cork. He was brought to the barracks in Cork. Mary’s aunt was married in Cork at the time. She was a very small woman, only 5’1 or 5’2 and expecting her second baby. She got word from the IRA to go to the barracks and identify her brother. Charlie Brown wrote a book about it afterwards and mentioned how this brave little woman came to get him out and saved his life. Speaking to Mary about it years later, her aunt said she was a terrified little woman. She was as terrified of refusing the IRA as she was of doing it. They were very nice to her in the barracks and promised not to do any harm to her. They allowed her to talk to her ‘brother’. The ruse worked and Charlie Brown was released. He was supposed to report to the barracks every week but he didn’t. Mary’s aunt had to flee Cork city as a result. Her baby was born at Mary’s house. She stayed there until the Troubles ended. The Truce was signed not long afterwards. She was lucky because the police could have found out who she was. Charlie Brown was very involved with the IRA in Macroom. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.42.39 - 0.43.42 </td> <td> On moving up to Cork city when she was 24, working in her sister’s pub and helping out on the farm at home. Mary moved to Cork city when she was 24. Her sister had opened a pub on Douglas Street. Mary was there for about a year, coming in and out. She went home again when her mother died. She helped out on the farm with the hens, duck, geese and turkeys. This was in the late 1940s. Her mother died in 1948. Her father had died in 1944. Mary’s eldest brother took over the farm. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.43.47 - 0.46.30 </td> <td> Encounters with the Blueshirts in the 1930s. Going to watch Platform Dances in Glan on a Sunday. There was an agreement between Republicans and Blueshirts that no political symbols would be worn, but the Blueshirts broke the agreement. This led to a fight and the end of Platform Dances in the area. Mary remembers the Blueshirts from when she was 14 or 15. Mary wasn’t allowed to go dancing but they were allowed to go looking at people dancing at the platforms. There were dances in different places on a Sunday afternoon and someone playing music. Nuala and Mary were allowed go back to Glan to see the dancing but weren’t supposed to do any dancing themselves. They went down on a Sunday. At the time there was a lot of animosity between different groups, Republicans and Blueshirts. They had an agreement that no political signs of any description were to be worn, like badges or blue shirts. It was a place for dancing and fun and not for politics. The following Sunday, they went down again and there was one girl there with a Blueshirt. Later, Mary saw 20 men wearing blueshirts and black ties coming down the road on bicycles. It was all arranged that the girl would be there and one of the Blueshirts started dancing with her. The minute they started dancing the music stopped and they started arguing about the no politics agreement. The next thing they were all beating each other. Nuala and Mary ran away home. While walking up the road, they met a girl who took a wrench from her bicycle repair kit and went down to join in the fight. One fella was carried away in a stretcher afterwards. That was the end of the platform dancing. Mary was too young to be allowed dance as she was only 14. Once they got older they were allowed dance. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.46.32 - 0.50.10 </td> <td> On whether the War of Independence was worth it and getting the Treaty Ports back. On Irish not being spoken widely when she was young. An Irish poem her father used to recite. Two of her nieces became teachers. May remembered learning about the Famine when she was in school and an elderly neighbour who had lived through it. Mary thinks Irish independence was hard won but the best thing was when Ireland got the Treaty Ports back. Otherwise, Ireland would have been bombed during the war. She believes if Ireland had still been under English rule Germany would definitely have dropped a few bombs on us. The Irish language would definitely have been gone, although Mary doesn’t know if that would be a good or bad thing. She doubts the English would have allowed it to be so prominent. Mary didn’t have Irish when she was young, although her father had some. They weren’t allowed teach it in schools. Her father spent months trying to learn it. He had one little poem out of a schoolbook he liked to recite. The tailor living nearby was from Ballyvourney and a native Irish speaker. Mary says they didn’t appreciate the language. If the children were making noise they would be scolded in Irish. Mary picked up some Irish over the years, especially when she was in school. Two of her nieces are teachers. They attended boarding school in Fermoy. Prompted by her son, Mary mentions learning about the Famine while at school. One of her neighbours, Mrs Barrett was in her 80s and remembered the Famine. But she didn’t want to talk about it out of pride. Mary realised she had put her foot in it. Mrs Barrett remembered people who didn’t have food and being slapped by her mother for giving bread to those on their way to the workhouse in Dunmanway. Before the Famine there were eight houses up past Cappeen and most of them were gone after the Famine. Only the farmers survived and a lot of the cottier people died. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.050.11 - 0.55.35 </td> <td> Talking about some of the poetry she wrote herself but not wanting to read it out for the recording. On adjusting to moving from the countryside into the city. On being driven up to Cork in a lorry and her first impressions of Douglas Street. No cars on the street at the time, just donkeys and ponies. The vegetable dealers who used to sell on the street. Discussing her nephew, Liam Ó Muirthile. On opening up a shop on Tramore Road and eventually deciding to move to Glasheen. On attempting to sell their shop a few times. Mary writes poetry herself but isn’t comfortable reading it out for the recording but offers to read it out after the interview. Mary moved to the city and met her future husband, Tom. She also had a boyfriend in the country at the time. When she first started in the Gables, Mary missed the freedom of being able to walk out and run down the field. She was fascinated by all the people walking along. At night she would sit at the window looking at all the people walking along. She eventually came to like living in the city. Her very first day on Douglas Street, she came up in a lorry from Cappeen. The owner of the lorry drove her all the way up to the door. Douglas Street was covered in donkeys and small ponies. There were no cars to be seen. There were tables for vegetable dealers up at the top from the Market Gardens. They would come into the pub for a drink in the morning after selling their goods. It was a very busy pub in those days. The Gables was always a good sized pub. It was home to her sister and most of her children. One of her sister’s sons is the poet Liam Ó Muirthile. Mary has an article about him that was in the Examiner. He lives out in Douglas now. When she married, Mary and her husband opened a shop on Tramore Road, off Togher Road. She was worn out from working in the shop and looking after young children. Mary’s brother lived nearby in Glasheen. Where the houses are now there were still fields. One night Mary was playing cards with her brother, who was living in Glasheen at the time and they were building houses in the nearby field. Mary said to her husband they would give up the shop and buy one of the houses. Mary couldn’t do it any longer. They put the shop up for sale. The man who bought the shop came and spent a day working behind the counter with them. He gave out sweets to all the children and told them he would be the new shopkeeper. The next day he rang Mary and told her he had decided not to bother. At the time there was a woman who used to help in the shop and she offered to rent it from them. They rented the shop to her and came to live in Glasheen. Later, the lady renting the shop wanted to give it up because her daughter got married. Mary and her husband took back the shop and still have it. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.55.50 - 1.01.47 </td> <td> On being asked about Tom Barry and his connections to Kilmichael. Although Mary never remembers Tom Barry ever being in their house, his wife Leslie Price did have tea with them once. On large scale emigration due to lack of work. All of Mary’s uncles emigrated. One was a Christian Brother in New Zealand and the others went to America. One of her uncles was a bus driver in New York for a few years but after getting in an accident he moved to Boston. He died young because of the flu. More of how Mary’s parents contracted the Spanish Flu in 1918 and almost died. Her sister being born premature and how her grandmother and aunt marched down to the priest to get her baptised. On the custom of ‘Churching’. Being from Kilmichael, Mary has a few stories about Tom Barry. Tom Barry married Leslie Price and she had tea in Mary’s house. Mary’s mother was told to make a special tea because there was a very important person coming, Ms Price. Mary’s mother was a bit dicey about the IRA because she came from a different kind of a crowd. Mary’s mother claimed Ms Price didn’t thank her very much. Mary’s mother didn’t think much of her. Mary doesn’t think Tom Barry ever came into their house. Mary’s mother was from Kilmichael parish as well, only up the road from where they lived. Mary’s grandmother came from beyond Macroom. They were the ones with the IRA connections. The farm is still there but Mary’s family sold it. They called there one time and the farmer was clearing out a sand pit. He knocked out a big lot of ammunition. His two brothers went to America. They all had to emigrate then. There was no work in Ireland, even on the roads. The new Irish government favoured their own and Fianna Fail were the same. Emigration had a big part to play in Mary’s family. All her uncles went away. One uncle, Jim, was a Christian Brother, he ended up in New Zealand for 40 years. He came back to Ireland and died in Dublin, in the O’Brien institute. He was at Mary’s brothers wedding. He died suddenly from heart failure. The other two uncles went to America and they have families still there, Mary’s cousins. One lot of them came to visit Ireland once. One of the uncles came back to die in Ireland but he was a bit gone in the brain. Mary had a neighbour who visited them in America. They were living in Boston. Mary’s uncle Willie was in New York first, working as a bus driver. He had an accident with the bus. Mary found out about it from a neighbour. He was in America illegally and had to go away to avoid being found out. He travelled down to Boston. He married an Irish girl and had a family in Boston. He lived there all his life but died very young. He died from the flu and had it even worse than Mary’s parents. Mary’s older sister was born prematurely, when her parents were suffering from the flu and the weather was terrible. Mary’s grandmother and aunt were the only ones who would go into the house. They still took the baby down to be christened in case she died. She lived to be 83. She was the sister who owned the Gables Pub. Mary has a number of stories about her grandmother. She was a very tall woman, nearly 6ft. The rest of the family were small but her grandmother’s people were very tall. A number of them had been in the RIC. According to Mary, very few Catholics were accepted in the RIC, but they were so tall an exception was made. When her grandmother went down to the priests house to get Mary’s sister baptised, his housekeeper answered the door and told them they had to wait because the priest was having his dinner. Mary’s grandmother elbowed the housekeeper out of the way and marched into the room and told the priest to baptise the child. There were other traditions at the time such as Churching. Mary did it herself but it’s not done anymore. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.01.47 - 1.03.31 </td> <td> Remembering some Halloween traditions when she was young and hearing ghost stories from some of the old men in the area. Mary and her sister weren’t allowed listen to the stories but would try to sneak back in to hear them. She learned other poems from some of her neighbours. Mary says they didn’t have many Halloween traditions when they were very young. That didn’t happen until they were older and started going to school. It wasn’t even mentioned much. They would have had old men telling ghost stories. Of all the locals, John Tom told the scariest stories. Mary and her sister would be terrified going to bed after listening to his stories about all the dead people. Mary’s mother tried to put the children out when she saw him coming. She had a horror of any sort of nasty talk. Mary would try to sneak back in to hear his stories. The Buckleys were the same. They would teach Mary old poems that weren’t very nice. Mary had a talent for picking things up. She promises to read out some of her own poems after the interview. End of interview. </td> </tr> </tbody> </table> Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Mary Morgan Subject The topic of the resource Life History; Description An account of the resource Mary Was born in west Cork near Kilmichael in 1922, her parents were small farmers. Their house and that of her grandmothers were ‘safehouses’ during the war of independence and civil war. In her twenty’s she moves to the city to work in public houses run by her sisters (The Gables on Douglas St, The Phoenix on Union Quay, and another unnamed bar on Patrick's Quay.) In the city she met her husband and subsequently opened a shop in Togher. Soon after she took up residence in her home in Glasheen where she raised her family and still resides today. Mary Morgan talks about her childhood and memories of growing up in West Cork. Her parents surviving the Spanish Flu of 1918 and her oldest sister being born prematurely. She remembers the impact of the Economic War in the 1930s. She recounts some of the stories she heard about the War of Independence and Civil War. Arrests by the Black and Tans and some lucky escapes by IRA members. Tom Barry’s wife having tea at their house. On her father’s belief in hospitality. Recollections of moving up to Cork city and working in pubs owned by her sisters, before marrying and opening a shop of her own. Hearing a first-hand account of the Famine from a neighbour. Clashes between Blueshirts and Republicans at Platform Dances in West Cork. Her first impressions of living in Cork city and how it differed from the countryside. On family who emigrated to America and other parts of the world. Running a shop and eventually moving to Glasheen. Remembering hearing ghost stories from the old men in West Cork. Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 31 October 2017 Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Interviewee: Mary Morgan Interviewer: James Furey Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context CFP_SR00642_Morgan_2017 Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant Ireland; Cork; Kilmichael; 1920s-2010s Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Cork Folklore Project Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Cork Folklore Project Audio Archive Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Cork Folklore Project Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource Cork Folklore Project Language A language of the resource English Type The nature or genre of the resource Sound Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource wav Relation A related resource Mary's story on the Spanish Flu was included in our 'Catching Stories' project on infectious diseases <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/health/spanish-flu" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">https://corkfolklore.org/health/spanish-flu</a> Black and Tans Blueshirts Churching Civil War Economic War I.R.A Pubs Republicanism Shops Spainish Flu The Famine The Great Famine Tom Barry War of Independence https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/files/original/e01a02a5275dadd3db3b51847119a083.jpg 9d4c78e8c62ec10f1619d0da9c873906 https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/files/original/0aeaf495ae52da29ab69feea7f8683fe.wav 06687a0756f7fe07544166a73d21114a Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Grattan Street Stories: Memory of Place Subject The topic of the resource Occupational Lore; Life History; Built Heritage; Health; Ireland; Cork; Middle Parish Description An account of the resource This collection focuses on a building on Grattan Street which has served as a Quaker Meeting House, a public Dispensary and as the Grattan Street Health Centre. The project was a collaboration between the CFP and the Cork North Community Work Department, Cork Kerry Community Healthcare, Health Services Executive HSE. The interviewees fall into two main groups: those who worked in the building and those who lived in the surrounding area and availed of the services provided in the building. This project follows on from the collaboration with the HSE in the “<a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/collections/show/10" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">HSE Orthopaedic Hospital Oral History Project (d'Orthopaedic)</a>”. There is a further connection between the two projects as many of the staff and services once provided in the Grattan Street Health Centre have now relocated to St. Mary's Health Campus (St Mary’s Primary Care Centre) Gurranabraher, the former site of the Orthopaedic Hospital. This topic of the relocation of services is also covered in some staff interviews. To date (October 2021) 13 interviews have been completed for the project. Interviewees discuss the Grattan Street building itself in terms of its historic significance, its benefits and drawbacks as a workplace. Broader themes related to or inspired by the building are also touched on including: personal relationship with the building, staff camaraderie, the problems with parking, memorable incidents at work, patient experiences and descriptions of the people and services for which the building catered. Healthcare professional interviewees detail their training, career progression and comparisons between Grattan Street and other workplaces. Their testimonies also provide a link with the community of patients they served giving further insight into attitudes to healthcare, diseases, vaccines, description of social conditions and the changes in medicine and technology in their working lives. Non-healthcare professional interviewees describe childhood experiences in or around Grattan Street (The Marsh or The Middle Parish), the social, cultural and economic conditions of the area, tenements, businesses, attitudes to and experiences of healthcare, vaccines, diseases, medicines and medical professionals as well as observed changes in these areas over time. Interviewees also reflect on the possible future uses of the Grattan Street building. Related Reference Sources <ul> <li>Barrington, R. (1987) Health, medicine and politics in Ireland, 1900–1970. Dublin: Institute of Public Administration.</li> <li>Butler D.M. (2004) The Quaker meeting houses of Ireland. Dublin : Irish Friends Historical Committee.</li> <li>Byrne, J. (2004) Byrne's dictionary of Irish local history. Cork: Mercier Press.</li> <li>Cooke, R. T. (1999) My Home by the Lee. Irish Millennium Publications: Cork.</li> <li>Dempsey, P. J. & White, L. W. ‘Childers, Erskine Hamilton’. Dictionary of Irish Biography [Accessed 18 October 2021]</li> <li>Harrison, R.S. (1991) Cork City Quakers 1655-1939: A Brief History. Cork.</li> <li>Houston, M. (2004). ‘Life before the GP’. The Irish Times. Available at : <<a href="https://www.irishtimes.com/news/health/life-before-the-gp-1.1158599">https://www.irishtimes.com/news/health/life-before-the-gp-1.1158599</a> > [Accessed 18 October 2021]</li> <li>Keohane, F. (2020) The Buildings of Ireland Cork City and County. New Haven and London: Yale University Press.</li> </ul> Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2019-2020 Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Interviewees: Edith O’Regan, 'Mary', Sean Higgisson, Aoife O’Brien, Eileen Kearney, Imelda Cunning, Jane Ward, Liam Ó hUigín, Joe Scanlan, Mary Mulcahy, Philomena Cassidy, Don Morrissy, Derek O’Connell Interviewer: <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=2&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=Kieran+Murphy" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Kieran Murphy</a>, (<a href="https://corkfolklore.org/community-oral-history-outreach-officer/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP Community Oral History Outreach Officer</a>) Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant Cork, Ireland 1940s-2020s; Waterford, Ireland; Dublin, Ireland; Limerick, Ireland; Relation A related resource Exhibition Artist Edith O’Regan-Cosgrave (also an interviewee for the project) created a visual artwork based around the Grattan Street Medical Centre building itself, as a workplace and health centre. The artwork incorporated direct quotations from the oral history interviews conducted for the project, and also included brief historical paragraphs about the building researched, written and edited by the <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/community-oral-history-outreach-officer/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP Community Oral History Outreach Officer</a> Kieran Murphy. This exhibition was launched on 6th February 2020 in “St Peter’s” on the North Main Street where a “Listening Event” was also held to mark the occasion. <img src="http://corkfolklore.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/Grattan-Poster-for-Email-286-by-400.jpg" alt="Grattan-Poster-for-Email-286-by-400.jpg" /> Presentation and Listening Event To coincide with the launch of the Grattan Street Stories Exhibtion on 6th February 2020 a listening event and presentation of the history of the Grattan Street Medical Centre building and description of the project was given by <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/community-oral-history-outreach-officer/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP Community Oral History Outreach Officer</a> Kieran Murphy. <img src="http://corkfolklore.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/427A7714-1.jpg" alt="427A7714-1.jpg" /> Presentation In 2019 at the OHNI conference the <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/community-oral-history-outreach-officer/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP Community Oral History Outreach Officer</a> Kieran Murphy discussed social media and oral history which included audio excerpts from the Grattan Street Stories Project along with photographs of the building. <img src="http://corkfolklore.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/Kieran-OHNI-e1634041838937.jpg" alt="Kieran-OHNI-e1634041838937.jpg" /> Audio Visual Presentation An audio-visual slideshow was produced featuring oral testimony from the Grattan Street Stories Project and combined with suitable images of Grattan Street and from Edith O’Regan-Cosgrave’s exhibition. This was created by <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/community-oral-history-outreach-officer/">CFP Community Oral History Outreach Officer</a> Kieran Murphy. <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RnjEtQeOb3I&t=1s&ab_channel=CorkFolklore" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Audio Visual Presentation Available to listen and view here.</a> Health and Vaccines Oral History Research Many of the interviews conducted for the Grattan Street project formed an integral part of the testimonies and research for the innovative <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/health/about" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">'Catching Stories' of infectious disease in Ireland </a>project funded by the Irish Research Council. <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/health/about" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"><img src="http://corkfolklore.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/Catching-Stories-Poster.jpg" alt="Catching-Stories-Poster.jpg" /></a> Social Media Numerous suitable audio excerpts from the oral history interviews have been edited and shared on CFP's social media channels. <a href="https://twitter.com/corkfolklore/status/1139167201582288901" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">https://twitter.com/corkfolklore/status/1139167201582288901</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/corkfolklore/status/1140909542240391168" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">https://twitter.com/corkfolklore/status/1140909542240391168</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/corkfolklore/status/1141264486768238592" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">https://twitter.com/corkfolklore/status/1141264486768238592</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/corkfolklore/status/1189872295923376133" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">https://twitter.com/corkfolklore/status/1189872295923376133</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/corkfolklore/status/1228322700415860736" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">https://twitter.com/corkfolklore/status/1228322700415860736</a> Orthopaedic Hospital Cork Folklore Project in collaboration with the HSE conducted an oral history project focussing on the Orthapaedic Hospital in Gurranabraher. Many of the staff and services once provided at the Grattan Street Health Centre site were moved to St. Mary's Health Campus (St Mary’s Primary Care Centre) Gurranabraher, the former site of the Orthopaedic Hospital. <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/collections/show/10" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">HSE Orthopaedic Hospital Oral History Project (d'Orthopaedic)</a> Swimming Article Kieran Murphy and James Furey co-authored an article about <a href="https://tripeanddrisheen.substack.com/p/swim-city?s=r" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Swimming in Cork</a> which appeared in the online magazine Tripe + Drisheen. This article features a number of interview extracts collected as part of the Grattan Street Stories Project. Related Interviews CFP_SR00756_Quilligan_2019; CFP_SR00758_Broderick_2019; CFP_SR00670_OShea_2018; Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Cork Folklore Project Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Cork Folklore Project Audio Archive Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Cork Folklore Project Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource Cork Folklore Project Language A language of the resource English Type The nature or genre of the resource Audio Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource 16 .wav Files Oral History A resource containing historical information obtained in interviews with persons having firsthand knowledge. Interviewee The person(s) being interviewed Edith O'Regan Interviewer The person(s) performing the interview Kieran Murphy Duration Length of time involved (seconds, minutes, hours, days, class periods, etc.) 103 Minutes 40 Seconds Location The location of the interview Grattan Street Medical Centre Original Format The type of object, such as painting, sculpture, paper, photo, and additional data .wav Bit Rate/Frequency Rate at which bits are transferred (i.e. 96 kbit/s would be FM quality audio) 24bit / 48kHz Time Summary A summary of an interview given for different time stamps throughout the interview <table> <tbody> <tr> <td> 0.00.00 - 0.00.23 </td> <td> Intro </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.00.23- 0.02.04 </td> <td> Games Played as Child in Youghal Grew up in Youghal. Children’s games: chasing games, Red Rover, What Time is it Mr Wolf?, Chainy. Elastics game: Long piece of elastic tied into a loop with a person at each end with complex rules about how to jump in and out and over and back. Played tennis: in the tennis club and also “over the gate”. It was the era of John McEnroe, Martina Navratilova and Bjorn Borg. Played a form of football. Made mud pies. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.02.04- 0.02.26 </td> <td> Describes game Chainy or Chainey in more detail Still played in her child’s school. One person catches another and they must keep holding hands and keep catching people until they are all holding hands in a long chain. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.02.26- 0.03.06 </td> <td> Describes Red Rover or Bulldog She didn’t like Red Rover. Stand in chain and chant “Red Rover, Red Rover, we call over X” Begins with 2 children holding hands and the person who is called over must try to run through their hands and break the link, which Edith says always hurt and as she was “quite small” she was usually the weak link. If someone didn’t break the link they had to join that chain. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.03.06- 0.03.47 </td> <td> Games on The beach Not much time in the water/sea because it was too cold. Made sandcastles, sand tunnels, forts, dams to keep the sea out or bring the sea in. These plans never worked and Edith says “you learned about futility as a smallie”. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.03.47- 0.04.38 </td> <td> Playing Without Adult Supervision Spent a lot of time quite bored in fields or on bikes. “We’d just head off on the bikes for the day: I don’t really know where we went or why we went.” Only television was RTE 1 and RTE 2- “Poverty 1 and Poverty 2” there was nothing to watch. Call to friend and come back when felt like it. No phones. Improvised ways out of problems. Reasonable amount of time without adult supervision. But there were always watchful adult eyes: “if you were doing something you shouldn’t be doing your parents would usually hear about it.” </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.04.38- 0.05.00 </td> <td> Where not allowed to play Places not allowed to be on bikes when little: out the front on the main road where cars were quite fast. Not supposed to go on the back fields where there was a bull. (Suggestion in her response is that they may have not always obeyed!) </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.05.00 - 0.05.16 </td> <td> Home Mum, dad and sister 3 years older. Mum was primary school principal. Dad worked Monday-Friday 9-5. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.05.16- 0.06.51 </td> <td> Primary School Remembers being cold and very bored. Went to school in “Park” on a crossroads on the top of a hill in the middle of nowhere. Where her mum was teacher. 2 teacher outside toilets and no central heating when she started school. There was a stove to heat the classroom very like the school in Muckross Farms. Two “boot rooms” or cloakrooms. Inside toilets eventually installed. Very few students. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.06.51- 0.09.50 </td> <td> Secondary School Went to Loreto in Youghal it was also very cold. Some years were in prefabs. The school was near the lighthouse. When you were bored you could look out to the sea from an old redbrick house which was left to the nuns. It was very exposed to the weather- wind, rain and salt spray from the sea-wall. Enjoyed maths and science. Lots of repetition in the schoolwork. Would prefer self-directed learning not just learning by rote. For people with other kinds of intelligence it wasted their potential and opportunity. Heuristic learning- learning through play and experience. She learned how to sew a button, balance a cheque book and pay a bill. Skills for living in the world: how to cook how to clean how to look after your physical health, mental health should be taught. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.09.50- 0.11.19 </td> <td> Love of Nature and Science leading to Medicine. Was always interested in nature and biological sciences: “mad about nature”. When 13 or 14 a friend brought a roadkill mink to science class to dissect it. The teacher was a bit squeamish, but Edith said she would do it “no bother”. Remembers “pure awe” at how remarkably perfect the insides were, “how it all fitted, and it all worked”. Had dissected earthworms before. Drifted then to wanting to do medicine. Set her heard on it. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.11.19- 0.14.09 </td> <td> Medicine as a Vocation, the Determination Required Mom and dad really didn’t want her to do medicine at all. They called in the local GP to tell her not to do it- which had the opposite effect. She applied for medicine at 16 when she sat her leaving cert for the first time and had to repeat it because she didn’t get enough points. In some ways in hindsight her parents were probably right. It is a hard life and requires working very hard for a very long time. Edith was a premature baby and was always physically small and thin and her parents were concerned. Her colleague with an Italian grandmother described the need to do medicine as being like a holy fire [Note: “sacro fuoco” maybe?] similar to a vocation but perhaps not spiritual. If you have this fire nothing else will do. She also applied for computer science. If she hadn’t done medicine in college, she thinks she would have gone back to do it later in life. Local GP told her it’s a very hard life for a woman- which is not the thing to say to a 15-year-old. Thinks the nuns that taught her was feminist in their way as they were ambitious for their students. The GP said that you don’t want to do nightshifts when pregnant or be on call when you have small babies. The cards are very much stacked against you to make it in medicine as a consultant as a woman. Edith says he was right but that you don’t want to hear that at 15. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.14.09- 0.15.17 </td> <td> Nuns’ Ambition for the girls Only one in school to do medicine. Many of the students did honours maths. There was competition between the boys’ school and the girls’ school. They’ve now combined. Some schools didn’t offer honours maths or honours science subjects to leaving cert for girls. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.15.17- 0.18.40 </td> <td> Medical Training in UCC University College Cork Didn’t love medicine in UCC. Didn’t find the training easy- a culture of throwing people in to it. Students told that most of them would become GPs and that medical students learn themselves they don’t need to be taught. Lectures often had little relevance to what was in the book. Clinical training involved bullying, teaching by fear, humiliation. Consultant was seen as god. Lots of waiting around for people who didn’t turn up. Mental fallout for some of the people in her class. And the system may not have made them better doctors. Saw how students were taught differently overseas. Students were getting sick in the morning with nerves before clinics. Had friends who weren’t doing medicine. Met her now husband at 19. Always had something outside of medicine to stay grounded. Always liked the clinical work and the patients. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.18.40 - 0.23.40 </td> <td> Clinical Training Book learning- through lectures. Clinical placements for students with a particular service for a time follow their team and learn how to take a patient history and examine a patient. Initially must ask about everything when taking patient histories until you know what to look for. Lived in nurses’ home in Limerick for six weeks. Consultant would take you to see an interesting patient to ask you questions. Some were fine but some were set up so that you would definitely fail so that you know that you know nothing and be humiliated. It was done to everybody no one was singled out. Describes how the consultant asked students questions. Thinks that the experience has left a mark on her and otherwise confident colleagues as they sometimes have difficulty answering questions in group settings, or when in a particular tone. Describes it as like being triggered. Edith didn’t go to one consultant’s clinics because she found she wasn’t learning from him. No one would notice if she wasn’t there. Jokes that she hopes UCC doesn’t as they’ll take away her degree! </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.23.40- 0.25.25 </td> <td> Why this teaching system was used in UCC Consultants wanted to imprint the exceptions and rare cases on their minds so they wouldn’t forget. It was basically the Socratic method. They were once told that they weren’t good enough to be medical students. Then not good enough to be the vets in Ballsbridge and lastly that they weren’t good enough to be the medical correspondent in the Irish Times! Sounds funny now but at the time they were devastated. But Edith still remembers the name of the particular type of amputation due to this scene. This system of teaching & learning was designed when people need to remember a lot of information. Now things have changed as “all the information is there” now you need to learn how to use it. An interesting patient is one which had something which was rare. Edith describes it as something with four legs, a tail and neighs but is a zebra not a horse. </td> </tr> </tbody> </table> <table> <tbody> <tr> <td> 0.26.05- 0.30.07 </td> <td> Career Path for medical students SHO- senior house officer. After qualifying you become an intern. After a first year as an intern you can become an SHO. Then become a Registrar, then a Senior Registrar, Specialist Registrar and eventually a Consultant. SHO could be 2-4 years long. SHOs are the general grunts they do all the hard work. Edith did 6 months surgery in Mercy Hospital, 6 months of medicine in the South Infirmary Hospital and really enjoyed them. Every thirds week in the Mercy they worked 110 hours. In hindsight they had “ridiculous levels of responsibility”. Then did the 2 year specialist paediatric training scheme in Dublin. Then did paediatrics in New Zealand, then accident and emergency. Did GP training in New Zealand. Returned to Ireland when her eldest daughter was 1. Worked as GP in Cork. After her twins were born Edith went back to work when they were 8 months old. She worked for Swiftcare for 5 years. Husband stayed at home to mind children and was going to go back to work. She was clinical lead with Swiftcare which included corporate, management and clinical. Looking to reduce her hours and her friend asked if she would be interested in a job in Grattan Street and she started March 2013. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.30.07- 0.33.44 </td> <td> Enjoyed Accident and Emergency work in New Zealand Edith says A&E in New Zealand is fabulous. It was real doctoring. The immediacy of it. See lots of different things. Got her clinical confidence- could deal with anything. Security removed anyone who was abusive. There was always enough resources, staff, beds. People weren’t burnt out in the way they are in Ireland. Requires being on call on nights. Did A&E in the Hutt outside wealthy Wellington CBD Central Business District and Porirua. Deprived areas around the Hutt so there were cases of self-harm, domestic abuse and patients from lower-socioeconomic areas. Gravitated towards those areas, similar in her time in Temple Street. In Cork Edith works mainly in the Northside. The social supports either weren’t there or didn’t work in her experience in Ireland. Children unable to access basic dental care was unheard of in New Zealand where they have better primacy care. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.33.44- 0.36.36 </td> <td> Early Memory & description of Grattan Street Medical Centre A woman working downstairs said it was like coming to Colditz [German WW2 Prisoner of War Camp]. Arrived with a friend. Everyone was so nice. An old Quaker Meeting House. In busy urban areas between a school, busy road, houses, church complex. Hodgepodge! Kind of Victorian road frontage. Older building at the back made of cut stone. Higgledy-piggledy. Different types of signage. There’s a bit of a railing and bit of a ramp. Building kept together with duct tape and bits of binder twine. It’s a bit sad looking. But it has been here a long time and will be here in the future. A building that’s seen use and is embedded in the community. In keeping with Middle Parish. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.36.36- 0.39.02 </td> <td> Services in Grattan Street Medical Centre Health centre which provides community-based services for people based in Middle Parish, inner-city area, eye clinic provides community eye services for all of the North Lee HSE area- from Blarney to Carrigtwohill. Community podiatry clinic. Community medical doctors: child development clinics and vaccination services for North Lee. Public Health Nurse (PHN) services based in Grattan Street. Home Care Services Unit. Community dental services has moved out. Girls at front desk do European Health Visit Card and stamp forms- eye clinic etc. Community Welfare Officer used to be there as well but they have moved. Vaccination services. Similar but disparate services. Serve different populations within the community. Community based services are geographically decided rather than by your condition. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.39.02- 0.40.40 </td> <td> Engagement with a Community Based Service Hopes that services run in the community for the community get a better engagement rather than traveling to a tertiary centre. More likely to engage with a PHN who you may have been to before than an anonymous person in an anonymous clinic that changes each time you go. Community knowledge of Grattan Street in a way that there isn’t for CUH. Grattan Street doesn’t deal with life and death so expectations are different to a hospital. Physically less distance for people to travel in the community. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.40.40- 0.43.44 </td> <td> Working in Grattan Street Communal Building Uses Grattan Street for office-based work. Some clinics in Grattan Street but the demographics have changed and there are fewer babies and young children in the area. Primarily paper-pushing and renewing the connections that you have with the people who work in Grattan Street. Clinics in South Doc so it’s possible for Edith not to meet any other healthcare professionals only patients so Grattan Street is a social hub and important part of the job where information is transmitted in a more informal way not through writing. Importance of feedback. And Grattan Street facilitates that. Communal building. Can see people walking past and talk to them if you leave your office door open. Facilitates those networks. You will know who is in the building and check in with Celine in the office to see who else is there and what is happening. AMO- Area Medical Officer now Community Medical Doctors. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.43.44- 0.51.20 </td> <td> Clinics and Patients in Grattan Street Afternoon clinic downstairs in room 4 in Grattan Street. 6-10 patients in an afternoon clinic from 2:30-4pm. Anything referred in by the PHN or the assessment of needs- the disability services, and early intervention- concern with an ongoing developmental delay in child in the community. Checks for vision, head checks, hip checks. Partly routine partly not routine. Patients tend to be very early or very late. People will turn up 30 minutes early or 15-20 minutes late. Other places people turn up on time or a few minutes late. But with small babies delays happen for parents. Staff has high tolerance for that. Sometimes a mum will come with other children as well, or with a granny or granny will come with the children or there will be a friend or helper there too. Majority of patients come from PHNs. Form from PHN saying who their GP is and why they’re being referred. Always checks their names especially as more and more patients don’t have a typical Irish name. Some of them change mobile numbers often so checking those details is important. Change of address is also a problem. Some come from Edel House a women’s homeless service. Takes a background history or birth history- where they were born, birth weight, past medical history. Discuss risk factors, examine patients and how to proceed and be very clear with follow up instructions with the parents. We only remember 30% of what we are told. Usually don’t see patients again- not a follow up, ongoing service, don’t provide therapeutic intervention. “Good at normal”- this is within the range of what we expect. Much of medicine is about the abnormal. Most usual medical issues she deals with: Vision checks for squint, hip checks- concern about deformation, head checks. Developmental assessment- concern about autism or global developmental delay or intellectual disability. Preschools are good at spotting developmental concerns and referring them. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.51.20- 0.54.53 </td> <td> Attitudes of Parents towards Health & Medicine and HSE Parents want the best for children and are happy to do the best what it takes. Rare case where parent is in denial about their child’s situation- Edith doesn’t hassle them so as not to sour therapeutic relations down the line. Most people engage unlike adult medicine. Some parents may have complicated or chaotic lives and social workers may need to get involved. Advocate for the child’s best interests and is represented in the family. Even parents with most complicated lives can address the child’s needs. HSE is different. Expectation of a bad service especially where Grattan Street looks a bit rough and ready, but surprised that they get a good service and Edith is pleasant and doesn’t rush them out. Difficult conversations about telling parents of long waiting lists. Edith cannot speed up assessments. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.54.53- 0.58.43 </td> <td> Most Unusual Cases come across Doesn’t like unusual. Should not be seeing anything acute or sinister. A child staring into space could have autism sometimes it could be an absence seizure which needs a difficult treatment. Genetic abnormality which causes a developmental delay. Acute cases usually picked up by the paediatricians. Be careful about not scaring parents. Sometimes parents are reluctant to go to hospital. Acute cases are the ones that you think about when you go home and are not at work. Acute is something which cannot wait. Less concerned about something which is stable and isn’t going to change eg if someone is fragile X a chromosomal condition which causes developmental delay, commonest cause of intellectual disability- if a patient has this it is not going to go away. But if there’s a child you think has a brain tumour which has given them an acute squint which has come on over 24 hours out of nowhere then you don’t want to wait. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.58.43- 1.01.44 </td> <td> Dealing with Parents Reluctant to go to Hospital Most parents want what’s best for child. Sometimes parents can sometimes be preparing to fight to get what they think their child needs, and be adversarial. Can spend much of consultation time to get the parent onside. Have to be careful to not reinforce the idea that the parent thinks they need to push harder to get what they want. Explains that she wouldn’t do for someone else’s child what she wouldn’t do for any of her own. That can be a powerful message for a parent. If that doesn’t convince them then she has to start thinking about social workers: is there child abuse, is the parent drunk or stoned. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.01.44- 1.02.30 </td> <td> Why People may be reluctant to go to Hospital Down to resources: can’t afford taxi, no one to mind children, don’t want to go to CUH Cork University Hospital. Often single mums, mums without social supports, or trying to work and mind children. Physical upheaval is difficult. Logistically and economically difficult for parents. Example from Gurranabraher. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.02.30- 1.04.58 </td> <td> What it is like to work in Grattan Street Unique. Communal building, sense of community. Even people that you don’t deal with clinically you get to know which is important. Buildings are about the people in them not just the services they provide. Physicality of the building- open gallery- you can see & hear who is there. Would prefer it if was a warner building. Survivor bonding over the deficiencies of the building. Problems with parking. People say they work in Grattan Street not in podiatry. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.04.58- 1.06.24 </td> <td> Parking Small area for parking, not big enough for all the people who work there. Have to move your car to let people out. Didn’t park in the car park when working a half-day because wouldn’t be able to get out. School and houses also use the parking area and they can get cross if they are blocked. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.06.24- 1.09.12 </td> <td> Past of the Building Quaker meeting house. Building is set up like a church- entrance with arch and sweeping staircases, ceiling roses, curved picture rails. Awareness of the thickness of the walls and windows, not the typical shape for an office building or healthcare centre. Stone plaques outside in the parking area which commemorate the building. Was a dispensary from the 1940s one of the school nurses on the list of interviewees has a friend whose father was the dispenser or pharmacist there. Some of the came to Grattan Street as children for speech and language therapy. No anecdotes about when the lights went out or when it flooded. Cultural understanding of dispensary is that it was a publicly funded pharmacy but that they were fairly grim places for the ordinary not the great and the good. Lots of rooms and big building. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.09.12- 1.11.37 </td> <td> Weddings in the Registry in Grattan Street Other part of the building is the registry office at the front where people get married. Weddings out the front when coming to work. Children crying and elderly people. Swathe of human life. Unusual to see weddings in the urban work environment which makes everyone smile. And she will miss that when they move. Thinks other employees will have stories and anecdotes. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.11.37- 1.15.00 </td> <td> Paper & Documents in Grattan Street No one would believe how much paper is in the building. No one removes paper because no one knows who it belongs to. Paper based system for records. Accretions of paper. Shared office space where very little is thrown away. Extraordinary volume of paper created and used. Referrals done on duplicate books with carbon copy. Referral books for services which no longer exist- going back as far as the 1970. Old computers unused. Random boxes of leaflets. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.15.00- 1.18.10 </td> <td> Words to Describe Grattan Street and its future Community. Resilience. Service. If it was a dog it would be a Labrador, and old smelly one with bad teeth that farts a lot! A pet that everyone loves. Would hate to see the building closed and empty. Sense of spirit in the building. Understands that Quakers signed over the building with the view that it would be used for health services to the community. There’s no disabled access or toilets at present. Buckets in kitchen when it rains. Won’t do well if it is left empty and cold. Community based health resource rather than offices and admin. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.18.10- 1.22.13 </td> <td> Future of Services moving from Grattan Street Services moving to St Mary’s health campus. Podiatry moving to St Mary’s. PHN have moved already. Vaccination will move to St Mary’s. Eye clinic will move to St Finbarr’s. Dental has gone to Finbarr’s. Unsure about European Health Cards. Home Care may stay here. Marriages will stay. They have had little information about the services. Understands the complexity of project managing the move. Eye clinic will be physically remote from St. Mary’s. Lose sense of networks even though you can still pick up the phone. Lose contacts and networks and personally knowing people in other services. Personal knowledge of how other people work. It gives you more information about how to triage or perceive a referral when you know the people. Anything that interferes with getting information relevant to the patient and decision-making will make her job slightly harder. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.22.13- 1.25.19 </td> <td> Sense of Patients’ Perspectives Some clinic space may have to be kept in Grattan Street because of the most vulnerable patients in the area eg. from Edel House and newly arrived immigrants, and people who have moved out of direct provision. Families where English might not be first language and from backgrounds where there might be poor healthcare. Travel may be difficult for these patients, especially going “up the hill” to St Mary’s. Will advocate strongly to keep a clinic in Grattan Street- it’s easier to move 1 doctor to see 30 patients than vice versa, and do not need any specialised equipment. Grattan Street is a disaster for people with cars- St Mary’s is much better it has parking, space and coffee shops. Ensure that better services elsewhere don’t leave more vulnerable patients behind. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.25.19- 1.27.47 </td> <td> Comparison between Grattan Street and St. Mary’s St Mary’s will have: heating, lifts disabled toilets, large waiting areas, easy access. [Edith’s phone vibrates during this section] In Grattan Street if you are on crutches you can’t come to work. St Mary’s will fix these problems. Change is hard. [Edith’s phone vibrates during this section] With a new start if gives the staff a chance to effect the culture of the new building. Everyone in the building making small inputs. Christmas lunch potluck and baby showers in Grattan Street for which there is no policy or permission required people organised it themselves- autonomy and power. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.27.47- 1.31.31 </td> <td> Culture of the New Building & Importance of Admin People need to feel they have some autonomy of their workplace eg. the signs in Grattan Street which people put up without needing permission. Every clerical and admin staff can hear the patients who come into Grattan Street so they understand that they are not a piece of paper or a number. Further away people are from the person they provide the worse the service provision. Service lives and dies on its administrative staff. When admin staff goes on holidays the clinical staff are bereft! Importance of admin staff even though their role can be minimised. But in Grattan Street there is a good balance. St Mary’s may be isolated in separate rooms. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.31.31- 1.33.02 </td> <td> What Makes Good Admin Support? Patience. Being able to spin so many plates. First point of contact for people who use the service. People who understand that it’s really important. Although HSE gets a bad reputation every admin staff has been helpful and gone above and beyond. Celine in Grattan Street is very patient. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.33.02- 1.35.14 </td> <td> Patient Expectations of St Mary’s Big scary, bewildering building. Hope that people will be made to feel welcome. Scale of foyer area is colossal and may be overwhelming. Community should have some autonomy over the building in the same way the staff should. Comfortable seats and accessible baby changing facilities may be enough to make people feel welcome. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.35.14-1.38.08 </td> <td> Centralised Canteen Would like to see centralised canteen for the staff with access to healthy food. Small things become important. Easy to walk around and access healthy food. Sense that the community can use the space- not much green space on the northside. Chance to look at a different model of healthcare. Moaning is easy and can create a toxic culture if things never change. Small kitchen room on St Mary’s health campus. St Finbarr’s has a centralised canteen but CUH doesn’t. Give people healthy options on site. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.38.08-1.40.43 </td> <td> Community connection with Grattan Street more generally Edith has little interaction with Middle Parish community. Sees people coming and going from Middle Parish Community Centre and from the SHARE Centre, may help them across the road. Very little interaction which she finds quite sad. Would know some of the support workers in Edel House through working with them and phone calls. Reality of life is everyone is very busy. No funding for other community outreach projects. May run ante-natal classes in Grattan Street which would be good. The more engaged the community can be with the building the more likely they will be to turn up to their GP appointment or diabetic nurse appointment. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.40.43-1.43.40 </td> <td> Reflection choosing Medicine Would not want any of her children to do medicine. Comes at a big cost. Have to work 90 hour weeks and tell mother that their babies had died while her friends were traveling and going to parties. Have to go through hard parts of job to get to a role that you like. Came first in paediatrics in UCC please don’t tell Prof Carney/Kearney that she only went to about 2 paeds lectures! But spent a lot of time in the wards. Children are direct and Edith likes that. Interview Ends </td> </tr> </tbody> </table> Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Edith O'Regan: Grattan Street, Healthcare, Working Life Subject The topic of the resource Ireland; Cork; Youghal; Middle Parish; The Marsh; Grattan Street; Occupational Lore; Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 7 February 2019 Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context CFP_SF00696_O'Regan_2019 Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant Cork, Youghal, Ireland, 1970s-2010s Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Cork Folklore Project Audio Archive Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource Cork Folklore Project Language A language of the resource English Type The nature or genre of the resource Sound Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource 1 .wav file Relation A related resource Other Interviews in this Collection <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/242" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00704_Collins_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/243" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00706_Higgisson_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/244" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00712_O'Brien_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/245" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00713_Kearney_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/246" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00714_Cunning_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/247" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00717_Ward_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/248" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00727_OhUigin_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/249" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00728_Scanlan_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/250" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00729_Mulcahy_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/251" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00732_Cassidy_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/252" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00760_Morrissy_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/253" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"> CFP_SR00762_OConnell_2019</a>; Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Cork Folklore Project Description An account of the resource Edith grew up in Youghal where she recalls playing childhood games including Red Rover, chainey, a makeshift tennis and sandcastles on the beach. Describes attending school in cold substandard buildings. Preferred self-directed learning to rote memorizing. Her love of nature and science was evident early and evolved into her passion to follow medicine as a vocation and career, despite the opposition of her parents and GP who feared it would be a hard life especially for a woman. Reflects on the deficiencies of medical training in University College Cork, especially the deliberate use of fear and humiliation in teaching which has left a negative mark on her and other colleagues. Suggests that the need to imprint so much information through humiliation is no longer necessary due to improvements in technology. Outlines her career path through various roles, experiences and responsibilities including working in Accident and Emergency and time in New Zealand. Discusses her impressions of Grattan Street Medical Centre both as a physical building with leaks and in disrepair and as a unique workplace with a community of multiple disciplines which function well together. Speaks about her current work as an Area Medical Officer, the kind of patients she sees and typical issues that arise including developmental checks on babies and following up with parents. Reflects on attitudes towards medicine and the HSE especially among parents, and how as a doctor she has to deal with this in order to achieve best outcomes for child patients. Outlines the problems with Grattan Street staff car parking and the issues it cause. Talks about the outlines of the history she has gleaned about Grattan Street Medical Centre Building as a Quaker Meeting House and as a public dispensary. Speaks of the marriage registry office which is part of the Grattan Street building, where weddings happen during her work day creating a strange but joyous contrast. Discusses the amount of paperwork and documentation required for all the work in Grattan Street that remains from past decades which fascinates her. Reflects on her hopes and the possible futures for the Grattan Street Medical Centre building, and the fate of services that will move to St. Mary’s Primary Care Centre in Gurranabraher. Compares the two locations and emphasizes the importance of a good workplace culture within a building. Talks about possible patient attitudes to the new building. Hopes it will have a communal staff canteen. Outlines the importance of administration staff in contributing to positive experiences for patients and facilitating the efficient work clinical staff. Reflects on the difficulties of a medical career including 90 hour weeks, missing out on parties and travelling, and having to tell mothers that their babies have died. A & E A and E Accident and Emergency Addiction Administration Adult Supervision Alcohol Ambition Ambitions Anatomy Appointment Appointments Attitudes to Health Authority Autonomy Babies Baby Beach Bicycle Bicycles Bicycling Bike Bikes Books Bored Boredom Building Buildings Built Heritage Bull Bullying Bureaucracy Car Park Car Parking Career Career Path Careers Central Heating Child Abuse Childhood Childhood Games Children Children’s Games Clerical Clerical Staff Clinic Clinics Communal Community Computer Computers Confidence Consultant Consultants Cork University Hospital CUH Cycling Decision-Making Decisions Degree Deprivation Deprived Areas Disability Access Discipline Dispensary Dissection Doctor Doctoring Doctors Documents Drink Drunk Edel House Emigration Employment Exam Examination Examinations Exams Expectation Expectations Feminism Feminist Fields Files Filing Game Games General Practice GP Grattan Street Gurranabraher Health Healthcare Heat Heating Hierarchy Home Life Homeless Hospital Hospital Ward Hospital Wards HSE Hurt Husband Injury Job Late Lateness Learning Marriage Marriages Marsh Mathematics Maths Medical Centre Medical Student Medical Students Medical Training Medication Medication Training Medicine Medicines Mental Health Mercy Hospital Middle Parish Middle Parish Community Centre Nature New Zealand Nuns Nurse Nurses Nursing Occupation Paper Paperwork Parents Parking Patient Patients PHN Playing Power Premature Babies Premature Baby Public Health Public Health Nurse Public Health Nurses Quaker Quakers Registry Office Religion Reluctant Patient Reluctant Patients Reputation Resilience Resilient Resource Resources Responsibility Role of Women Room Rooms Routine RTE Rules Sandcastles School School Days Schooldays Schoolwork Sea Seaside Security Services SHARE Social Disadvantage Social Work Social Worker Social Workers Sport Spouse St Mary's Health Campus St Mary’s Health Campus Staff Student Student Life Students Substance Abuse Teacher Teachers Teaching Technology Television Temperature Control Tennis The Marsh The Middle Parish Tide Tides Time Training Transport Transportation Travel TV UCC University University College Cork Vocation Ward Wards Wedding Weddings Welfare Wellington Women Women in Work Women's Lives Work Working Working life Workload Youghal https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/files/original/e419d85b95cb03144f9b6f4f836603b6.jpg e245f89b3e8cbbb2c200a3033ee23a69 https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/files/original/d12fe1beff5d2f13851bd786dbf54f42.mp3 f89e223784f869b2f3c433e727fa8acb Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Grattan Street Stories: Memory of Place Subject The topic of the resource Occupational Lore; Life History; Built Heritage; Health; Ireland; Cork; Middle Parish Description An account of the resource This collection focuses on a building on Grattan Street which has served as a Quaker Meeting House, a public Dispensary and as the Grattan Street Health Centre. The project was a collaboration between the CFP and the Cork North Community Work Department, Cork Kerry Community Healthcare, Health Services Executive HSE. The interviewees fall into two main groups: those who worked in the building and those who lived in the surrounding area and availed of the services provided in the building. This project follows on from the collaboration with the HSE in the “<a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/collections/show/10" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">HSE Orthopaedic Hospital Oral History Project (d'Orthopaedic)</a>”. There is a further connection between the two projects as many of the staff and services once provided in the Grattan Street Health Centre have now relocated to St. Mary's Health Campus (St Mary’s Primary Care Centre) Gurranabraher, the former site of the Orthopaedic Hospital. This topic of the relocation of services is also covered in some staff interviews. To date (October 2021) 13 interviews have been completed for the project. Interviewees discuss the Grattan Street building itself in terms of its historic significance, its benefits and drawbacks as a workplace. Broader themes related to or inspired by the building are also touched on including: personal relationship with the building, staff camaraderie, the problems with parking, memorable incidents at work, patient experiences and descriptions of the people and services for which the building catered. Healthcare professional interviewees detail their training, career progression and comparisons between Grattan Street and other workplaces. Their testimonies also provide a link with the community of patients they served giving further insight into attitudes to healthcare, diseases, vaccines, description of social conditions and the changes in medicine and technology in their working lives. Non-healthcare professional interviewees describe childhood experiences in or around Grattan Street (The Marsh or The Middle Parish), the social, cultural and economic conditions of the area, tenements, businesses, attitudes to and experiences of healthcare, vaccines, diseases, medicines and medical professionals as well as observed changes in these areas over time. Interviewees also reflect on the possible future uses of the Grattan Street building. Related Reference Sources <ul> <li>Barrington, R. (1987) Health, medicine and politics in Ireland, 1900–1970. Dublin: Institute of Public Administration.</li> <li>Butler D.M. (2004) The Quaker meeting houses of Ireland. Dublin : Irish Friends Historical Committee.</li> <li>Byrne, J. (2004) Byrne's dictionary of Irish local history. Cork: Mercier Press.</li> <li>Cooke, R. T. (1999) My Home by the Lee. Irish Millennium Publications: Cork.</li> <li>Dempsey, P. J. & White, L. W. ‘Childers, Erskine Hamilton’. Dictionary of Irish Biography [Accessed 18 October 2021]</li> <li>Harrison, R.S. (1991) Cork City Quakers 1655-1939: A Brief History. Cork.</li> <li>Houston, M. (2004). ‘Life before the GP’. The Irish Times. Available at : <<a href="https://www.irishtimes.com/news/health/life-before-the-gp-1.1158599">https://www.irishtimes.com/news/health/life-before-the-gp-1.1158599</a> > [Accessed 18 October 2021]</li> <li>Keohane, F. (2020) The Buildings of Ireland Cork City and County. New Haven and London: Yale University Press.</li> </ul> Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2019-2020 Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Interviewees: Edith O’Regan, 'Mary', Sean Higgisson, Aoife O’Brien, Eileen Kearney, Imelda Cunning, Jane Ward, Liam Ó hUigín, Joe Scanlan, Mary Mulcahy, Philomena Cassidy, Don Morrissy, Derek O’Connell Interviewer: <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=2&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=Kieran+Murphy" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Kieran Murphy</a>, (<a href="https://corkfolklore.org/community-oral-history-outreach-officer/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP Community Oral History Outreach Officer</a>) Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant Cork, Ireland 1940s-2020s; Waterford, Ireland; Dublin, Ireland; Limerick, Ireland; Relation A related resource Exhibition Artist Edith O’Regan-Cosgrave (also an interviewee for the project) created a visual artwork based around the Grattan Street Medical Centre building itself, as a workplace and health centre. The artwork incorporated direct quotations from the oral history interviews conducted for the project, and also included brief historical paragraphs about the building researched, written and edited by the <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/community-oral-history-outreach-officer/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP Community Oral History Outreach Officer</a> Kieran Murphy. This exhibition was launched on 6th February 2020 in “St Peter’s” on the North Main Street where a “Listening Event” was also held to mark the occasion. <img src="http://corkfolklore.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/Grattan-Poster-for-Email-286-by-400.jpg" alt="Grattan-Poster-for-Email-286-by-400.jpg" /> Presentation and Listening Event To coincide with the launch of the Grattan Street Stories Exhibtion on 6th February 2020 a listening event and presentation of the history of the Grattan Street Medical Centre building and description of the project was given by <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/community-oral-history-outreach-officer/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP Community Oral History Outreach Officer</a> Kieran Murphy. <img src="http://corkfolklore.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/427A7714-1.jpg" alt="427A7714-1.jpg" /> Presentation In 2019 at the OHNI conference the <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/community-oral-history-outreach-officer/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP Community Oral History Outreach Officer</a> Kieran Murphy discussed social media and oral history which included audio excerpts from the Grattan Street Stories Project along with photographs of the building. <img src="http://corkfolklore.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/Kieran-OHNI-e1634041838937.jpg" alt="Kieran-OHNI-e1634041838937.jpg" /> Audio Visual Presentation An audio-visual slideshow was produced featuring oral testimony from the Grattan Street Stories Project and combined with suitable images of Grattan Street and from Edith O’Regan-Cosgrave’s exhibition. This was created by <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/community-oral-history-outreach-officer/">CFP Community Oral History Outreach Officer</a> Kieran Murphy. <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RnjEtQeOb3I&t=1s&ab_channel=CorkFolklore" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Audio Visual Presentation Available to listen and view here.</a> Health and Vaccines Oral History Research Many of the interviews conducted for the Grattan Street project formed an integral part of the testimonies and research for the innovative <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/health/about" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">'Catching Stories' of infectious disease in Ireland </a>project funded by the Irish Research Council. <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/health/about" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"><img src="http://corkfolklore.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/Catching-Stories-Poster.jpg" alt="Catching-Stories-Poster.jpg" /></a> Social Media Numerous suitable audio excerpts from the oral history interviews have been edited and shared on CFP's social media channels. <a href="https://twitter.com/corkfolklore/status/1139167201582288901" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">https://twitter.com/corkfolklore/status/1139167201582288901</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/corkfolklore/status/1140909542240391168" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">https://twitter.com/corkfolklore/status/1140909542240391168</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/corkfolklore/status/1141264486768238592" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">https://twitter.com/corkfolklore/status/1141264486768238592</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/corkfolklore/status/1189872295923376133" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">https://twitter.com/corkfolklore/status/1189872295923376133</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/corkfolklore/status/1228322700415860736" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">https://twitter.com/corkfolklore/status/1228322700415860736</a> Orthopaedic Hospital Cork Folklore Project in collaboration with the HSE conducted an oral history project focussing on the Orthapaedic Hospital in Gurranabraher. Many of the staff and services once provided at the Grattan Street Health Centre site were moved to St. Mary's Health Campus (St Mary’s Primary Care Centre) Gurranabraher, the former site of the Orthopaedic Hospital. <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/collections/show/10" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">HSE Orthopaedic Hospital Oral History Project (d'Orthopaedic)</a> Swimming Article Kieran Murphy and James Furey co-authored an article about <a href="https://tripeanddrisheen.substack.com/p/swim-city?s=r" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Swimming in Cork</a> which appeared in the online magazine Tripe + Drisheen. This article features a number of interview extracts collected as part of the Grattan Street Stories Project. Related Interviews CFP_SR00756_Quilligan_2019; CFP_SR00758_Broderick_2019; CFP_SR00670_OShea_2018; Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Cork Folklore Project Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Cork Folklore Project Audio Archive Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Cork Folklore Project Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource Cork Folklore Project Language A language of the resource English Type The nature or genre of the resource Audio Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource 16 .wav Files Oral History A resource containing historical information obtained in interviews with persons having firsthand knowledge. Interviewee The person(s) being interviewed Mary Interviewer The person(s) performing the interview Kieran Murphy Duration Length of time involved (seconds, minutes, hours, days, class periods, etc.) 112 Minutes 13 Seconds Location The location of the interview Bishopstown Original Format The type of object, such as painting, sculpture, paper, photo, and additional data .wav Bit Rate/Frequency Rate at which bits are transferred (i.e. 96 kbit/s would be FM quality audio) 24bit / 48kHz Time Summary A summary of an interview given for different time stamps throughout the interview <table> <tbody> <tr> <td> 0.00.00 - 0.00.25 </td> <td> Intro </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.00.25 - 0.02.29 </td> <td> Background Grew up in County Limerick. Dad died when young. Early memory as 3 year old feeding a calf. Trained in St Johns Limerick, midwifery in Glasgow, 1975 went to Australia- Melbourne, Sidney, Brisbane. Returned after a year. Worked in Orthopaedic hospital in Croom, Limerick. Came to Cork, worked in Sarsfield’s Court [Glanmire] in the chest unit. Met a man which is why she stayed in Cork. Nursing involved night-duty and weekends, and "Mary" was thinking forward and did the Public Health Course to become PHN Public Health Nurse- first assignment was Middle Parish based in Grattan Street. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.02.29 - 0.05.26 </td> <td> Early Memories: Father’s Death, Family Women with tea and USA biscuits. Seeing lines of men in the hay barn and animals coming out- must have been auction of the animals. One older brother mentally & physically handicapped, 2 younger sisters. Mental Hospital St Joseph’s in Limerick rented land from their farm so there was an income coming in without the mother taking sole responsibility for running the farm. It was therapy for the patients working on the farm despite being out in all weather. "Mary" thinks that many of the male patients were there as a result of the war. One man was called Sergeant. "Mary's" family also got fresh vegetables from them. Learning process for them, learned who they could trust and who not- “heightened our awareness of mankind”. Some people were fit and healthy and others had mental issues. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.05.26 - 0.09.30 </td> <td> Memory of Smell of Tripe Cooking reminds of dad When in St Johns in 2nd year of training ages 19 or 20- she had a memory of a taste and smell. Walking on corridor in 1st floor she got the smell. Found her way to room 8 and a priest was having tripe and drisheen or tripe and packet as it’s called in Limerick. You could get the smell passing Shaws abattoir on the way into Limerick City. They had a hooter which would sound at 1pm and 5pm or 6pm in the evening which could be heard by "Mary" at home. Says that tripe is the lining of a sheep’s stomach. “Villi”- nooks and crannies. Still buys it in the English Market on the left hand-side when you enter from the Grand Parade- and there was someone in front of her in the queue so she wasn’t the only one buying it! Advises opening a window to let the small out! </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.09.30 - 0.10.35 </td> <td> Typical Day on the Farm when Growing up- making bread They had a cow on the farm. Woman called May who helped out their mother on the farm. They would put on their “busy coat” or “duds” to milk cow, bring in milk, make brown soda bread. Remembers mother making bread around 10am in an earthenware crock with sour milk in it which went into the Aga oven. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.10.35 - 0.13.05 </td> <td> Learning about her Mother Remarrying Tom worked with the mental hospital and he would call in and there was a china cup for him. "Mary" asked her mother whether Tom slept in the house now, and previously asked May where her mother was and was told she was on holidays. Subsequently she realised that her mother had married Tom and they had been on honeymoon. Reflects on how little information she was given about this change in situation and how it applies in her nursing role and thinks that sometimes less information is better when dealing with young children who may not fully understand everything. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.13.05- 0.16.00 </td> <td> Typical Day on the Farm when Growing up In winter deal with the cow: hay, water, and muck out. Cow let out in the field in spring and summer. Dinner would be any time after the cake was made- ready about 12:30. Dinner usually bacon, cabbage, carrots, parsnips. As season moved on more turnips and potatoes. Seasonal. Started with Ker Pinks then Golden Wonders, didn’t like soapy Aran Banners. Then apple or rhubarb tarts. Supper at 5pm or 6pm: beans, bananas, eggs. They had hens which had to be fed. Went to bed at 8pm or 9pm. In evening have to bring the cow back down and there might be 10 or 12 bullocks following you- nightmare that they would trample you to death? Mother and May made the food. When "Mary" was 7 or 8 years old May was let go as "Mary" was considered old enough to help out. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.16.00- 0.17.57 </td> <td> Interaction with the Patients of the Mental Hospital Looking out the window watching them. Sheep shearing and rolling of the wool. Taking off the “daggings” and rolling the wool into fleeces. Or bringing in the hay watching them piking and the change from horses to tractors. There was an archway into their yard and it became harder to get larger machines through the arch over time. Later on it became bales of hay rather than wines of hay (in Limerick) whereas in Cork they would call it trams. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.17.57 - 0.19.17 </td> <td> Animals, Games and Mushrooms They prepared the animals with special soaps for the Limerick Show in August [Limerick Agricultural Show Society]. As children they would sit on the walls in the cow house (cowhouse) and use the chains as stirrups and pretend to be riding horses. Picked mushrooms in fields often along the path the cows had made where you’d find mushrooms. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.19.17- 0.21.36 </td> <td> Going to School and Standing up for Yourself Walk across the fields to get to the road to school which was 2 miles away, wear wellies if raining. When older cycled to school. Had the younger sister in the carrier. Fell off the bike coming down Ryan’s Hill and the sister fell into the bushes and the nettles. Mother gave out to them for falling off the bike. In 6th class coming up the hill on was home from school at cousin Mick Clancy’s hill boys thought it was fun to hold on to the carrier to hold them back. "Mary's" mother advised to throw a stone at the boys. The next time it happened she picked up a rock and the boys ran away. It was lesson for "Mary" for life to stand up for herself and that the threat was enough to work. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.21.36- 0.25.44 </td> <td> School 5 years old when she started school, thinks it might have been around Easter time. Small two teacher school. Mrs McAvoy the principal of the school had taught her father, and was distantly related to "Mary". "Mary's" sister was put on the teacher’s desk to be admired because of her beautiful eyes and hair- which she disliked because she was being made to feel different. 6 pupils in her class in 5th class and they were given the choice to do History and Geography through English or Irish and they chose to do it through Irish. The teacher was from Dingle and from him they learned a “love and appreciation” for Irish. Had good spoken Irish in a secondary school in Limerick City. Her knowledge of Irish helped later on as a PHN when she was assigned an area which had a Gaeltacht in it. Most Gaeltacht schools were insistent that the PHNs did use Irish. "Mary" went to Secondary School in the Presentation in Sexton Street. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.25.44 - 0.27.57 </td> <td> Neighbour’s House and JP McManus on a Bike A little old lady, a spinster called Noni lived in road opposite them. She had old open fireplace with bellows, and thatched roof and two dogs. "Mary" had a step-brother and a step-sister. The step brother was quiet and calm in Noni’s house but he was cross and looking for attention when he was at home. A guy in secondary school used to cycle past in a red bike and "Mary" later discovered it was JP McManus [businessman and racehorse owner] and her younger sister knew him. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.27.57 - 0.29.49 </td> <td> Starting in Nursing after School Always in the back of her mind to do nursing. Did leaving cert when 17 and did interview for nursing. Had started a commercial course. The Blue Nuns ran St. John’s Hospital and knew she was due to start in February. Millford House in Castletroy was run by Blue Nuns and they had a nursing home and "Mary" dropped the commercial course and worked there as a nurses aid. It was a good introduction and confidence building exercise for her. "Mary" thinks that for the nuns patient care was paramount and the written work less important but it is almost the reverse today. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.29.49 - 0.34.51 </td> <td> Decision to do Nursing and Other Career Options Looking at magazines and what nursing involved. Career guidance consisted of blue leaflets. Through the commercial course "Mary" heard about the Junior X course to get into the civil service and the ESB jobs which she hadn’t been aware of through school. Travel was something that she considered and nursing catered for that. The nurses who had lived abroad were easier to work with they had a broader perspective on life and “didn’t sweat the small stuff”. When you started nursing you got to see the different fields and "Mary" liked theatre work and enjoyed the labour ward when she was doing midwifery. Matron had said to her that she should considered doing the tutoring course. Thinks this is because she was questioning what her tutor was reading out of textbooks. She applied for the tutoring course. But she while she had anatomy and biology for the leaving cert but not chemistry and physics. So she did leaving cert physics and chemistry that year but dropped the physics because she had also taken on introduction to psychology. But she had already gotten the Public Health so she chose that. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.34.51 - 0.43.07 </td> <td> Public Health Nurse: Role and Duties PHN you are on your own to some extent you can plan your day, assess the patient. Communicate with the patient GP and hospital. You were independent to a large extent. Had continuity you could see things improving or ‘disimproving’. House visits, vaccination clinics as part of a team, coffee or lunch in Grattan Street where you met other disciplines not just nursing. A mix. Could be rostered for a dressings clinic in Grattan Street. They might have been referred after discharge from the Mercy Hospital. Now the Mercy would have its own dressings clinic. Going to schools dealing with healthy children and teachers. Originally had an admin person with them but now just a doctor and nurse when going to vaccinate in schools. HPV vaccination a big team goes to try to get the first years done in one go. Health promotion going into houses and dealing with young mums. Private houses, corporation houses built in 1950s and 1960s, apartments or flats as they called them then. Leave a note for someone who you couldn’t find in a flat. Maybe a baby that wasn’t feeding very well. Hear that the mother has moved house and start detective work to track her down asking neighbours. And the nurse in their new area would be informed. Write letters to council about the poor conditions of housing. And then neighbours would ask for letters then as well. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.43.07 - 0.51.42 </td> <td> Perspective & Expectations of Patients on Healthcare Most people were welcoming and giving you tea that you didn’t want. A few were trying to get the PHN to adapt too much to their own schedules. For patients the PHN came at the beginning of life and at the end of life. Would be asked “do you think it’s better today nurse?” and trying to read the emotions of the other family members. Understanding with the GP about what the family situation was. Some people would ask for everything they thought they could get other families would never ask for anything. PHN has to decide how necessary a request is or how much someone needs to be persuaded. Try to stay on side and be persistent. Older people at the time had the idea that you only left a hospital in a box. So it could be hard to persuade them to go to hospital. Fear of lack of independence as well. Reflect on how nursing training prepares PHN for these situations. "Tread wearily" and "feel the vibes" when entering a new patient environment. Privilege to be with people in their time of need because you felt that you were doing something and you were a support to the family especially in the time before morphine pumps. Even saying “I don’t think anything is going to happen tonight” might be the simple reassurance that the family wants. Fear with a bedbound patient is that they would get pressure sores. One of the ways to avoid this is to change their position. And there was some education involved in ensuring whoever was moving the patient when the PHN isn’t there was doing it correctly. Extended family would assist with a patient in a way less common today. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.51.42 - 0.55.45 </td> <td> Memories of mothers and their babies and music Remembers a family who lived in one of the lanes off North Main Street. “me mam” was what the family called the beautiful mother who had a lame leg, she had grey-blond hair. One of the daughters had a baby that had a life-limited condition. The whole family were supporting them. They were always well made-up and the sick baby was in the middle. The baby didn’t survive only lived for 8 or 9 months. The family used to sing “Brown Girl in the Ring” by Boney M and the baby used to recognise it and respond. Sleet and rain coming up North Main Street. Pound shop maybe called Powers Jim Reeves and Bing Crosby singing White Christmas which lifted her heart. Streets were full at Christmastime. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.55.45 - 1.01.36 </td> <td> Patients and Cases and conditions in the Grattan Street/ Middle Parish Area Remembers rickety stairs leading to flats above shops which you wouldn’t realise were there. Old man lived in laneway off Grattan Street in a tenement house like those in Glasgow she had seen near York Hill, with red sandstone buildings. Went to this man on a quick “social visit” and he had rasping breath. Just “kippins” or laths on the fire. No electricity. Waiting two hours for ambulance to come. Man didn’t survive. Something else in place of the building now. There may not have been a door on the house you could just walk straight in. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.55.45 - 0.58.18 </td> <td> Patients and Cases and conditions in the Grattan Street/ Middle Parish Area- difficulties of nursing and dealing with different agencies. Woman with dementia in 1970s one room flat in warm house. Bathroom outside. Wasn’t able to look after herself. Had the newspapers stored on top of the electric cooker. GP trying to get her somewhere. Woman would lock herself out. Half naked walking across Sheare’s Street. "Mary" put her in own car and brought her to Our Lady’s Hospital to be seen by psychiatrist. They wouldn’t take her because of her age. Arranged geriatrician appointment who wouldn’t take her because she was psychiatric. A “street woman” (homeless woman) moved in with her and was able to make sure the house wouldn’t be set on fire. Meals on Wheels or Penny Dinners sharing the one meal. "Mary's" frustration with the bureaucracy. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.58.18 - 1.05.20 </td> <td> Woman with Flea Bites/ Flea Marks "Mary" being polite said told her it was a rash but the woman had no qualms about calling them fleabites. "Mary" got temporary eviction order to clean out her flat. Process was traumatic for "Mary" & the woman. Woman spent her time in St Francis Church while her flat was being cleaned. The woman had collected things from bins and stored them in her house in case she might use them and they removed 57 bags of rubbish. Found a beautiful photograph album. Mounds of rubbish as high as the bed. Bucket to empty into the toilet. Candles in danger of burning the house down. The woman was upset that her stuff had been taken but they had put her things in storage in case she wanted them. As PHN you can wear your own clothes but "Mary"wore white uniform in case of infestation in the flat. Man from environmental health section sprayed the flat. "Mary" counted 57 dead fleas on her uniform when she took it off in the bath when she got home. Later with her boyfriend at the time the same woman shouted “Hello nurse!” at her. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.05.20 - 1.18.38 </td> <td> Vaccines, Vaccination and the anti-vaccination People were pro vaccinate after 1956 polio outbreak in Cork. Many people would have been familiar with Polio, its devastating affect and that you can be vaccinated against it. People had to come to the clinic 3 or 4 times with a baby which might be difficult for families with many children and buggies. Remembers vulnerable family in Knocknaheeney. The mother was poor with keeping appointments and she came in the pouring rain with 4 or 5 children. Cost of taxi was 11 pounds or euro even though she had to live on social welfare. The staff suggested that she could get a bus. But she pointed out that one of her children was ADHD (attention deficit hyperactivity disorder) and that he would be climbing on the bus stop. "Mary" says the woman deserved a medal and reflects that they as staff had been judging her for her predicament. Crowds of people and buggies. Role of extended family in assisting with child rearing. Some children may be difficult to deal with. Obstacles to families getting children vaccinated. Vaccination card files. Brought from City Hall to the place of vaccination and not locked. Vaccines were taken from a fridge in City Hall and brought in a biscuit tin along with adrenaline in case someone had a reaction. Compares this to the modern method of cold-chain. After Professor Wakefield made an association between MMR vaccine and autism the vaccination uptake reduced and it’s been an uphill battle since to reverse it. In 1970s and 1980s there was memory of measles, mumps, meningitis and polio. "Mary" worked in a school where a child refused vaccinations in junior infants in the early 1980s. That child got measles, encephalitis and was in a wheelchair by 1st class and by age 8 or 9 she was dead. HCA (Handicapped Childrens Allowance) allowance handicapped children’s allowance financial support for the extra care that was needed for the child. Thinks of the scaremongering about vaccines and the consciences of those people if they knew what the result of not getting vaccinated was. That incident happened in the early 1980s. Worked with a doctor who had difficulty walking after he had got polio in the 1950s. Young mothers in 1970s and 1980s had mothers who influenced them based on their accounts in the diseases in 1950s. Rural approach to vaccines: if you eat healthy and are healthy then you won’t contract the disease. "Mary" says that while a weaker person succumbs to a disease faster it’s not a protection against a disease. Rural culture which still exists of “I don’t believe in vaccines”. HPV vaccines. With all vaccines certain percentage of risk even though it is very rare. Weigh up the advantages versus the risk of something happening. Vaccine cold chain from manufacturer to the administering to the child is much more streamlined. Incidence of polio came down so vaccines were effective. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.18.38 - 1.21.46 </td> <td> Earliest Memories of Grattan Street Waiting room now it’s opened up with pillars and a balcony. When "Mary" started it had a ceiling and so was enclosed and it had a wooden floor where you could hear the “clip clop” of people walking across it echoing. They didn’t have access to the upstairs with stores and pigeons. According to Anne [a friend who worked there] there were stores of the things leftover from when Grattan Street was used as a dispensary/pharmacy/chemist. Old fashioned metal chairs with a timber seat. Queue in the mornings for the dressing, older people with big swollen legs. Mr Hart and Mr Condon were the social welfare officers and they would have clinics which had crowds of people waiting for them. People would receive bed linen or washing machines. Mr Hart advised "Mary" once that when he started out he was given a sob story and he got someone a number of beds and later he saw them being sold on the Coal Quay! Smoking was allowed at the time so there was the smell and fog of smoke. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.21.46 - 1.23.14 </td> <td> Repairs and Revamp/ Refurbishment of Grattan Street Transferred to the City Hall while there was revamping or refurbishing of Grattan Street. Once they returned one of the admin staff noticed that a there was some dry rot on part of the wood in the jam of the door and more repairs had to be done. Beautiful once the repairs were done. Opened up the ceiling with the balcony. The big tea room could be used for meetings and there was a fridge and kettle- luxury! </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.23.14 - 1.27.35 </td> <td> Grattan Street as a Workplace “You could never call it glamorous!”. Bars on the windows. Hose reel for the fire. For fire drills the bars on some windows could be opened. The people to work with were fabulous. Dave in podiatry said ‘the building was crap but the people were lovely’. Building was fine, serviceable. "Mary" had a sense of history of the building and that it was privilege to work in it. Beautiful cut limestone blocks. Appreciated that and the big windows. Anne set off the alarm once when she went out the back door. There was once a mix up with the keys. The cleaners would lock up and throw the keys in the letter box and someone else would open up in the morning with another set of keys. But somehow both sets of keys were in the letter box. "Mary" climbed in through a window that was opened and was able to open the door from the inside! Sean the porter would remember this story and Pam from the eye clinic would remember it as well. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.27.35 - 1.30.11 </td> <td> Description of Grattan Street Historic, homely, old grandeur, comfortable but uncomfortable, people are willing to work and find solutions. Nice building at one level but primitive at another level. Staff were always lovely and gelled. Started with 3 disciplines and that expanded. People were caring and good sense of comradery, work spirit and work ethic. Old photocopier that was there for 20-30 years which was always breaking down. They used to repair it themselves. When they asked for a new one they were told “it’s not pride is making ye ask for a new one!” </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.30.11 - 1.31.23 </td> <td> The Effect of the Mix of Disciplines Levelling effect. Nobody thought they were above anyone. Meet people from other disciples who could make exceptions or give advice- could tic-tac with one another. It was very personal. You weren’t going into someone else’s territory through some doors. They all met in the tea rom. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.31.23 - 1.33.08 </td> <td> Car Park No car parking when "Mary" began. Staff and outsiders could park there. There was some kind of grandfather clause which allowed non-staff to park there. There used to be agro between the staff about it until they realised they were all in the same boat. Then the Educate Together School opened up and they were trying to park their cars there too. It’s hassle. Manic at times. Compares it to Mr Bean. Residents had parking. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.33.08 - 1.35.46 </td> <td> Child Welfare Case Child welfare issue was brought in front of Judge Clifford. The mother had issues with alcohol and depression (those problems could affect children not getting vaccines as well). "Mary" remembers child or 4 or 5 years of age with bottle in their mouth and the bottle had whiskey in it. The fridge had one tomato in it. What should the staff wear to court- should they wear a hat? "Mary" was obliged to call to the house as a result of the case. And the child was eventually fostered. Wheelchairs and how tough it was for families and children growing up and needing bigger wheelchairs. Makes you think how lucky you are according to "Mary". </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.35.46 - 1.37.39 </td> <td> Curiosities and Quirks of Grattan Street Building Pigeons could be heard upstairs and the exterminator came. Plaster crumbling off the walls in Grattan Street. Paperwork and records. New letterheads and they were ordered to dump things while people downstairs were looking for things but there was money being wasted on paperwork being thrown out. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.37.39 - 1.41.50 </td> <td> Floods 2010 and Transporting Vaccines Vaccines were stored in a special room with fridges wired directly to the mains, there was a fear the power would be lost. Water was at the door. Vaccines should be transferred to St Finbarr’s hospital. "Mary" and Sean the porter waited for a van to come to transport them. Eventually a fiesta arrived with 2 big men. They had 20-30 boxes like cool boxes. They made two trips in "Mary's" car to bring the vaccines across town through the floods. Describes herself as a determined person. Onetime borrowed waders from Meitheal Mara on Crosses Green and walked to Grattan Street in them. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.41.50 - 1.43.18 </td> <td> Future of Grattan Street Building Historical connection with William Penn. Would like to see Grattan Street be a visitor centre or a place for weddings. Could have a little garden or courtyard. Current waiting room could be used. Catering could be provided there as well. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.43.18 - 1.46.50 </td> <td> Hopes for St. Mary’s Primary Care Centre Hopes there is suitable parking. And tied up thinking from the planning department and developers. Encouraging people to go green and use bicycles etc. is fine but closing parking isn’t the place to start. There should be a place to make a cup of tea yourself. Good service for people who need it and people feel they can access it. Hope it isn’t too big, and there won’t be sections that you will never meet. A central meeting place is desirable where you could meet someone you don’t directly work with. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.46.50 - 1.48.40 </td> <td> Making the Building Approachable Easy access. Does there need to be a service for mothers to get up the hill to the health centre? Will there be a place for children to play in? People should be given specific individual appointments not 20 appointments sent out for 2pm. Access to water like a watercooler. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.48.40 - 1.52.00 </td> <td> Decision to Become a Nurse Would choose to be a nurse if she had the option over again. Has enjoyed life and had a good home life. Have had lots of opportunities. Could have become pigeonholed in one area. In one way "Mary" feels she has cut herself off from other aspects of nursing that she was interested in- clinical and theatre related work. Rewarding helping mothers and children with bed wetting issues. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.52.00- End </td> <td> Outro. Interview ends 1.52.13 </td> </tr> </tbody> </table> Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource "Mary": Grattan Street, Healthcare, Working Life Subject The topic of the resource Ireland; Cork; Limerick; Middle Parish; The Marsh; Grattan Street; Occupational Lore; Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 14 March 2019 Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context CFP_SR00704_Collins_2019 Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant Cork, Limerick, Ireland, 1960s-2010s Relation A related resource Other Interviews in this Collection <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/240" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00696_O'Regan_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/243" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00706_Higgisson_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/244" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00712_O'Brien_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/245" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00713_Kearney_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/246" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00714_Cunning_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/247" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00717_Ward_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/248" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00727_OhUigin_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/249" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00728_Scanlan_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/250" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00729_Mulcahy_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/251" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00732_Cassidy_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/252" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00760_Morrissy_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/253" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"> CFP_SR00762_OConnell_2019</a>; Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Cork Folklore Project Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource Cork Folklore Project Language A language of the resource English Type The nature or genre of the resource Sound Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource 1 .wav file Description An account of the resource ‘Mary’ grew up on a farm in county Limerick, part of which was rented to a mental hospital to be worked by patients. By interacting with these patients she quickly learned who you could trust and who you couldn’t. Mentions her brother’s physical and mental disability. Discusses how the smell of tripe and drisheen reminds of father who died when she was young Recounts her surprise and confusion as a child learning that her mother had remarried and her new husband was to live in the family home. Outlines the routine on farm including looking after the cows, feeding hens, making bread, and how their dinner changed with seasonal availability of produce. Talks about her commute to school on a bicycle with sister and standing up to boys who hassled them. Learned some subjects through Irish. Recalls her sister disliking being singled out by teacher because of her attractive eyes and hair. Remembers seeing a young JP McManus cycling. Explains how she always considered becoming a nurse. Discusses training and hospital experiences including with nuns. Believes that nurses who had worked abroad had a broader perspective on life. Outlines the role of the Public Health Nurse which required entering patients’ houses and assisting them with births and deaths. Other features included the need to be able to read emotions and build trust with others and managing your work largely independently. Describes some memorable cases as a PHN. A family singing Boney M to a baby with a severely lif-limiting condition. Waiting for an ambulance for a man struggling to breathe who lived without electricity. Trying to find help for an older woman struggling with dementia who was being passed from one agency to another without resolution. Fumigating a woman’s accommodation to rid it of fleas, the poor living conditions she found there and the ambivalent reaction of the woman to this health intervention. Discusses vaccines, their role in eliminating polio and the varying attitudes to vaccination. Recounts the story of social welfare officers in Grattan Street providing a bed to a woman who promptly sold it on the Coal Quay. Reflects on the mutually beneficial mix of medical disciplines in Grattan Street and the positive relations between the staff. Outlines the problems, changes and tensions relating to the car parking situation for Grattan Street staff and others in the surrounding community. Talks about a child welfare issue where she had to attend court as a PHN. Speaks of the deficiencies of the Grattan Street building including plaster falling off walls, the waste of paperwork, dry rot, bars on windows and a very out-of-date photocopier. Suggests future uses for the building. Tells the story of the 2010 floods when the vaccines had to transferred with difficulty to St Finbarr’s Hospital for safety. Discusses the desirable feature of the new building in Gurranbraher including it having a central meeting area and parking as well as being of a manageable size, accessible and approachable. Reflects on how she found her career of helping others rewarding. 1950s 1960s 1970s 1980s 1990s 2000s 2010s Accommodation ADHD Ambulance Animals Anti-Vax Australia Babies Baby Bales of Hay Bed Wetting Bedtime Bicycle Bicycles Bicycling Bike Bike. Bikes Birth Bread bread and breadmaking Breadmaking Building Buildings Built Heritage Bullying Bureaucracy Bus Calf Camaraderie Candle Candles Canteen Car Park Car Parking Career Career Choice Career Decision Career Guidance Career Path Careers Castletroy Change Chemist Child Welfare Childhood Childhood Games Children Christmas City Hall Cleaners Clinic Clinics Clothes Clothing Co. Limerick. County Limerick Coal Quay Colleagues Community Community Welfare Cooking Cork Cork city Court Court Case Cow Death Decision Dementia Disability Disease Diseases Dispensary Disrepair Dressings Drisheen Duties Educate Together Electricity Emigration English market Family Family Life Farm Farming Farmlife Father Flats Fleas Flooding Floods Food Frustration Games Glasgow GP Grattan Street Hay Health Health Promotion Health Services Healthcare Healthy Hens History Hoarding Home Hospital House Houses Housing HPV HPV Vaccine HSE Hygiene Illness Illnesses Income Irish Language Kitchen Knocknaheeney Labour Ward Lane Laneway Learning Limerick Limerick city Marriage Marsh Meals Medicine Medicines Memories Memory Mental Hospital Mental Issues Mercy Hospital Middle Parish Midwife Midwifery MMR Mother Mushrooms Music Night Work North Main Street Nun Nuns Nurse Nurse Training Nurses Nursing Nursing Home Nursing Training Orthopaedic Our Lady’s Hospital Paperwork Parents Parking Patient Patient Care Patient Environment Patients Pharmacy PHN Polio Pop Music Porter Potatoes Priest Public Health Nurse Public Health Nursing. PHNs Public Transport Quakers Religion Remarriage Rent Role of Women Routine Sarsfield Court Sarsfield’s Court School Schooldays Sheares Street Shift Work Siblings Sickness Singing Smell Smells smoking Social Conditions Songs Spinster St Francis Church St Mary's Health Campus St. Mary’s Primary Care Centre Staff Canteen Tea Tea Room Teacher Teachers Tenements Textbooks Thatch The Marsh The Middle Parish Traditional Food Transport Tripe Tripe and Drisheen Uniform USA Biscuits Vaccination Vaccinations vaccine Vaccines Vegetables Vocation Ward Wastage Waste Wheelchair Winter Women Women's Lives Work Work Colleagues Working Working life Worklife Workplace York Hill https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/files/original/2aa5beeb6ecec141b5a6b02b5e2d1c43.jpg a514394144ca3c6c894f28463adc6637 https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/files/original/2c365b3930f8b2e90ac81a7c0e5ded36.wav f562e325b5eba4e8b246a1d5689f569c Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Grattan Street Stories: Memory of Place Subject The topic of the resource Occupational Lore; Life History; Built Heritage; Health; Ireland; Cork; Middle Parish Description An account of the resource This collection focuses on a building on Grattan Street which has served as a Quaker Meeting House, a public Dispensary and as the Grattan Street Health Centre. The project was a collaboration between the CFP and the Cork North Community Work Department, Cork Kerry Community Healthcare, Health Services Executive HSE. The interviewees fall into two main groups: those who worked in the building and those who lived in the surrounding area and availed of the services provided in the building. This project follows on from the collaboration with the HSE in the “<a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/collections/show/10" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">HSE Orthopaedic Hospital Oral History Project (d'Orthopaedic)</a>”. There is a further connection between the two projects as many of the staff and services once provided in the Grattan Street Health Centre have now relocated to St. Mary's Health Campus (St Mary’s Primary Care Centre) Gurranabraher, the former site of the Orthopaedic Hospital. This topic of the relocation of services is also covered in some staff interviews. To date (October 2021) 13 interviews have been completed for the project. Interviewees discuss the Grattan Street building itself in terms of its historic significance, its benefits and drawbacks as a workplace. Broader themes related to or inspired by the building are also touched on including: personal relationship with the building, staff camaraderie, the problems with parking, memorable incidents at work, patient experiences and descriptions of the people and services for which the building catered. Healthcare professional interviewees detail their training, career progression and comparisons between Grattan Street and other workplaces. Their testimonies also provide a link with the community of patients they served giving further insight into attitudes to healthcare, diseases, vaccines, description of social conditions and the changes in medicine and technology in their working lives. Non-healthcare professional interviewees describe childhood experiences in or around Grattan Street (The Marsh or The Middle Parish), the social, cultural and economic conditions of the area, tenements, businesses, attitudes to and experiences of healthcare, vaccines, diseases, medicines and medical professionals as well as observed changes in these areas over time. Interviewees also reflect on the possible future uses of the Grattan Street building. Related Reference Sources <ul> <li>Barrington, R. (1987) Health, medicine and politics in Ireland, 1900–1970. Dublin: Institute of Public Administration.</li> <li>Butler D.M. (2004) The Quaker meeting houses of Ireland. Dublin : Irish Friends Historical Committee.</li> <li>Byrne, J. (2004) Byrne's dictionary of Irish local history. Cork: Mercier Press.</li> <li>Cooke, R. T. (1999) My Home by the Lee. Irish Millennium Publications: Cork.</li> <li>Dempsey, P. J. & White, L. W. ‘Childers, Erskine Hamilton’. Dictionary of Irish Biography [Accessed 18 October 2021]</li> <li>Harrison, R.S. (1991) Cork City Quakers 1655-1939: A Brief History. Cork.</li> <li>Houston, M. (2004). ‘Life before the GP’. The Irish Times. Available at : <<a href="https://www.irishtimes.com/news/health/life-before-the-gp-1.1158599">https://www.irishtimes.com/news/health/life-before-the-gp-1.1158599</a> > [Accessed 18 October 2021]</li> <li>Keohane, F. (2020) The Buildings of Ireland Cork City and County. New Haven and London: Yale University Press.</li> </ul> Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2019-2020 Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Interviewees: Edith O’Regan, 'Mary', Sean Higgisson, Aoife O’Brien, Eileen Kearney, Imelda Cunning, Jane Ward, Liam Ó hUigín, Joe Scanlan, Mary Mulcahy, Philomena Cassidy, Don Morrissy, Derek O’Connell Interviewer: <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=2&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=Kieran+Murphy" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Kieran Murphy</a>, (<a href="https://corkfolklore.org/community-oral-history-outreach-officer/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP Community Oral History Outreach Officer</a>) Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant Cork, Ireland 1940s-2020s; Waterford, Ireland; Dublin, Ireland; Limerick, Ireland; Relation A related resource Exhibition Artist Edith O’Regan-Cosgrave (also an interviewee for the project) created a visual artwork based around the Grattan Street Medical Centre building itself, as a workplace and health centre. The artwork incorporated direct quotations from the oral history interviews conducted for the project, and also included brief historical paragraphs about the building researched, written and edited by the <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/community-oral-history-outreach-officer/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP Community Oral History Outreach Officer</a> Kieran Murphy. This exhibition was launched on 6th February 2020 in “St Peter’s” on the North Main Street where a “Listening Event” was also held to mark the occasion. <img src="http://corkfolklore.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/Grattan-Poster-for-Email-286-by-400.jpg" alt="Grattan-Poster-for-Email-286-by-400.jpg" /> Presentation and Listening Event To coincide with the launch of the Grattan Street Stories Exhibtion on 6th February 2020 a listening event and presentation of the history of the Grattan Street Medical Centre building and description of the project was given by <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/community-oral-history-outreach-officer/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP Community Oral History Outreach Officer</a> Kieran Murphy. <img src="http://corkfolklore.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/427A7714-1.jpg" alt="427A7714-1.jpg" /> Presentation In 2019 at the OHNI conference the <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/community-oral-history-outreach-officer/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP Community Oral History Outreach Officer</a> Kieran Murphy discussed social media and oral history which included audio excerpts from the Grattan Street Stories Project along with photographs of the building. <img src="http://corkfolklore.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/Kieran-OHNI-e1634041838937.jpg" alt="Kieran-OHNI-e1634041838937.jpg" /> Audio Visual Presentation An audio-visual slideshow was produced featuring oral testimony from the Grattan Street Stories Project and combined with suitable images of Grattan Street and from Edith O’Regan-Cosgrave’s exhibition. This was created by <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/community-oral-history-outreach-officer/">CFP Community Oral History Outreach Officer</a> Kieran Murphy. <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RnjEtQeOb3I&t=1s&ab_channel=CorkFolklore" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Audio Visual Presentation Available to listen and view here.</a> Health and Vaccines Oral History Research Many of the interviews conducted for the Grattan Street project formed an integral part of the testimonies and research for the innovative <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/health/about" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">'Catching Stories' of infectious disease in Ireland </a>project funded by the Irish Research Council. <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/health/about" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"><img src="http://corkfolklore.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/Catching-Stories-Poster.jpg" alt="Catching-Stories-Poster.jpg" /></a> Social Media Numerous suitable audio excerpts from the oral history interviews have been edited and shared on CFP's social media channels. <a href="https://twitter.com/corkfolklore/status/1139167201582288901" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">https://twitter.com/corkfolklore/status/1139167201582288901</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/corkfolklore/status/1140909542240391168" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">https://twitter.com/corkfolklore/status/1140909542240391168</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/corkfolklore/status/1141264486768238592" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">https://twitter.com/corkfolklore/status/1141264486768238592</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/corkfolklore/status/1189872295923376133" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">https://twitter.com/corkfolklore/status/1189872295923376133</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/corkfolklore/status/1228322700415860736" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">https://twitter.com/corkfolklore/status/1228322700415860736</a> Orthopaedic Hospital Cork Folklore Project in collaboration with the HSE conducted an oral history project focussing on the Orthapaedic Hospital in Gurranabraher. Many of the staff and services once provided at the Grattan Street Health Centre site were moved to St. Mary's Health Campus (St Mary’s Primary Care Centre) Gurranabraher, the former site of the Orthopaedic Hospital. <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/collections/show/10" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">HSE Orthopaedic Hospital Oral History Project (d'Orthopaedic)</a> Swimming Article Kieran Murphy and James Furey co-authored an article about <a href="https://tripeanddrisheen.substack.com/p/swim-city?s=r" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Swimming in Cork</a> which appeared in the online magazine Tripe + Drisheen. This article features a number of interview extracts collected as part of the Grattan Street Stories Project. Related Interviews CFP_SR00756_Quilligan_2019; CFP_SR00758_Broderick_2019; CFP_SR00670_OShea_2018; Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Cork Folklore Project Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Cork Folklore Project Audio Archive Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Cork Folklore Project Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource Cork Folklore Project Language A language of the resource English Type The nature or genre of the resource Audio Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource 16 .wav Files Oral History A resource containing historical information obtained in interviews with persons having firsthand knowledge. Interviewee The person(s) being interviewed Sean Higgisson Interviewer The person(s) performing the interview Kieran Murphy Duration Length of time involved (seconds, minutes, hours, days, class periods, etc.) 55 Minutes 26 Seconds Location The location of the interview Grattan Street Medical Centre Original Format The type of object, such as painting, sculpture, paper, photo, and additional data 1 .wav Bit Rate/Frequency Rate at which bits are transferred (i.e. 96 kbit/s would be FM quality audio) 24bit / 48kHz Time Summary A summary of an interview given for different time stamps throughout the interview <table> <tbody> <tr> <td> 0.00.00 - 0.03.24 </td> <td> Family and Early Memories Born in the Bons (Bon Secours Hospital). Lived all life in Cork except 4 years. Holidays in early teens to Ardmore fishing for mackerel. Brothers Paddy & Brian. Grew up on Hartlands Road by the Lough. Played football in the field by Lough or fished. Primary school St Joseph’s on Mardyke- socially mixed school with people from Northside, Southside and the country farmers’ children. Pres (PBC Presentation Brothers College) was a paid school beside them with uniforms. Got a lift to school with dad in the morning. Hour and a half for lunch so walked home for lunch. Mother stayed at home wasn’t allowed to work in public service once married. Secondary School CSN Coláiste Spioraid Naoimh Bishopstown for 3 years. Then the Regional College for junior engineering certificate course. Went on to an electrical engineering course and qualified in the early 1980s not many jobs available. Went to England using qualifications a little. Got job as porter in Grattan Street with Southern Health Board now HSE. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.03.24 - 0.06.08 </td> <td> Family House and Grandparents Small house 2 rooms in front, 2 behind, middle bathroom and flat-roofed kitchen at the back. Shared bedroom with 2 brothers. When 13 years old his grandmother came to live with them. In his pre-teen years his grandmother knitted a lot of their jumpers “long in the backs to keep your ass warm”. Grandmother was independent woman, went to Liverpool when 16, worked as telephonist. She married teacher in Cork & lived on Redemption Road. Stocky woman. Big motherly figure. People didn’t take exercise back then. Pleasant personality. Family visited her house on Sundays and she had “curranty bread”, Lucozade or orangeade. Parents would bring grandmother to mass. Remembers grandfather as very stern and always spoke Irish. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.06.08 - 0.08.30 </td> <td> Games Football across the Lough. Describes Red Rover game. In winter played football on the road which was a steep hill. Only one car on the road picked two neighbours’ gates to play football. Broke a few windows. Good natured nothing untoward. About 12 children on the road at the time. Still living on the road he grew up on now only about 4 children. There could have been 20 children at one time. The football wasn’t taken that seriously it was only killing time. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.08.30 - 0.09.30 </td> <td> Women banned from Work in Public Service after Marriage Mother took up painting with local oil painters in Cork for about 15 years. And then looked after her mother. There was no nursing homes. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.09.30 - 0.11.23 </td> <td> School and Teachers Br Albius teacher keen on science. Taught them Latin in primary school. Taught about condensation on the glass. Teacher used a sheet in the schoolyard to show how a sail on a ship works. Br John was favourite teacher because he played guitar. Sean thinks that life puts you in a certain career and if you’re happy you stay with it. You can “what-if” your life away but there is no point. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.11.23 - 0.13.18 </td> <td> Time in England Worked in factory doing electronic assembly. Lived in flat on Eton High Street with a few lads. Went to Tottenham Hotspur matches at night with stadium lit up- magical experience. Enjoyed England but after 2 years decided he didn’t want to grow old in England and if you stay too long you won’t be able to get away from it. Saw a generation of aunts and uncles who never came back to Ireland and regretted it. Likes the outdoors and hillwalking. Hardest thing about England- you can’t get away from people. Population of 55 million. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.13.18 - 0.15.20 </td> <td> Hillwalking Hobby through Photography Got into hillwalking through photography and landscape photography. But hillwalking took over. Cork Backpackers hillwalking club for about 20 years. Dungarvan Comeraghs, Galtees, Carrantuohill, Beara peninsula. Can only do that in rural places of England. Club meets on grand parade and divides into groups for different walks. Get coffee before the walk and a meal after the walk. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.15.20 - 0.17.46 </td> <td> What it takes to lead a walk They wouldn’t let you lead the walks. He went on the committee in order to put himself forward for leading walks. Kevin O’Flynn and from Ken Sumtana Malaysia taught people how to lead walks. Teaching people how to navigate and read maps. Started leading as coleader, then leader with supervision and it became clear he had an aptitude for it. Good hillwalker has a degree of fitness. Choose a leader with he same fitness level as you. The walk is only as fast as the slowest walker. About 5 hill walking clubs in Cork. Mountaineers, Cork Backpackers, Bishopstown is big club, Blarney and a few others. They dovetail into cycling as well. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.17.46 - 0.22.50 </td> <td> Writing books on Hillwalking Hill-walked on his own to research the books. Came across a slim guidebook on hillwalking and decided he could do it. So he wrote one on Mangerton. Impossible to get anyone to publish it so went to publish it himself but you end up with 3000 books in cardboard boxes. A guy in west Cork distributed small publishers’ books. Over 10 years he wrote 5 guide books. They made him a few thousand euro a year. Reeks, West Cork, County Cork. Books included: routes, maps, route descriptions, a little bit of history. Size of a letter about 50 pages and can fit in the pocket. Books became dated because places on the routes could no longer be accessed. “Trails Ireland” can be accessed on the internet. In France you cannot own up to the cliff face so the whole coastal area can be walked in France. It’s not the same here in Ireland. While in Ireland the old railway lines are being reopened more should be done to open the coastal area. Putting up barbed wire to stop people crossing the land. Success of Dungarvan Greenway Westport-Achill Cycle way Athlone to Mullingar route. Thinks we need more of that in the world we live in. If motorways can be built requiring land being baought up then it can be done. Mahon walk on Sundays Success of Ballincollig park or the lough for recreation. Common ownership will be taken up </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.22.50 - 0.25.50 </td> <td> First impressions of Grattan Street & services over the years 26 years old when started in Grattan Street. Thought it would be a job for 6 months but stayed 35 years! Not much happening when he started. There were Public Health Nurses and Community Welfare Officers looked after people waiting for their dole or social welfare or interim payments. Initially Community Welfare gave out beds and blankets in Grattan Street but eventually it was thought this was demeaning and gave vouchers instead. Sean counts at least 15 different services run from Grattan Street during his time there: Public health nurses. Dental (came from City Hall), Schools Nurses (came from City Hall) Speech therapy, Social Health Education Project (SHEP) Psychology department, community workers, home help, podiatry, eye clinics, admin, Area medical officer European health insurance scheme, ophthalmic department, community welfare and Public Health Nurses At the moment [April 2019] 6 services remaining. Speech Therapy has moved to Western Road. Psychology moved to Blackpool. Most moved to bigger premises. Community Welfare moved to department of social welfare about 8 years ago. Grattan Street at any one time it had about 50 staff, 50 telephone extensions. Work for about 5 years and move on. Turnover of staff. About 150 or move staff have been Started as the youngest lemon and now is the “elder lemon” </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.25.50 - 0.27.45 </td> <td> Duties as the porter Opening & closing the building. Liaise with maintenance Male presence for security. What doesn’t come under someone else’s job description he does. Things that could never been written in a job description. Busy in mornings, quieter in the afternoons. Doing the post. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.27.45 - 0.30.55 </td> <td> Unique Atmosphere of Grattan Street Grattan Street has so many disciplines where people interact in a “friendship kind of way”. Big enough to have heart. But not so big that it becomes impersonal. Building itself is 150 years old. Happy story attached to the building wasn’t prison or psychiatric hospital. William Penn who founded Pennsylvania allegedly stayed a night in the building. Ghost of Grattan Street Becky Haughton ghost is supposed to haunt the place. Supposed to see her on the stairs at dusk. SHEP used to have meetings in Grattan Street at night. They heard a strange noise at night. Masonry had fallen onto filing cabinet in the store. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.30.55 - 0.33.16 </td> <td> Grattan Street Social life and Changes Files and vaccination records, nurses dressings kept in the stores. Grattan Street has heart, spirit and character. Happy, friendly building. Party at Christmas. 30 people. A nurse might play the violin, or poetry, or make an alcoholic punch or home baking. When he came here first was in his 20s and the nurses were in their 30s the nurses were into home baking these days it was more shop bought. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.33.16 - 0.34.55 </td> <td> Stories: Theft and Letters Dentist in Grattan Street had an expensive “flash” car which was stolen. It had been used in robbery and recovered. SHEP started in half the canteen Psychologists were in Grattan Street who were sending two letters to the same address one to each of the Once broken into and one of the doctors felt it was a reflection on the state of his room when Sean couldn’t tell whether it had been broken into or not. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.34.55 - 0.35.20 </td> <td> Podiatrist Appointments No one was turning up for podiatrist appointments. Secretary had forgot to send out appointments. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.35.20 - 0.37.44 </td> <td> Events in Grattan Street Medical Centre Flooding 2013 had to move vaccines. They arrived in small car and they had to do two runs and ploughed there way through 2 and a half feet of water. Couldn’t stand the smell of perfume. Spray their room with perfume so she wouldn’t come in. AMO had gotten locked in by mistake by the cleaners. The fire brigade had to get her out with a ladder European health insurance card. Someone came saying he was annoyed his name was spelled wrong. They could only put 22 characters for the surname and he had 23, his name ended in a double-Z they had dropped a single Z and he accepted their explanation. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.37.44 - 0.41.46 </td> <td> Unusual Incidents in Grattan Street Medical Centre Bank robbery on North Main Street. Bad was thrown over the back gate. Sean found 2 bags of money. Guards came and replaced them with dummy bags, Roches Stores bags. Man came into the building trying to steal things. He was confronted and left his mobile and found him through his mother’s number. Bad weather a few years ago. All the pipes had burst when Sean turned on the boiler. Front portion of the building flooded. Elderly man in his dressing gown and slippers outside podiatry. He had wandered down from the Mercy. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.41.46 - 0.43.01 </td> <td> Patients Dying in the Building Two patients came to get their toenails done and they died. He was in his 90s and 5 years later almost to the day another man died and they cleared the building. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.43.01 - 0.44.14 </td> <td> Story of child driving a car Guy in car waiting for his dad. Spoon stuck in the ignition to start the car. Gone like a rally driver he was no more than 14. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.44.14 - 0.44.52 </td> <td> Birds in Building. Arrives early 2 male blackbirds chased a female blackbird into the building. Arrives half an hour before the staff. Turned off lights and opened the big double doors. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.44.52 - 0.47.25 </td> <td> Story of Heating Failure in Grattan Street & Organisational Error Heating failed in the building. No heating for about 5 days. 5 different staff phoned 5 seniors in 5 different departments and they all authorised 6 heaters for the building so that 30 heaters arrived. Thirty separate 3 kilowatt heaters were plugged in totalling 900 kilowatts which is far more than the building could take. Awful burning smell came from the waiting area, emanating from the fuse. Sean plugged out all the heaters for safety. In response to this he thinks that: ‘People don’t understand how their decisions interact with others’. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.47.25 - 0.49.37 </td> <td> Poor Maintenance of Grattan Street Building In 34 years the building has been painted twice, three times at most. Windows are never cleaned. Rent a building in city how much would it cost and what would the maintenance for that be? You’d need to get a new car serviced. Never any more spent on the place. Plan was to install ten new windows a year. After the first ten no more were installed. Attic never insulated. Roof leaks. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.49.37 - 0.51.00 </td> <td> Change to the medical services with close of Grattan Street Services are moving out. Shame to lose a public building in the city centre. Every institution needs a city centre presence. New primary care centre 250 staff. Like wing of CUH. It will be great when it gets going. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.51.00 - 0.53.40 </td> <td> Quakers, features of the building and staff routine Understands the Quakers gave building for use by HSE. Would like to see the building used as a city centre museum. People in wheelchairs can access the building without help. Getting a taxi for someone from the building is very fast. Staff use local supermarket for their coffees. Sean holds post & letters for the school during summer and Christmas. The type of bed available from the Community Welfare was very basic back in 1984, it was like an army bed. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.53.40 - 0.54.12 </td> <td> Podiatry & Diabetes Couldn’t tell us about nursing. Thinks the podiatrist sees more diabetics these days than previously. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.54.12 - 0.55.26 </td> <td> Reflection & Outlook on Life You can “what if” your life away. Married now. 50 when he got married. His 50s are his happiest decade. Everyone needs someone to share their life with. [interviewer states the year as 2009 but should have said 2019] Interview Ends </td> </tr> </tbody> </table> Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Sean Higgisson: Grattan Street, Healthcare, Working Life Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context CFP_SR00706_Higgisson_2019; Relation A related resource Other Interviews in this Collection <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/240" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00696_O'Regan_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/242" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00704_Collins_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/244" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00712_O'Brien_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/245" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00713_Kearney_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/246" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00714_Cunning_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/247" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00717_Ward_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/248" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00727_OhUigin_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/249" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00728_Scanlan_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/250" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00729_Mulcahy_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/251" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00732_Cassidy_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/252" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00760_Morrissy_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/253" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"> CFP_SR00762_OConnell_2019</a>; Language A language of the resource English Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2 April 2019 Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Cork Folklore Project Audio Archive Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource Cork Folklore Project Type The nature or genre of the resource Sound Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource 1 .wav file Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Cork Folklore Project Description An account of the resource Sean grew up by the Lough in Cork city and spent holidays in Ardmore. Describes his family home and memories of his grandparents. Talks about playing football and the game Red Rover as a child. His mother was not allowed to keep her job in the public service once she married, she took up oil painting and cared for her mother. Describes his school days and recollects specific teachers. Outlines his engineering education and his emigration to England for work. Lived on Eton High Street and attended Tottenham Hotspur football matches. Influenced by stories of older relatives who regretted remaining in England he decided to return to Ireland. Discusses how he began hillwalking as a hobby through photography. Explains what’s involved in leading a hill walk and how he wrote a number of hillwalking guidebooks. Mentions various walking routes in Ireland. Admires France’s rights for walkers, which are more favourable than the situation in Ireland. Recalls starting work in Grattan Street medical centre and the various disciplines that operated there over the years. Discusses his duties as porter. Talks about the happy history of the medical centre building including its Quaker origins. Remembers social events with fellow Grattan Street staff including Christmas parties. Mentions memorable events and incidents in Grattan Street including the floods of 2013. Admin Administration Adrmore Ardmore Atmosphere Aunts Baking Ballincollig Ballincollig Regional Park Ballyphehane Bedroom Bishopstown Bon Secours Hospital Bons Book Books Bread Brothers Building Building Maintenance Buildings Built Heritage Camera Car Theft Career Career Choice Career Decision Career Options Childhood Childhood Games Children Children’s Games Class Clothes Clothing Coláiste Spioraid Naoimh Colleagues Community Welfare Community Welfare Officer Cork Course Courses Crime CSN Death Decision Making Decisions Disrepair Duties Dying Elderly Emigrant Emigrant Experience Emigration Engineering England Family Family Life Floods Food Football France Free Time Games ghost Ghosts Gift Gifts Grandfather Grandmother Grandparents Health Health Centre Health Services Healthcare Heating Hill Hill Walk Hill Walking Club Hills Hillwalk Hillwalking Hillwalking Guide Hobbies Hobby Holiday Holidays Home House HSE Independent Ireland Irish Language Knitting Latin Leaving Cert Leaving Certificate Leisure Life Liverpool London Lough Mahon Maintenance Mardyke Marriage Mass Mercy Hospital Middle Parish Mother Mountain Mountain Ranges Mountains North Main Street Northside Nurse Nursing Home Outdoors Outlook on Life Outook Paint Painter Painting Paints Parents Patient Patients PBC Perspective on Life Photographs Photography Playing Porter Pres Present Presentation Brothers Presents Public Amenities Publish Publishing Quakers Redemption Road Responsibility Role of Women School School Days Schooldays Science Scool Siblings Social Media Solitude Sport St Joseph’s School Staff Stories Taxi Taxis Teacher Teachers The Lough The Marsh Training Uncles Vaccination Vaccines Walk Walking Women Women in Work Work Working life Worklife Workplace https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/files/original/47998d1b6000a76e70981ad7252a7f04.jpg e245f89b3e8cbbb2c200a3033ee23a69 https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/files/original/859e801dd14591ec7d7a25917a9ecc6c.wav 42cd57234548f74e7bc3b88c245586c0 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Grattan Street Stories: Memory of Place Subject The topic of the resource Occupational Lore; Life History; Built Heritage; Health; Ireland; Cork; Middle Parish Description An account of the resource This collection focuses on a building on Grattan Street which has served as a Quaker Meeting House, a public Dispensary and as the Grattan Street Health Centre. The project was a collaboration between the CFP and the Cork North Community Work Department, Cork Kerry Community Healthcare, Health Services Executive HSE. The interviewees fall into two main groups: those who worked in the building and those who lived in the surrounding area and availed of the services provided in the building. This project follows on from the collaboration with the HSE in the “<a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/collections/show/10" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">HSE Orthopaedic Hospital Oral History Project (d'Orthopaedic)</a>”. There is a further connection between the two projects as many of the staff and services once provided in the Grattan Street Health Centre have now relocated to St. Mary's Health Campus (St Mary’s Primary Care Centre) Gurranabraher, the former site of the Orthopaedic Hospital. This topic of the relocation of services is also covered in some staff interviews. To date (October 2021) 13 interviews have been completed for the project. Interviewees discuss the Grattan Street building itself in terms of its historic significance, its benefits and drawbacks as a workplace. Broader themes related to or inspired by the building are also touched on including: personal relationship with the building, staff camaraderie, the problems with parking, memorable incidents at work, patient experiences and descriptions of the people and services for which the building catered. Healthcare professional interviewees detail their training, career progression and comparisons between Grattan Street and other workplaces. Their testimonies also provide a link with the community of patients they served giving further insight into attitudes to healthcare, diseases, vaccines, description of social conditions and the changes in medicine and technology in their working lives. Non-healthcare professional interviewees describe childhood experiences in or around Grattan Street (The Marsh or The Middle Parish), the social, cultural and economic conditions of the area, tenements, businesses, attitudes to and experiences of healthcare, vaccines, diseases, medicines and medical professionals as well as observed changes in these areas over time. Interviewees also reflect on the possible future uses of the Grattan Street building. Related Reference Sources <ul> <li>Barrington, R. (1987) Health, medicine and politics in Ireland, 1900–1970. Dublin: Institute of Public Administration.</li> <li>Butler D.M. (2004) The Quaker meeting houses of Ireland. Dublin : Irish Friends Historical Committee.</li> <li>Byrne, J. (2004) Byrne's dictionary of Irish local history. Cork: Mercier Press.</li> <li>Cooke, R. T. (1999) My Home by the Lee. Irish Millennium Publications: Cork.</li> <li>Dempsey, P. J. & White, L. W. ‘Childers, Erskine Hamilton’. Dictionary of Irish Biography [Accessed 18 October 2021]</li> <li>Harrison, R.S. (1991) Cork City Quakers 1655-1939: A Brief History. Cork.</li> <li>Houston, M. (2004). ‘Life before the GP’. The Irish Times. Available at : <<a href="https://www.irishtimes.com/news/health/life-before-the-gp-1.1158599">https://www.irishtimes.com/news/health/life-before-the-gp-1.1158599</a> > [Accessed 18 October 2021]</li> <li>Keohane, F. (2020) The Buildings of Ireland Cork City and County. New Haven and London: Yale University Press.</li> </ul> Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2019-2020 Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Interviewees: Edith O’Regan, 'Mary', Sean Higgisson, Aoife O’Brien, Eileen Kearney, Imelda Cunning, Jane Ward, Liam Ó hUigín, Joe Scanlan, Mary Mulcahy, Philomena Cassidy, Don Morrissy, Derek O’Connell Interviewer: <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=2&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=Kieran+Murphy" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Kieran Murphy</a>, (<a href="https://corkfolklore.org/community-oral-history-outreach-officer/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP Community Oral History Outreach Officer</a>) Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant Cork, Ireland 1940s-2020s; Waterford, Ireland; Dublin, Ireland; Limerick, Ireland; Relation A related resource Exhibition Artist Edith O’Regan-Cosgrave (also an interviewee for the project) created a visual artwork based around the Grattan Street Medical Centre building itself, as a workplace and health centre. The artwork incorporated direct quotations from the oral history interviews conducted for the project, and also included brief historical paragraphs about the building researched, written and edited by the <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/community-oral-history-outreach-officer/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP Community Oral History Outreach Officer</a> Kieran Murphy. This exhibition was launched on 6th February 2020 in “St Peter’s” on the North Main Street where a “Listening Event” was also held to mark the occasion. <img src="http://corkfolklore.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/Grattan-Poster-for-Email-286-by-400.jpg" alt="Grattan-Poster-for-Email-286-by-400.jpg" /> Presentation and Listening Event To coincide with the launch of the Grattan Street Stories Exhibtion on 6th February 2020 a listening event and presentation of the history of the Grattan Street Medical Centre building and description of the project was given by <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/community-oral-history-outreach-officer/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP Community Oral History Outreach Officer</a> Kieran Murphy. <img src="http://corkfolklore.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/427A7714-1.jpg" alt="427A7714-1.jpg" /> Presentation In 2019 at the OHNI conference the <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/community-oral-history-outreach-officer/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP Community Oral History Outreach Officer</a> Kieran Murphy discussed social media and oral history which included audio excerpts from the Grattan Street Stories Project along with photographs of the building. <img src="http://corkfolklore.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/Kieran-OHNI-e1634041838937.jpg" alt="Kieran-OHNI-e1634041838937.jpg" /> Audio Visual Presentation An audio-visual slideshow was produced featuring oral testimony from the Grattan Street Stories Project and combined with suitable images of Grattan Street and from Edith O’Regan-Cosgrave’s exhibition. This was created by <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/community-oral-history-outreach-officer/">CFP Community Oral History Outreach Officer</a> Kieran Murphy. <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RnjEtQeOb3I&t=1s&ab_channel=CorkFolklore" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Audio Visual Presentation Available to listen and view here.</a> Health and Vaccines Oral History Research Many of the interviews conducted for the Grattan Street project formed an integral part of the testimonies and research for the innovative <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/health/about" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">'Catching Stories' of infectious disease in Ireland </a>project funded by the Irish Research Council. <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/health/about" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"><img src="http://corkfolklore.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/Catching-Stories-Poster.jpg" alt="Catching-Stories-Poster.jpg" /></a> Social Media Numerous suitable audio excerpts from the oral history interviews have been edited and shared on CFP's social media channels. <a href="https://twitter.com/corkfolklore/status/1139167201582288901" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">https://twitter.com/corkfolklore/status/1139167201582288901</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/corkfolklore/status/1140909542240391168" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">https://twitter.com/corkfolklore/status/1140909542240391168</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/corkfolklore/status/1141264486768238592" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">https://twitter.com/corkfolklore/status/1141264486768238592</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/corkfolklore/status/1189872295923376133" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">https://twitter.com/corkfolklore/status/1189872295923376133</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/corkfolklore/status/1228322700415860736" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">https://twitter.com/corkfolklore/status/1228322700415860736</a> Orthopaedic Hospital Cork Folklore Project in collaboration with the HSE conducted an oral history project focussing on the Orthapaedic Hospital in Gurranabraher. Many of the staff and services once provided at the Grattan Street Health Centre site were moved to St. Mary's Health Campus (St Mary’s Primary Care Centre) Gurranabraher, the former site of the Orthopaedic Hospital. <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/collections/show/10" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">HSE Orthopaedic Hospital Oral History Project (d'Orthopaedic)</a> Swimming Article Kieran Murphy and James Furey co-authored an article about <a href="https://tripeanddrisheen.substack.com/p/swim-city?s=r" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Swimming in Cork</a> which appeared in the online magazine Tripe + Drisheen. This article features a number of interview extracts collected as part of the Grattan Street Stories Project. Related Interviews CFP_SR00756_Quilligan_2019; CFP_SR00758_Broderick_2019; CFP_SR00670_OShea_2018; Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Cork Folklore Project Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Cork Folklore Project Audio Archive Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Cork Folklore Project Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource Cork Folklore Project Language A language of the resource English Type The nature or genre of the resource Audio Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource 16 .wav Files Oral History A resource containing historical information obtained in interviews with persons having firsthand knowledge. Interviewee The person(s) being interviewed Aoife O'Brien Interviewer The person(s) performing the interview Kieran Murphy Duration Length of time involved (seconds, minutes, hours, days, class periods, etc.) 80 Minutes 1 Second Location The location of the interview Grattan Street Medical Centre Original Format The type of object, such as painting, sculpture, paper, photo, and additional data .wav Bit Rate/Frequency Rate at which bits are transferred (i.e. 96 kbit/s would be FM quality audio) 24bit / 48kHz Time Summary A summary of an interview given for different time stamps throughout the interview <table> <tbody> <tr> <td> 0.00.00 - 0.00.52 </td> <td> Role in Grattan Street Medical Centre Clerical Officer in Grattan Street Medical Centre for 18/19 years. From Cathedral Road originally. Only Northsider working in Grattan Street Medical Centre! </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.00.52 - 0.02.44 </td> <td> Background, Childhood and Games Grew up in cul-de-sac terrace called School Avenue. Primary school: St Vincent’s. Games: “piggy”, skipping ropes. Convinced her friends that there were fairies in trees by her house. Took over older sister Sinead’s job in Grattan Street Medical Centre. They played together with Sinead as the teacher and Aoife as the student in their grandmother’s room using chalk which got on grandmother’s clothes and she never knew when it came from. Started school with boys & girls she was friends with and still friends with many of them today. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.02.44 - 0.03.37 </td> <td> Childhood Games: Piggy Describes the game how it’s made and its rules (also known as hopscotch or pickey) chalk on the road and use a shoe polish tin. Very popular where Aoife was from. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.03.37 - 0.05.06 </td> <td> Grand Mother’s shop on Churchfield Green. Grandmother’s surname was Stephens and people who know Aoife from the shop know her as Aoife Stephens. Had friends up near the shop. Shop closed 20 years ago. Her dad drove her and siblings from school to the shop after school. Her mom worked up there. Aoife and her friend Paula went to the “Pound Shop” or collected old wool from people’s houses to make ponytails in imitation of Like “Rainbow Brite Dolls”. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.05.06 - 0.07.37 </td> <td> Grandmother’s Shop- description, shopping notes, fun Shop was hub of activity. Customers sent up notes with the items they wanted. Children played hiding in fridges. “Light-fingered”- as children they took things from the shop. It was a grocery shop selling: milk, bread, cold meats, sweets, cigarettes. Recalls a funny incident when her cousin Leonard got a note which had “S. Towels” meaning sanitary towels but he asked his dad “what are stowels?” </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.07.37 - 0.13.23 </td> <td> Grandmother: Description, her Funeral, Summer Holidays with her, Christmas Day, Caring for others, Cooking Tripe and Drisheen Aoife thought her grandmother wasn’t patient because she had a quick tongue. Now looking back she thinks she was very patient. Aoife’s sister went to live with their grandmother when granddad died. Used to stay in caravans down in Youghal. Eventually they rented a house from a woman called Maureen. About 13 children stayed there in Youghal with grandmother for the summer. Grandmother doted on all of them. At her funeral people had very fond memories of her. She was an agony aunt and confidante. A neighbour could chat in the shop for 3 hours with her. Family always went to grandmother’s house for Christmas Day. When grandmother sold the house she came to live with Aoife’s family and the rest of the family came to them for Christmas. Grandmother always had an apron or pinnies [pinafores]. She was glamourous at the time. She used to go to the Isle of Man and she used to wear wigs because they were in fashion. Aoife called her grandmother Mrs Bijoux because she had so much jewellery. She would put so much jewellery on for special occasions that she probably couldn’t bend some of her fingers! She had fur coats. A lovely old lady. Grey hair and loved her cigarettes. She never really inhaled them it was just a habit and for comfort. Loved chocolate. Went for a nap after dinner. She woke at dawn and put the washing on. She cooked tripe and drisheen for Aoife’s dad who worked nights in Irish Steel. Grandmother loved feeding people. Steak and gravy could be cooked in the morning so Aoife’s mom only had to heat it up. “The smell alone would turn me off” the tripe and drisheen. “Fairly gruesome now to be honest”. “she knew by my face not to even ask” if Aoife wanted to taste any. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.13.23 - 0.14.55 </td> <td> Christmas Day Start 10am. Aoife’s parents & her 3 sisters. Uncle Jim now deceased. Aunt Geraldine. Grandmother had 2 girls and 2 boys. Neighbours would call in. Everyone in a small kitchen. It was the hub of the family. Fighting over toys and batteries. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.14.55 - 0.16.53 </td> <td> School Enjoyed it. As admin for the vaccinations department in Grattan Street Medical Centre she has goes back to St Vincent’s twice a year for vaccines: HPV (human papillomavirus), Men C (meningitis C) and Tdap (tetanus and low dose diphtheria and low dose pertussis (whooping cough) booster). School still looks and smells the same. Saw her picture on the wall sitting next to two girls who she is still best friends with now. Liked the subjects Art, French and Business Organisation (“Biz Org”). </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.16.53 - 0.20.11 </td> <td> After School: Courses and Jobs Did a secretarial course in Terence MacSwiney Community College and a City and Guilds Course. Work experience in solicitor’s office in Washington Street doing dictation and typing but felt a little bit like it was over her head. Worked in Dovertron Electronics in Dublin Hill which had the contract for the Sky Box where she worked for 6 months. Worked in Bourns Electronics: 8 months soldering. Saturday job in a butchers in North Main Street- she hated smell of meat lasted 3 Saturdays! Handed in CV to line manager and staff officers in HSE. Offered job 2 weeks after the interview. Feels like Grattan Street Medical Centre won’t let her go. Feels like part of the furniture. The secretarial skills course she took included: computer skills, typing, floppy disks, word processing, dictation, typing, telephone manner, </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.20.11 - 0.22.31 </td> <td> Recalls Grattan Street when visiting her sister before working there Aoife used to call into Grattan Street Medical Centre to visit her sister who worked there. She attended Michael O’Sullivan in the eye clinic when she was in school. She was familiar with the building. It is strange to be working in the building where she had been as a patient. There was a school nurse who she was afraid of and Aoife became her secretary. Smoking: Canteen was halved at the time and smokers were on one side of it. People could smoke in their offices. She stepped into her sister’s job. She felt very welcomed. Aoife says that she doesn’t take direction very well, she prefers to do things her way. Her sister was very particular. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.22.31 - 0.25.00 </td> <td> Memories as a Patient- and pretending to need glasses! Dark room, waiting to be called. As a child she was desperate to get glasses and braces. She used take silver foil from cigarette packets to put around teeth to imitate braces. She wore her grandfather’s glasses which had thick lenses “like jam jars” in the hope that she herself would need to wear glasses. She told Dr (Michael) O’Sullivan that she couldn’t see much of the (eye-test) board. Later on, after a year or two working in Grattan Street Medical Centre, she discovered that she did need glasses. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.25.00 - 0.26.23 </td> <td> Difficult to leave Grattan Street Medical Centre Sister loved Grattan Street Medical Centre and was heartbroken to leave. Aoife has been in her office since March 2001. In facy she has been there longer than she has been in her own home. “My whole life story is been in the walls”. Leaving Grattan Street Medical Centre is tough for her and some of the others working there. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.26.23 - 0.32.57 </td> <td> Description of Role and duties Every child in junior infants is offered a vision check MMR, booster vaccination and senior infant child is offered hearing check. Aoife and Síle (Sheila?) in Grattan Street Medical Centre cover the North Lee area from Macroom to Youghal, not the city, Glounthaune, Carrigtwohill, Cobh, Midleton area. Aoife works from the city to east Cork, there’s a very big workload so she must be organised. It’s a very rewarding job. It requires building a rapport with primary schools and secretaries. As part of her work she needs to: send out forms to 58 primary schools and get packs ready for the schools and all the students and get the forms back by courier. The form have to be sorted based on the vaccination date schedule and people removed from the list if they refuse the vaccine. They also check that children weren’t vaccinated before eg. a “repeat student” (a student repeating a class or year) or maybe the student has lived in another country where they were vaccinated so that must be followed up. They are almost busier in the summer months because the details of every child that has been vaccinated must be inputted into the system. Aoife gets called a lot because she has been in Grattan Street Health Centre for so long that she has many answers to questions, for instance she buys all of the stationery for the building. The computer system has changed in the last few years, it’s now a national system. Previously there was one system for Cork and Kerry but a different one for Galway etc. The new system is more time consuming at present but will be easier in the long run. Cards on the database. Notes written on the cards which are kept as well. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.32.57 - 0.36.55 </td> <td> Vaccinations in Secondary Schools Aoife goes to secondary schools providing administrative support as part of the vaccine programme. Visits a school twice: once for 1st dose of HPV and Men C and then 2nd dose of HPV and the Tdap. Boys aren’t given HPV at present but they will next year (2020) which will make things very busy. Either Aoife brings the forms or the AMO Area Medical Officer will. Sometimes the school secretary sends 4th years (fourth year /transition year students) to help them. Checks that the students have the right consent forms. Ensures that the students get back to class after waiting 15 minutes after the vaccination. First time the students have been at an appointment or vaccination without a parent. A bit of nerves from them. Tdap is Tetannus. Men C for meningitis. HPV the cervical cancer vaccine. Aoife says that nobody wants to get a vaccine but generally it’s fine. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.36.55 - 0.40.30 </td> <td> Rare cases of people refusing vaccines and possible reasons why Not many people refuse the vaccinations. Some consent forms are confusing for people, especially if English is not their first languages. Aoife sees form where people sign to accept and refuse a vaccination so those have to be cleared up. When a child is vaccinated a parent has to be present. People refuse vaccines for personal reasons- don’t agree with them or have never taken them and won’t start now. Aoife mentions the controversy around the MMR but says that she cannot get involved as an admin. If she or a parent is unsure about something there is a doctor on call to answer any questions re vaccines. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.40.30 - 0.42.52 </td> <td> The Building itself in Grattan Street Medical Centre Aoife thinks that the Grattan Street Medical Centre building has character, it is quirky. It is not clinical like you think a medical centre might be. “There’s probably music in the walls of this building”, “It’s a happy building”. The roof leaks, door hinges break, things crack and things break. She has shared the office with the same girl for a few years and they will be separated when they leave. They know when to talk to each other or leave each other alone. Pigeon poo has come down from the ceiling onto people. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.42.52 - 0.46.30 </td> <td> Neighbourhood around Grattan Street Medical Centre So near town. On lunch can go to the bank. Few houses that live around them know them. Car park has been a source of hatred because so many use it and the school as well. No point in falling out with staff or neighbours over cars. A few people “fond of the drink” would come into the building there was never trouble there were always characters about the area. Could find people sleeping rough at the side of the building. Will miss the location. Know the people in the local shops and chemists with whom she’s built up relationships. Goes to the furniture shop on North Main Street, they ask when she’s leaving Grattan Street Medical Centre and she says “don’t mention the war! Just don’t talk about it because I can’t talk about it.” Feels it’s the end of an era and it’s sad. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.46.30 - 0.50.41 </td> <td> Moving to St Mary’s Primary Care Centre Gurranbraher Aoife’s workplace is moving to the old orthopaedic hospital now the St Mary’s Primary Care Centre in Gurranabraher. She feels institutionalised being in Grattan Street Medical Centre so long. Aoife has organised social aspect of Grattan Street Medical Centre eg. the Christmas party and lunch parties for people leaving. She even once served lunch after she had made the orders. It’s like a family away from home. There’s about 50 staff but never there at the same time. GPs, mental health, public health nursing, dental will all be up in St Mary’s. Aoife wonders about how they will keep the soul of Grattan Street Medical Centre when they move. Some people are delighted to be moving to a new building. But for Aoife it’s the people that make it. Change is good even though it’s scary. Will ensure they still do nights out, lunches, Christmas events. Wants to keep something about Grattan Street Medical Centre as well. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.50.41 - 0.54.30 </td> <td> Social Aspects of Grattan Street Medical Centre Tradition before Christmas breakup day bring some food to the canteen between 12:30-2:30 big lunch in canteen. A feast- people make the effort. Aoife puts Christmas music on an old CD player. Some people play instruments eg. Violin. Party night at the airport hotel, plays. You can’t please everyone- you’ll never get the date right or the venue right. Takes lots of patience and organisation to do the social events. Recommends that people pay for the meal beforehand and she gives the restaurant the money and then everyone pays for everything extra themselves. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.54.30 - 0.56.45 </td> <td> Organising Social Events and responsibility for money People think when you work for HSE they may think you get subsidised nights out. Mindful that she’s handling other people’s money. Bad snow one Christmas and only 2 members of staff made it to the party in Oriel House Ballincollig. There was no refund and that may have affected the turnout the next years. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.56.45 - 0.59.20 </td> <td> Stories from Grattan Street Wasps coming through the decorative vents in the ceiling one year. Leaks in the roof. Boiler broke down and Aoife spotted smoke on the way to work. Flooding prevented staff from getting to work in Grattan Street. Professor Drumm (Brendan Drumm) head of HSE was visiting and there was new cutlery arrived and lots of scones from Duggan’s cake shop around the corner. Aoife was giving the scones to people as they were leaving even Prof Drumm. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.59.20 - 1.04.00 </td> <td> Assumptions about the HSE Aoife has a pensionable job and works hard for it. And HSE is in the news a lot, eg the cervical test issues. But Aoife can only account for the work she does. Elderly people would always ask her the same two questions; can you get me a medical card and can you get me glasses? Welfare officers used to be downstairs in Grattan Street Medical Centre there could be an array of different characters. Sometimes there would be uproar with someone trying to skip the queue for the welfare officer. Gone to look at the style in weddings in the registry office in the front of the building. First gay marriage in Cork in the registry office. Everyone gets on there’s never been a major falling out between staff. Nice, friendly place to work even though shabby. Taken phone calls from elderly people who are looking for a different department and Aoife goes out of her way to help them. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.04.00 - 1.06.39 </td> <td> Crimes and Old Dispensary Doctor’s handbag was taken and the thief got disorientated ran into the clinic room not out front door and dropped his mobile phone. Someone covered Sean (the porter’s) duties and a laptop was stolen. Aoife’s car was broken into one day. People had a misconception that Grattan Street Medical Centre was the old dispensary that there was drugs there. Only thing they could get was head lice lotion, bandages. Says the building belonged to the Mormons [means Quakers] who gave it to HSE to help the poor of Cork. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.06.39 - 1.09.15 </td> <td> Accidents: Windows and Filing Cabinet Window have been here for a while. Sign on her office window which said “brrrrrr” and that was the noise the window made when it was windy! The window came away from the fitting one day while opening it. Hit her head into an open filing cabinet after answering phone once. Went to the Mercy (hospital) with the cut which wasn’t able to be stitched. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.09.15 - 1.11.13 </td> <td> Cars Aoife was youngest in Grattan Street Medical Centre for a long time. “The baby of Grattan Street”. Aoife has a thing for cars. Could go out at lunchtime and could come back with a new car. Went to move her car and someone told her to call her parent to move it because she looked so young. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.11.13 - 1.12.00 </td> <td> Ghost of Grattan Street Medical Centre Someone had a meeting and something fell and Sean the porter told them it was the ghost. Aoife says the “Ghost is actually real” heartbroken and traumatised by having to leave. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.12.00 - 1.12.58 </td> <td> Different Dynamics in new Primary Care Centre Dynamics will be different in St Mary’s: won’t all be meeting in the canteen or chatting </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.12.58 - 1.13.42 </td> <td> Changes to job in new Primary Care Centre Currently all files and printer are in her office but in St Mary’s those are all centralised. Expects teething problems. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.13.42 - 1.16.32 </td> <td> Grattan Street can’t let go of Aoife Would still take the job if she had the time over. Even though Aoife has tried to leave her job a few times something has always happened so that she ended up staying eg. an application form she sent off was blank, once there was a mix up with a panel, another time the job she went for changed from HSE to social work, she lost 6 family members in 6 or 7 years. Always had someone to turn to, support, friendly ear and chat in Grattan Street Medical Centre. “Burning the place down so no one can have it!” </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.16.32 - 01.18.40 </td> <td> Hopes for future of Grattan Street Medical Centre Disability services, child adolescent mental health, eating disorder clinic. Hate to see it turned into apartments. Lovely community- it should be kept. Food after Christmas parties is brought up to Edel House and food brought to Penny Dinners as well. Lots of vulnerable people in the area and lots of elderly people. Hopes podiatry can keep a room for foot care for the elderly with diabetes etc. prefer to see it remain as something that’s giving to the community. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.18.40 - 1.19.01 </td> <td> Reflections on Grattan Street as Workplace Quirky characters. Fun place to work. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.19.01 - 1.19.50 </td> <td> Fairies Aoife imagined fairies in the trees at her childhood home. Says she has a great imagination. She perhaps took the idea from The “Secret Garden”, she also loved “The Never Ending Story”. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.19.50 - 1.20.01 </td> <td> Outro Interview Ends </td> </tr> </tbody> </table> Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Aoife O'Brien: Grattan Street, Healthcare, Working Life Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context CFP_SR00712_O'Brien_2019; Relation A related resource Other Interviews in this Collection <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/240" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00696_O'Regan_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/242" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00704_Collins_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/243" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00706_Higgisson_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/245" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00713_Kearney_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/246" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00714_Cunning_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/247" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00717_Ward_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/248" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00727_OhUigin_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/249" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00728_Scanlan_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/250" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00729_Mulcahy_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/251" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00732_Cassidy_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/252" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00760_Morrissy_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/253" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"> CFP_SR00762_OConnell_2019</a>; Language A language of the resource English Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 16 May 2019 Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Cork Folklore Project Audio Archive Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource Cork Folklore Project Type The nature or genre of the resource Sound Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource 1 .wav file Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Cork Folklore Project Subject The topic of the resource Ireland; Cork; Northside; Middle Parish; The Marsh; Occupational Lore; Medicine; Family; University; Built Heritage Description An account of the resource Aoife describes growing up on the Northside near Cathedral Road and playing games with her friends. Describes her grandmother who ran a shop on Churchfield Green. Her grandmother was a confidante to many locals. Her grandmother eventually moved into their family home, where Aoife describes how she cooked tripe and drisheen. Aoife also speaks about a typical Christmas day with her family and neighbours visiting. Recalls her school days and subsequent courses and jobs before her clerical officer role in Grattan Street, taking over her sister’s role. Remembers her first experiences of Grattan Street as a child patient wanting to get glasses. Is reluctant to leave Grattan Street as she has so many memories there. Explains her work in administration for the schools vaccination programme. Mentions rare cases of vaccine hesitancy or refusal. Describes the quirky character of the Grattan Street Medical Centre building and as a happy place to work despite its defects. It’s location in the centre of the city is also beneficial. Aoife talks about her role organising social events for the medical centre staff- Christmas parties and leaving parties. Hope to maintain these traditions when the staff move to St Mary’s Health Campus Gurranabraher. Recalls stories from Grattan Street including wasps, pigeons, floods, characters and the boiler. Accident Accidents Admin Administration Apron Build Heritage Building Buildings Built Heritage Cake Cake Shop Canteen Car Car Park Car Parking Career Career Decisions Career Path Cars Cathedral Road CD CD Player Cervical Test Chalk Change Childhood Childhood Games Children’s Games Christamas Christamas Dinner Christmas Churchfield Green Cigarettes Clerical Officer Clerical Work Clinic Colleagues Community Computer Crime Crimes Database Disability Dispensary Disrepair Dolls Drisheen Dublin Hill Duties Fairies Fairy Family Father Floods Food Friends Games ghost Glasses Grandparents Grattan Street Grattan Street Medical Centre Gurranabraher Health Centre HPV HPV Vaccine HSE Instruments Irish Steel Job Leaks Lunch Marriage Meals Medical Centre Medicine Memory Music Name Names Neighbour Neighbourhood Neighbours News North Main Street Northside Nurse Office Organising Parents Parking Parties Party Patient Patients Perceptions Picky Porter Poverty Registry Office Responsibility Sanitary Towels School Schooldays Scone Scones Secretarial Skills Secretary Shop Shopping Shops Sibling Sister Skills Skipping Smell Smells smoking Social life St Mary's Health Campus St Mary's Orthopeadic Hospital St Mary’s Primary Care Centre St Vincent's Staff Stories Summer Holidays Traditional Food Traditions Training Tripe Tripe and Drisheen Vaccination Vaccinations vaccine Vaccine Hesitancy Vaccines Wedding Weddings Work Work Colleagues Working Working life Worklife Workplace Youghal https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/files/original/c1f71a078c71c139874eb8e72cd1b3b8.jpg 16b6240fed52be8092b29fd861fcf9ec https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/files/original/9d74501e15908e88b5a3f07d10be10c1.mp3 9dd7a1153be96f478650c1c28b360735 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Grattan Street Stories: Memory of Place Subject The topic of the resource Occupational Lore; Life History; Built Heritage; Health; Ireland; Cork; Middle Parish Description An account of the resource This collection focuses on a building on Grattan Street which has served as a Quaker Meeting House, a public Dispensary and as the Grattan Street Health Centre. The project was a collaboration between the CFP and the Cork North Community Work Department, Cork Kerry Community Healthcare, Health Services Executive HSE. The interviewees fall into two main groups: those who worked in the building and those who lived in the surrounding area and availed of the services provided in the building. This project follows on from the collaboration with the HSE in the “<a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/collections/show/10" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">HSE Orthopaedic Hospital Oral History Project (d'Orthopaedic)</a>”. There is a further connection between the two projects as many of the staff and services once provided in the Grattan Street Health Centre have now relocated to St. Mary's Health Campus (St Mary’s Primary Care Centre) Gurranabraher, the former site of the Orthopaedic Hospital. This topic of the relocation of services is also covered in some staff interviews. To date (October 2021) 13 interviews have been completed for the project. Interviewees discuss the Grattan Street building itself in terms of its historic significance, its benefits and drawbacks as a workplace. Broader themes related to or inspired by the building are also touched on including: personal relationship with the building, staff camaraderie, the problems with parking, memorable incidents at work, patient experiences and descriptions of the people and services for which the building catered. Healthcare professional interviewees detail their training, career progression and comparisons between Grattan Street and other workplaces. Their testimonies also provide a link with the community of patients they served giving further insight into attitudes to healthcare, diseases, vaccines, description of social conditions and the changes in medicine and technology in their working lives. Non-healthcare professional interviewees describe childhood experiences in or around Grattan Street (The Marsh or The Middle Parish), the social, cultural and economic conditions of the area, tenements, businesses, attitudes to and experiences of healthcare, vaccines, diseases, medicines and medical professionals as well as observed changes in these areas over time. Interviewees also reflect on the possible future uses of the Grattan Street building. Related Reference Sources <ul> <li>Barrington, R. (1987) Health, medicine and politics in Ireland, 1900–1970. Dublin: Institute of Public Administration.</li> <li>Butler D.M. (2004) The Quaker meeting houses of Ireland. Dublin : Irish Friends Historical Committee.</li> <li>Byrne, J. (2004) Byrne's dictionary of Irish local history. Cork: Mercier Press.</li> <li>Cooke, R. T. (1999) My Home by the Lee. Irish Millennium Publications: Cork.</li> <li>Dempsey, P. J. & White, L. W. ‘Childers, Erskine Hamilton’. Dictionary of Irish Biography [Accessed 18 October 2021]</li> <li>Harrison, R.S. (1991) Cork City Quakers 1655-1939: A Brief History. Cork.</li> <li>Houston, M. (2004). ‘Life before the GP’. The Irish Times. Available at : <<a href="https://www.irishtimes.com/news/health/life-before-the-gp-1.1158599">https://www.irishtimes.com/news/health/life-before-the-gp-1.1158599</a> > [Accessed 18 October 2021]</li> <li>Keohane, F. (2020) The Buildings of Ireland Cork City and County. New Haven and London: Yale University Press.</li> </ul> Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2019-2020 Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Interviewees: Edith O’Regan, 'Mary', Sean Higgisson, Aoife O’Brien, Eileen Kearney, Imelda Cunning, Jane Ward, Liam Ó hUigín, Joe Scanlan, Mary Mulcahy, Philomena Cassidy, Don Morrissy, Derek O’Connell Interviewer: <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=2&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=Kieran+Murphy" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Kieran Murphy</a>, (<a href="https://corkfolklore.org/community-oral-history-outreach-officer/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP Community Oral History Outreach Officer</a>) Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant Cork, Ireland 1940s-2020s; Waterford, Ireland; Dublin, Ireland; Limerick, Ireland; Relation A related resource Exhibition Artist Edith O’Regan-Cosgrave (also an interviewee for the project) created a visual artwork based around the Grattan Street Medical Centre building itself, as a workplace and health centre. The artwork incorporated direct quotations from the oral history interviews conducted for the project, and also included brief historical paragraphs about the building researched, written and edited by the <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/community-oral-history-outreach-officer/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP Community Oral History Outreach Officer</a> Kieran Murphy. This exhibition was launched on 6th February 2020 in “St Peter’s” on the North Main Street where a “Listening Event” was also held to mark the occasion. <img src="http://corkfolklore.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/Grattan-Poster-for-Email-286-by-400.jpg" alt="Grattan-Poster-for-Email-286-by-400.jpg" /> Presentation and Listening Event To coincide with the launch of the Grattan Street Stories Exhibtion on 6th February 2020 a listening event and presentation of the history of the Grattan Street Medical Centre building and description of the project was given by <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/community-oral-history-outreach-officer/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP Community Oral History Outreach Officer</a> Kieran Murphy. <img src="http://corkfolklore.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/427A7714-1.jpg" alt="427A7714-1.jpg" /> Presentation In 2019 at the OHNI conference the <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/community-oral-history-outreach-officer/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP Community Oral History Outreach Officer</a> Kieran Murphy discussed social media and oral history which included audio excerpts from the Grattan Street Stories Project along with photographs of the building. <img src="http://corkfolklore.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/Kieran-OHNI-e1634041838937.jpg" alt="Kieran-OHNI-e1634041838937.jpg" /> Audio Visual Presentation An audio-visual slideshow was produced featuring oral testimony from the Grattan Street Stories Project and combined with suitable images of Grattan Street and from Edith O’Regan-Cosgrave’s exhibition. This was created by <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/community-oral-history-outreach-officer/">CFP Community Oral History Outreach Officer</a> Kieran Murphy. <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RnjEtQeOb3I&t=1s&ab_channel=CorkFolklore" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Audio Visual Presentation Available to listen and view here.</a> Health and Vaccines Oral History Research Many of the interviews conducted for the Grattan Street project formed an integral part of the testimonies and research for the innovative <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/health/about" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">'Catching Stories' of infectious disease in Ireland </a>project funded by the Irish Research Council. <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/health/about" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"><img src="http://corkfolklore.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/Catching-Stories-Poster.jpg" alt="Catching-Stories-Poster.jpg" /></a> Social Media Numerous suitable audio excerpts from the oral history interviews have been edited and shared on CFP's social media channels. <a href="https://twitter.com/corkfolklore/status/1139167201582288901" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">https://twitter.com/corkfolklore/status/1139167201582288901</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/corkfolklore/status/1140909542240391168" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">https://twitter.com/corkfolklore/status/1140909542240391168</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/corkfolklore/status/1141264486768238592" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">https://twitter.com/corkfolklore/status/1141264486768238592</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/corkfolklore/status/1189872295923376133" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">https://twitter.com/corkfolklore/status/1189872295923376133</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/corkfolklore/status/1228322700415860736" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">https://twitter.com/corkfolklore/status/1228322700415860736</a> Orthopaedic Hospital Cork Folklore Project in collaboration with the HSE conducted an oral history project focussing on the Orthapaedic Hospital in Gurranabraher. Many of the staff and services once provided at the Grattan Street Health Centre site were moved to St. Mary's Health Campus (St Mary’s Primary Care Centre) Gurranabraher, the former site of the Orthopaedic Hospital. <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/collections/show/10" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">HSE Orthopaedic Hospital Oral History Project (d'Orthopaedic)</a> Swimming Article Kieran Murphy and James Furey co-authored an article about <a href="https://tripeanddrisheen.substack.com/p/swim-city?s=r" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Swimming in Cork</a> which appeared in the online magazine Tripe + Drisheen. This article features a number of interview extracts collected as part of the Grattan Street Stories Project. Related Interviews CFP_SR00756_Quilligan_2019; CFP_SR00758_Broderick_2019; CFP_SR00670_OShea_2018; Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Cork Folklore Project Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Cork Folklore Project Audio Archive Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Cork Folklore Project Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource Cork Folklore Project Language A language of the resource English Type The nature or genre of the resource Audio Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource 16 .wav Files Oral History A resource containing historical information obtained in interviews with persons having firsthand knowledge. Interviewee The person(s) being interviewed Eileen Kearney Interviewer The person(s) performing the interview Kieran Murphy Duration Length of time involved (seconds, minutes, hours, days, class periods, etc.) 89 Minutes 13 Seconds Location The location of the interview St Mary’s Primary Care Centre, Gurranabraher Original Format The type of object, such as painting, sculpture, paper, photo, and additional data .wav Bit Rate/Frequency Rate at which bits are transferred (i.e. 96 kbit/s would be FM quality audio) 24bit / 48kHz Time Summary A summary of an interview given for different time stamps throughout the interview <table> <tbody> <tr> <td> 0.00.00 - 0.00.25 </td> <td> Intro </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.00.25- 0.02.04 </td> <td> Background Started in Grattan Street 2002 had been in different positions but haven been there full-time since 2012 as Assistant Director of Public Health Nursing. Covers the nursing staff for the City North-West area population 27,000. 10 area PHNs [Public Health Nurses] community RGN teams (Registered General Nurse). Eileen is PHN, RGN and registered mid-wife. You have to be an RGN to become a PHN. Worked as an RGN first in the community in North Cork prior Grattan Street. Then did PHN course in Dublin UCD (University College Dublin). Returned to Grattan Street, work as PHN on the ground, in schools, preschools, inspecting in nursing homes, assistant director of PHN since 2009. She was in two other sectors before that. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.02.04 - 0.04.21 </td> <td> Childhood in Waterford Born a long time ago! In Tallow west Waterford. From family of 7, has an older brother and four younger brothers and one younger sister. Father was a butcher, family business. Went to school in Tallow, then Loreto in Fermoy and then to the Mercy Hospital and did RGN training, then Dublin to Hollis Street for midwifery training. [Eileen’s phone rings but she mutes or turns it off and continues the interview] There were about four butchers in Tallow but now only a Supervalu. She remembers her dad singing and whistling below in the shop when she was in bed in the morning. He and his father were good singers and whistlers. Remembers sawdust in the shop and it going all over the house. Father and mother going to the marts getting sheep and animals coming to the back yard and into the slaughter house. Grew up with it so didn’t see anything unusual in it. Good happy childhood. Brothers and her all involved in sport. She and parents played tennis. “We were brought up in a tennis court” played some hockey in school. Lots of sports, golf as well. But now doesn’t have time with work. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.04.21 - 0.06.36 </td> <td> House at Home Growing up Two storey house on the street. Shop was attached to it. Downstairs there was a living room, a kitchen and a back kitchen and a room off the shop and four bedrooms upstairs and a bathroom, a big garden, a shed and a slaughter house. Grew up as an only girl, her sister is 14 years younger. She had gone to boarding school/secondary school by the time she was born. Had lots of friends in Tallow, still has them, still keep in touch. Did a lot of work in the house, as she tells her mother who’s now 92. They were all given jobs to do. She had to hoover the sawdust. She was involved in the weekly bath for her brothers, making sure their shoes were polished every Saturday evening. Thinks that today it is different, perhaps because of parenting. Dad died 10 years ago suddenly from a heart attack which she says was lovely for him. Siblings all alive, one in England. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.06.36 - 0.10.57 </td> <td> Produce in the Butchers Drisheen, Tripe, Black Pudding. And the making of them. Meat was sold in the butchers and some onions. Mother made drisheen and black pudding every Thursday to be ready for Friday and Saturday. Sometimes she would get some tripe from the market in Cork and it would be sold in their shop. They didn’t make the tripe themselves but they did the drisheen and black puddings using the serum. Serum from the blood and milk and pepper was used in it. It is supposedly good for you. And they ate that every Saturday night on top of sausages and rashers and they keep that tradition going but without the drisheen. Very mild flavour. It’s the frying that gives it a flavour. Maybe someone who wasn’t used to it might find a stronger flavour. Doesn’t remember the flavour of any herbs. It was a light grey colour in comparison to black pudding. Possibly some kind of sausage meat added to the black pudding. There was a machine where it would come from. Serum is separation from the blood when it is allowed to settle and there is a strainer. You use what floats to the top and discard the rest. Father and sister loved tripe but Eileen never “acquired the flavour for tripe” served “with boiled onions and milk”. Eileen doesn’t remember the butcher shop selling pork. But she thinks she might be wrong about that because her father kept a pig and he won a trophy for his prize pig when Eileen was about 7. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.10.57 - 0.15.09 </td> <td> School, Corporal Punishment, going home for Dinner School in convent in Tallow. Carmelites enclosed order still in Tallow, they didn’t teach but it was in their area. Boys had a separate school at the time but now it is co-ed: boys and girls. Enjoyed school. Reasonably well-behaved because terrified. Teachers could slap you, corporal punishment. Eileen didn’t get slapped often because she was a good girl. Remembers a small ‘roundy’ stick which would be used to hit children around the knuckles. Some teachers had less patience than others and found it difficult but the students didn’t understand that. She is glad corporal punishment is gone because it lowered self-esteem, and put you at a disadvantage. It wasn’t just the slap, it was that someone had carried it out on you. You felt brutalised. It was very common, right up to the time her children were in primary school, some of the teachers at the ends of their careers there had a reputation for corporal punishment. Would get a slap if they thought you weren’t paying attention or if you were talking to someone. Spoke about corporal punishment with her friends subsequently. And she discovered terrible things that happened to people which she wasn’t aware about at the time. Slaps across the face, pulling of ears, hit on the head. “You were an easy target. They had the power.” It was difficult. She thinks that if you were involved in sport you were treated a bit differently, though not if you were academic. They had outside toilets in primary school- “leaves and cold and wet”. Was able to go home at lunchtime and have dinner. “My wonderful mother had my dinner ready every day. For the nine of us.” </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.15.09 - 0.15.48 </td> <td> Dinner and Types of Foods For dinner they would meat that hadn’t been sold in the butcher’s shop. They might have steak for a treat on Thursday night but usually more reasonable cuts of beef and lamb. Always meat, vegetable and potatoes. Mother was a great cook and baker so they always had something sweet to eat as well. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.15.48 - 0.19.01 </td> <td> Secondary School Boarding School Boarded in Loreto Fermoy, her brothers went to De la Salle in Waterford. Her parents worked hard to get them that education. Her mother had boarded but her father had left school early. Some of her friends from home went to Loreto as well and she also made new friends there. There for 5 years. Happy enough time. Initially allowed home every third weekend, eventually allowed home every weekend. As an only girl it was good to be around female company, she thinks she would have just been bossing the boys around at home. First impression was of the structure of the place: all your recreation time was spent in the one place. And you were there with your class, it was all set out for you and you had to fall into line. “I wasn’t unhappy there.” Calls by day, hockey in afternoon- sometimes go to Cork for a match. Every Saturday they were not at home they went for walks, they walked through the town, on parade in their uniforms. Had music at night in the social room listening to records. Abiding memory is of seeing Dana winning the Eurovision. Maybe she saw something about Bloody Sunday as well.” </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.19.01 - 0.20.36 </td> <td> Career Choice. Nursing. Mother’s education. Role of Religion. Mercy Hospital “For some reason I always had nursing in my head.” Maybe because her mother said she would have done nursing if she could- she had left school after her Junior Cert and did a year in a technical school where she got her baking skills. Mom was a great worker so thinks she would have made a great matron rather than a nurse because she would have wanted everything done properly. Eileen says she may have some of those traits herself. After Eileen’s training when she went into the hospital she felt claustrophobic “for some reason it didn’t sit well on me.” She did 3 years in the Mercy. There were nuns there at the time: “Great fun, hard work.” </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.20.36 - 0.22.07 </td> <td> Role of religion in the Mercy Hospital. The rosary was said every night on the wards. Had to go down on your knees at 6 o’clock and shout out the decades of the rosary. Biggest thing was that they had to know the joyful, glorious and sorrowful mysteries. They went to mass every morning around 7am when they stayed in the nurses home for the first year and a half. Nuns were strict. She was only 17 when she was there so she thinks it might have been good. She didn’t regret doing nursing but she didn’t take it too seriously either. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.22.07 - 0.23.18 </td> <td> Nursing Training in Mercy Hospital Three years training but only got a certificate. Learned anatomy, physiology and putting it into practice and managing patients/clients, eventually managing a ward. Managing night-time with patients coming in. managing a children’s ward. Dealing with everything: clinical care, surgery, people dying. Children dying. Recalls children dying in St. Anne’s Ward that will never leave me. Delighted to see the Mercy is busy and expanding. She has fond memories of it. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.23.18 - 0.26.55 </td> <td> Route to PHN and Grattan Street Did a little bit of work there wasn’t much work for qualified nurses at the time. Went to Fermoy Hospital, a community hospital. Worked there for a few months. Went to Hollis Street and spent a year there- very interesting. Opening into a different experience in the capital. She was madly in love at the time came home frequently. Eventually went back to Fermoy Hospital and got married at 23 in June, and by October of the following year she had her first son and so gave up nursing. Husband was self-employed and was often away and she felt one of them needed to be there they had three children. When the children got older she decided to do a course in fitness and taught exercise classes for 8 years. She had tried to get into PHN but hadn’t enough experience. She met a friend in Fermoy in 1998 and she said why not go into the community they are looking for RGNs in North Cork. She applied, got it and then “got the bug for the community” and applied twice to UCC for PHN course and they didn’t think she was suitable. She was accepted in Dublin and found it challenging. She was 47 at the time. She was up there for three week period. She came home every weekend. She came home on placement for a two week period placed in North Cork. That’s how it operated for the academic year. it was manageable and she had always wanted to do it. She was going back into a group of nurses who had been working, who knew everything, who knew computers and Eileen could barely send a text message on a phone. She was accomplished at essays by the time she was finished. She entered Grattan Street 2002. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.26.55 - 0.28.25 </td> <td> Public Health Nursing Eileen enjoyed the freedom of PHN, didn’t like the constraints of the hospital and the regimental nature of it. PHN suited her. Liked going into clients’ homes and fitting in with them rather than them fitting into a structure in a hospital. She wonders about the broad, complex, extended and manic nature of what is being attempted in the community now. She hasn’t been out working in 2009 but she has been working managing staff inside and supporting them in client management. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.28.25 - 0.33.06 </td> <td> Role of Public Health Nurse Looking after clients from the ante-natal (pregnancy period) to the end of life care. Anything and everything in between that. A huge sphere. Looking after mums to be, babies, mums after birth, young children, acute discharges who need support around wound care, clients with mental health, addictions, disabilities, older adults, dying and palliative care. Thinks it’s now too broad now because the type of discharges are very complex, almost providing a hospital type care within the community. Sláinte Care- clients being discharged into the community. Eileen doesn’t think this can happen until they had sufficient resources to match the numbers being discharged to them, she needs an increased budget. City north west is an area of great disadvantage there are 20 DEDs (Electoral Divisions) in it 15 of which are designated as disadvantaged or very disadvantaged. Lots of complexities around parenting. This leads to children with behavioural issues. Eileen is always advocating for early interventions. Role of PHN was always health promotion and illness prevention. More hands on now doing clinical, assessments, referrals, ordering supplies, reviewing things. So what was formerly the PHN’s main role is no longer their main role. Early intervention is key, it would be very beneficial. In the city northwest area there are many non-statutory bodies area-based childhood programme, (Atlantic Philanthropy was supporting this for a while now it’s Tusla) they support families, parents, teachers, childcare workers increasing capacity around infant mental health. Springboard run by Tusla which support families. “Niche” in Hollyhill a family support agencies, and Barnardos as well. Eileen is involved with all of them in child welfare and protection. Would like to get the issues resolved at child welfare stage. Everyone that comes to work here gets great experience but no one stays for very long. Lost two staff in April. 1.5 staff were on maternity leave and not replaces and another 2 going on maternity leave. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.33.06 - 0.35.30 </td> <td> Turnover of Staff Turnover due to the challenging work. Often chasing people, offering them appointments to bring their children, but they don’t. When you go back they won’t answer the door, or their phone, and change their phone number, or don’t tell you that they’ve moved house. Not all people they deal with are like that but a core group are because they have had no parenting themselves and the cycle continues of disadvantage, poverty, poor education and housing, unemployment. “Entitlement stage” their parents were entitled to everything. In PHN there is no entitlement which they try to get across. Eileen thinks that people born and reared in poverty and with poor parenting have no chance of catching up because they don’t realise the level they are at. Eileen doesn’t know where to break that cycle though she thinks that PHN plays some role. Places in Dublin and Limerick also have areas of disadvantage. Eileen think that sometimes her staff give people what they think the people need but it may not be what they really need and sometimes the staff can’t get that information from people. It’s all about building relationships but it’s hard to build that relationship when people don’t want what you have to offer people. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.35.30 - 0.40.25 </td> <td> Child Development Problems- Multiple Causes, Complex Solutions Should they ensure that all children in primary school are fed? Or is that too late? An infant mental health specialist with young Knocknaheeny area child-based programme 0 to 2 years is pivotal in nurturing and bonding and if it doesn’t happen children end up with low self-esteem or behavioural problems. These become bigger problems later as the children have not developed skills in coping because they haven’t been shown them. And if it’s not there by age two they miss out on a lot. Ante-natal period classes with Young Knocknaheeny to build a relationship with the mothers when they have their babies which they have to see until they are 5. There are a lot of services for people but sometimes they don’t want to be seen as a target for the services, they don’t want to be seen as different. Eileen was initially shocked by that attitude, someone said “another service being thrown at us” and maybe they were saturated with services and it wasn’t something they wanted at all. If Eileen knew how to break that cycle she would patent it. She read an article by someone in charge of Bessborough- how can we expect young mums to parent a child when they were never shown and they had no role model. How to build trust and build a relationship because they can be very wary and distrustful of services. Parents think that if they don’t do what the PHN says or thinks is right that there could be child protection issues involved because this happened a lot in the past and sometimes a child was removed. But for social workers the last resort is to remove a child- the child as almost always better with the parents from their point of view. Eileen thinks that approach is a bit unusual, especially if there is no bond between parents and the child. Sometimes a child is removed for a period of time, and there are health professional meetings, case conferences, families come together and everything is discussed. Sometimes it doesn’t work but you have to try. In those cases there is a health professional meeting or a case conference meeting and the children go into foster care and maybe go back to the parents after a period. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.40.25 - 0.45.40 </td> <td> Social and Medical Issues in North Cork Area Most of the moms are single with different partners for the different children. Housing is an issue, expenses for school, dependence on drugs, alcohol, polypharmacy, mental health, self-neglect. A number of clients are alcoholics who come home and expect the HSE to provide services. They can refer clients to the mental health services but the client has to agree to go. And there is a lot of that. Lots of young people with disabilities which she was surprised at she felt she had been very “sheltered”. When she came from North Lee so many people had disabilities or something wrong with a lot of people. The stats are quite high. North Cork is rural but North Lee is exceptional. One third fit into that category. Mental health and addiction issues are shocking. Grandparents are minding grandchildren because their children aren’t capable. She had no exposure to this until she arrived and so she was unprepared for it. Eileen could retire any time she wants but she likes the work but will retire in a few years. She tries to make a difference. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.45.40 - 0.49.40 </td> <td> Compares Grattan Street to new St Mary’s Primary Care Centre. Car Park issues. Get pleasure from the new building in St Mary’s so different to Grattan Street. When in Grattan Street they loved it and linking in with the team and got stuck in the car park. Eileen had a database with all the cars and numbers and if anyone was in a parking space who wasn’t registered they would get a note on their car. The car park nearly broke their hearts. Eileen was in a 7:20 every morning to get the parking space and would dread having to go anywhere because your space would be gone. When she went there as a novice PHN she didn’t like the outside of the building but once inside she felt comfortable there, and the staff were nice in there. They always knew if someone was sick or had a bereavement. When she left Grattan Street she had a room there but it is now full with other things and incontinence wear. Jokingly blames Sean Higgisson the porter for this. Some of the rooms in Grattan Street are beginning to look neglected and old. Some of the team are not looking forward to moving up to St Mary’s. They are anxious about the move. But many with Eileen were as well before they moved but at least her team are all in the one place now. She feels they are well-settled in St Mary’s now and they like it and she told Sean the porter and Celine in admin this. They’re not really missing Grattan Street. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.49.40 - 0.57.13 </td> <td> Typical Day in Grattan Street and Changes. Hospital Discharges. Arriving in Grattan Street first it was similar to what she had been used to in North Cork. (North Lee is from Youghal to Macroom) Was in Mayfield for a year. Was in Glanmire St Stephen’s for 2 years. 2012-2019 in Grattan Street. A typical day in Grattan Street was getting there early to park the car to be able to get out quickly. When traffic in Grattan Street became one way it really affected staff in Grattan Street- previously they were able to leave and go up Shandon Street but now they have to turn through narrow streets. Doesn’t feel they were told or consulted about that change. After getting their early she went for a walk because initially she didn’t have a key to the health centre. Walk to the quays, North Main Street into St Francis Church to pray for everyone (and for herself not to kill anyone). Back to Grattan Street, Sean would be there, have coffee, reply to emails, manage staff annual leave, sick leave professional development, pre-discharge meetings. She is on various boards and bodies which entailed various meetings. Would go St Finbarr’s [Hospital] head office once a week. Busy. Trying to find solutions to problems. Would think of something in bed at night but forget it by the time morning comes. Sometimes write a note in the phone and go back to sleep. In Grattan Street working with clients, working through correspondence, going to meetings: multi-disciplinary teams with more views, suggestions and options. Could be about a client having issues with self-neglecting, a client who deteriorated and needed extra supports. Mercy today for pre-discharge meeting for a very complicated case coming home. Previously the person had been discharge and within 36 hours he was found on the floor and the door had to be broken down- required the Gardaí, ambulance, nurse and home help. He refused to go to hospital. The following morning he was unwell again and he was sent to hospital. Now they want to send him home again. Many complexities come from not having next of kin and the nurse shouldn’t have to take on that responsibility. Capacity bill. Not always safe discharges. Reiterates connections with Young Knocknaheeny, Niche, Barnardos, Springboard. Try to link in with other groups and social work but feels they need to focus on their own work. Their cases are too big to be involved. Feels pulled and dragged a lot. As a PHN you are a manager of an area of 3,000 population which isn’t huge but the complexities make it hard. In a rural area there might be a population of about 5,000 but they wouldn’t all be active. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.57.13 - 1.01.40 </td> <td> Social Aspect Aoife O’Brien is great to get people together, comes up with idea, advertise, follow up, plan order things, get back to people and doesn’t force people and takes photos. Eileen takes pride in the Christmas party and restarting it. It’s the only time they really had events in Grattan Street. Allows you to have fun, eating and relaxing and speaking about plans. Someone made punch but with the change in driving laws and when that woman left they didn’t have it anymore. Lots of young people in Grattan Street now who go out after work to a bar but Eileen wouldn’t have done that. There was a lot of moving or transferring staff and they would do something for them like a lunch. Mixed well with admin, nursing, podiatry, school nurses, ophthalmology. Everyone knew where everyone was. When they came to St Mary’s first in early February (5th & 6th of February after the nurses strike) they really missed the other teams. Expected the other to follow shortly after but they haven’t. When meeting people in the corridor in St Marys there might not be eye contact and they aren’t used to that coming from St Mary’s. Now they are smiling and saying hello. They are integrating into the new building. When people finally come up from Grattan Street it might be easier for them now that Eileen’s team has managed the transition. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.01.40 - 1.07.10 </td> <td> Everyone loves Grattan Street Some people wanted to leave but only for parking. Grattan Street reversing out and cars double parked on both sides. Saw a lorry bringing in windows for a school extension. People in the school sometimes try to take their spaces. The lorry reversed in- surprised how good a driver he was. Teams close together in Grattan Street but separated now in St Mary’s. Podiatry will come up. Home Support Service is in St Marys. PHN have rooms for clients downstairs. While everyone is in St Mary’s they are separate. They are beginning to get used to all the space. Thinks it’s more productive in St Marys. Sector 4- City Northwest touches on the Mardyke and Western Road a bit but most of it is on the Northside. It made no sense for staff to be based in town and come up to the Northside and then back down. Grattan Street Health Centre is part of Mayfield Sector 3- City North East. So really they were in temporarily lodgings there. In St Mary’s can respond to thinks more quickly, nurses can do their calls more easily. Can’t think of negative things, maybe the room with 20 of the nurses instead of 2 to 5 people. But people are getting used to it. Some health centres have a mix of disciplines but in St Mary’s it’s all nursing which Eileen prefers. Canteen in Grattan Street was homely and functional. But in St Mary’s it’s clinical, not big and equipment is ok but it’s very loud. Eileen goes there when it’s quiet and looks out the window at the trees which has a preservation order on them. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.07.10 - 1.11.08 </td> <td> Interaction with Surrounding Grattan Street Community Fraught interaction with the surrounding area in Grattan Street to do with the car park. There’s 6 parking spaces for anyone. And the ones at the back wall and the other side area for HSE. There might not be enough space for residents. And HSE staff would try to get in early enough for a space. They had a good relationship with the school [Education Together] until they started taking the HSE parking spaces. Sean had a good relationship with the school and the locals because he would have more dealings with them. Only the back door of people’s houses were connected with the car park their front doors faced elsewhere. There was a hall. And the area in which Grattan Street is located isn’t covered by the PHN area that Eileen was in, it was covered by Mayfield. So Eileen feels they were a bit disconnected from the Marsh. Not much interaction with shops. Raised blood pressure due to the car parking and arguments and they nearly shot each other over it! Eileen told someone that they couldn’t park there because they weren’t working there and she was shocked at the angry verbal abuse she got after it. Sometimes arguments would start badly but in the end they would be smiling and wondering what all the fuss was about. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.11.08 - 1.14.18 </td> <td> Describe Grattan Street A happy place to work. Liked the building and its peculiarities, its rattling windows. Arguing to get a new window where the bottom part was falling out and tin foil was blocking the gap. In her room the wind was coming in and the window wasn’t replaced. Bars on the window. And obscure glass so you could only see out when you open the top. Thought that the two stairs going to the 2nd floor in Grattan Street was cool when she was there first and the gallery all around and the open space it created. An old quaint building being pushed into something it was never meant to house. Glad to hear that there is talk of people going in there. The gallery made things different. And you could see if someone was waiting for you and have a bit of craic. An opportunistic up and down conversation. Not as easy to catch people in St Mary’s. “We will always have happy memories of Grattan Street. Always. And I’m sure it will become even more embellished with time.” </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.14.18 - 1.18.30 </td> <td> Why do people like Grattan Street? Eileen thinks it’s partly because of the people working there. The building lends itself to that. They got something good from the building. When you entered the building there were no lights on you had to go to the reception area to turn them on. One morning she heard something flush when she went in. She locked herself in her office. And called Sean (Higgisson the porter) who said the toilet just flushed itself- another peculiarity. Sometimes people were difficult in Grattan Street and Sean was calm and dealt with it. Being near town gave you lots of options for places to go which isn’t the case in St Marys. Someone could come in shouting and verbally abusive and demanding to see someone. Someone collapsed once and Sean had to get him to the Mercy Hospital in wheelchair. Try to diffuse the difficult person- Sean would be good at that and might get someone else to assist. Sean gives a relaxed attitude and talks to people. He would keep it from escalating. Eileen thinks she might not be so calm! </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.18.30 - 1.20.02 </td> <td> Varying Views of Grattan Street Medical Centre Other people who came to Grattan Street may see it as shabby, or somewhere they didn’t get what they wanted. Or there was no proper queue or waiting too long for something. They might have had trouble parking. Another person might think it’s convenient in the city centre and an interesting unusual space. “But they won’t ever see it the way we saw it. We felt we owned it. Or it owned us, you know that kind of way. Sometimes it just felt like something wrapped around you.” Felt good there. “Everyone loves Grattan Street. Put that on my epitaph.” </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.20.02 - 1.21.00 </td> <td> Definition of Patients and Clients Call people clients when working with them in the community. Patients in the hospital. Clients because they have some need but it is not always an illness. It’s always been like that in the community setting. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.21.00 - 1.23.15 </td> <td> Anything you would change about Grattan Street besides the carpark? Could have been painted. Paint the door. Make it more attractive people to get a better sense of the place before entering. Improve the exterior to make people aware they were going someplace nice. The building needs it. Down and outs sleep out the back of it so there is lots of rubbish out there. Some clear glass in the office and take away the bars. Improve the canteen a bit. St Marys is fresh, new and practical. Grattan Street not much can be done with it. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.23.15 - 1.24.28 </td> <td> Unexpected Responsibilities and Workload Eileen didn’t expect when she started out to be working so hard and carrying so many responsibilities at the age she is now. There was no reflection on where you were going at the time she started. She always wanted to work in community not hospital. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.24.28 - 1.26.15 </td> <td> Future of Grattan Street Would like to see it occupied and whoever was in there was happy in there and the building was looked after. Nearly better to close off the car park. Eileen thinks it can never be sold off. And she would like services to be in there because it is an ideal central location. H111 European Health Insurance Card is done in Grattan Street. There’s a box shaped reception which was thrown up and is not in keeping with the building she would like to see that changed. Plaster on the walls. Holes in the ceiling. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.26.15 - 1.29.13 </td> <td> Vaccines, School Nurse, Grattan Street Ghost. Vaccines- had to mind the fridges when she was a schools nurse. School nurses had to deal with AMO Area Medical Officer now called Community Medical Doctors. The room the fridges were in had no air-conditioning or coolant and sometimes the temperature would get too high. As a school nurse she would have to take the vaccines in and out and maintain the cold chain in the transfer of the vaccines. In St Mary’s there will be a cold room for those fridges. Never saw the ghost. And she had plenty of time to appear when she was there alone in the morning. Grattan Street was special. Met people with different problems. Outro. Interview ends. </td> </tr> </tbody> </table> Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Eileen Kearney: Grattan Street, Healthcare, Working Life Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context CFP_SR00713_Kearney_2019; Relation A related resource Other Interviews in this Collection <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/240" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00696_O'Regan_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/242" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00704_Collins_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/243" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00706_Higgisson_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/244" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00712_O'Brien_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/246" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00714_Cunning_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/247" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00717_Ward_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/248" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00727_OhUigin_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/249" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00728_Scanlan_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/250" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00729_Mulcahy_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/251" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00732_Cassidy_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/252" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00760_Morrissy_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/253" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"> CFP_SR00762_OConnell_2019</a>; Language A language of the resource English Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 3 May 2019 Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Cork Folklore Project Audio Archive Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource Cork Folklore Project Type The nature or genre of the resource Sound Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource .wav Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Cork Folklore Project Description An account of the resource Eileen grew up in Tallow in west Waterford in a family of seven. Her father ran the family butcher business attached to the house. She recalls him singing and whistling, and the sawdust on the shop floor. Recalls meat and tripe being sold and drisheen being made by her mother, explains this process. Describes the family home and routine chores. Speaks about the importance of sport especially tennis in her family upbringing. Recalls her school days including instances of corporal punishment and the negative effects it had on people. Went home for lunch, mother prepared their dinner using meat from their butcher shop. Describes secondary boarding school in Loreto Fermoy, especially the structure it imposed. Speaks of how she had always intended to become a nurse. May have learned traits and habits useful for her career from her mother’s work ethic. Describes her nursing training in the Mercy Hospital and how the rosary was said there every night. Describes her path to Public Health Nurse training in Dublin. Talks about her desire to work in the community rather than in the constraints of a hospital. Describes the wide range of PHN duties from pregnancies, births, infants, acute injury support, addiction, disability, older adults to dying and palliative care. Discusses her current role as Assistant Director of Public Health Nursing where she advocates for early intervention to prevent behavioural issues in children. Mentions the large staff turnover due to the difficulties of the work. Much of the work involves building relationships. Speaks about how poverty, social disadvantage, addiction, alcoholism affect children’s health and create a negative cycle which PHNs have a role in breaking. Speaks of how difficult it is for someone who hasn’t had parental role model to function as a parent themselves. Talks about the move from Grattan Street to St. Mary’s Primary Care Centre and how she misses the other medical teams. Describes Grattan Street as happy place to work, enjoyed the building and its quirks such as the gallery which facilitated casual conversation and the rattling windows. Believes people enjoyed working there because they got something positive from the building. Mentions the difficulties with parking there and its impact on the wider community. Feels that the building owned them. Speaks of her hopes for the future of Grattan Street building once services move out. Discusses caring for and moving vaccines as a School Nurse. States that Grattan Street was a special place. Acute Care Addiction Admin Administration Alcohol Alcoholics Alcoholism Animals Ante-natal Barnardos Behavioural Issues Black Pudding Boarding School Building Building Maintenance Buildings Built Heritage Butchers Camaraderie Car Park Car Parking Care of Children Carmelites Change Child Child Protection Child Welfare Childhood Children Christmas Christmas Party Client Clients Colleagues Community Cooking Cork Corporal Punishment Deprivation Dinner Disabilities Disability Drisheen Education European Health Insurance Family Support Farm Fermoy Fermoy Hospital Food Grandparents Grattan Street Happy Memories Hockey Hollis Street Hospital Hollyhill Home Hospital Hospital Ward Hospitals House Housing HSE Junior Cert Kitchen Knocknaheeny Loreto College Fermoy Love Maintenance Management Mart Marts Meal Meals Meat Memories Mental Health Mercy Hospital Midwife Midwifery Motherhood North Cork North Lee Northside Nurse Nursing Nursing Training Parents Patient Patients People PHN Playing Polypharmacy Pregnancy Public Health Nursing Religion Religion in Medicine Role of Religion Rosary School School Expenses Self-neglect Shop Siblings Single Mothers Sláinte Care Slaughter House Social Social Conditions Social Disadvantage Sport St Francis Church St. Mary’s Primary Care Centre Staff Staff Turnover Strike Tallow Training Tripe Tusla Unemployment Vaccines Ward Waterford Work Workers Working Workplace https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/files/original/b6eb7006544fe1fb522f447dee3de52f.jpg 10248e94ef2f564f8895f44ceb9384f7 https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/files/original/6d4c5036293e21d529400a9fc277bcb1.wav d4bcd0d0f116f70cadd70d3b5bdebe1a Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Grattan Street Stories: Memory of Place Subject The topic of the resource Occupational Lore; Life History; Built Heritage; Health; Ireland; Cork; Middle Parish Description An account of the resource This collection focuses on a building on Grattan Street which has served as a Quaker Meeting House, a public Dispensary and as the Grattan Street Health Centre. The project was a collaboration between the CFP and the Cork North Community Work Department, Cork Kerry Community Healthcare, Health Services Executive HSE. The interviewees fall into two main groups: those who worked in the building and those who lived in the surrounding area and availed of the services provided in the building. This project follows on from the collaboration with the HSE in the “<a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/collections/show/10" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">HSE Orthopaedic Hospital Oral History Project (d'Orthopaedic)</a>”. There is a further connection between the two projects as many of the staff and services once provided in the Grattan Street Health Centre have now relocated to St. Mary's Health Campus (St Mary’s Primary Care Centre) Gurranabraher, the former site of the Orthopaedic Hospital. This topic of the relocation of services is also covered in some staff interviews. To date (October 2021) 13 interviews have been completed for the project. Interviewees discuss the Grattan Street building itself in terms of its historic significance, its benefits and drawbacks as a workplace. Broader themes related to or inspired by the building are also touched on including: personal relationship with the building, staff camaraderie, the problems with parking, memorable incidents at work, patient experiences and descriptions of the people and services for which the building catered. Healthcare professional interviewees detail their training, career progression and comparisons between Grattan Street and other workplaces. Their testimonies also provide a link with the community of patients they served giving further insight into attitudes to healthcare, diseases, vaccines, description of social conditions and the changes in medicine and technology in their working lives. Non-healthcare professional interviewees describe childhood experiences in or around Grattan Street (The Marsh or The Middle Parish), the social, cultural and economic conditions of the area, tenements, businesses, attitudes to and experiences of healthcare, vaccines, diseases, medicines and medical professionals as well as observed changes in these areas over time. Interviewees also reflect on the possible future uses of the Grattan Street building. Related Reference Sources <ul> <li>Barrington, R. (1987) Health, medicine and politics in Ireland, 1900–1970. Dublin: Institute of Public Administration.</li> <li>Butler D.M. (2004) The Quaker meeting houses of Ireland. Dublin : Irish Friends Historical Committee.</li> <li>Byrne, J. (2004) Byrne's dictionary of Irish local history. Cork: Mercier Press.</li> <li>Cooke, R. T. (1999) My Home by the Lee. Irish Millennium Publications: Cork.</li> <li>Dempsey, P. J. & White, L. W. ‘Childers, Erskine Hamilton’. Dictionary of Irish Biography [Accessed 18 October 2021]</li> <li>Harrison, R.S. (1991) Cork City Quakers 1655-1939: A Brief History. Cork.</li> <li>Houston, M. (2004). ‘Life before the GP’. The Irish Times. Available at : <<a href="https://www.irishtimes.com/news/health/life-before-the-gp-1.1158599">https://www.irishtimes.com/news/health/life-before-the-gp-1.1158599</a> > [Accessed 18 October 2021]</li> <li>Keohane, F. (2020) The Buildings of Ireland Cork City and County. New Haven and London: Yale University Press.</li> </ul> Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2019-2020 Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Interviewees: Edith O’Regan, 'Mary', Sean Higgisson, Aoife O’Brien, Eileen Kearney, Imelda Cunning, Jane Ward, Liam Ó hUigín, Joe Scanlan, Mary Mulcahy, Philomena Cassidy, Don Morrissy, Derek O’Connell Interviewer: <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=2&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=Kieran+Murphy" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Kieran Murphy</a>, (<a href="https://corkfolklore.org/community-oral-history-outreach-officer/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP Community Oral History Outreach Officer</a>) Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant Cork, Ireland 1940s-2020s; Waterford, Ireland; Dublin, Ireland; Limerick, Ireland; Relation A related resource Exhibition Artist Edith O’Regan-Cosgrave (also an interviewee for the project) created a visual artwork based around the Grattan Street Medical Centre building itself, as a workplace and health centre. The artwork incorporated direct quotations from the oral history interviews conducted for the project, and also included brief historical paragraphs about the building researched, written and edited by the <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/community-oral-history-outreach-officer/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP Community Oral History Outreach Officer</a> Kieran Murphy. This exhibition was launched on 6th February 2020 in “St Peter’s” on the North Main Street where a “Listening Event” was also held to mark the occasion. <img src="http://corkfolklore.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/Grattan-Poster-for-Email-286-by-400.jpg" alt="Grattan-Poster-for-Email-286-by-400.jpg" /> Presentation and Listening Event To coincide with the launch of the Grattan Street Stories Exhibtion on 6th February 2020 a listening event and presentation of the history of the Grattan Street Medical Centre building and description of the project was given by <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/community-oral-history-outreach-officer/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP Community Oral History Outreach Officer</a> Kieran Murphy. <img src="http://corkfolklore.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/427A7714-1.jpg" alt="427A7714-1.jpg" /> Presentation In 2019 at the OHNI conference the <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/community-oral-history-outreach-officer/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP Community Oral History Outreach Officer</a> Kieran Murphy discussed social media and oral history which included audio excerpts from the Grattan Street Stories Project along with photographs of the building. <img src="http://corkfolklore.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/Kieran-OHNI-e1634041838937.jpg" alt="Kieran-OHNI-e1634041838937.jpg" /> Audio Visual Presentation An audio-visual slideshow was produced featuring oral testimony from the Grattan Street Stories Project and combined with suitable images of Grattan Street and from Edith O’Regan-Cosgrave’s exhibition. This was created by <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/community-oral-history-outreach-officer/">CFP Community Oral History Outreach Officer</a> Kieran Murphy. <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RnjEtQeOb3I&t=1s&ab_channel=CorkFolklore" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Audio Visual Presentation Available to listen and view here.</a> Health and Vaccines Oral History Research Many of the interviews conducted for the Grattan Street project formed an integral part of the testimonies and research for the innovative <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/health/about" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">'Catching Stories' of infectious disease in Ireland </a>project funded by the Irish Research Council. <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/health/about" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"><img src="http://corkfolklore.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/Catching-Stories-Poster.jpg" alt="Catching-Stories-Poster.jpg" /></a> Social Media Numerous suitable audio excerpts from the oral history interviews have been edited and shared on CFP's social media channels. <a href="https://twitter.com/corkfolklore/status/1139167201582288901" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">https://twitter.com/corkfolklore/status/1139167201582288901</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/corkfolklore/status/1140909542240391168" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">https://twitter.com/corkfolklore/status/1140909542240391168</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/corkfolklore/status/1141264486768238592" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">https://twitter.com/corkfolklore/status/1141264486768238592</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/corkfolklore/status/1189872295923376133" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">https://twitter.com/corkfolklore/status/1189872295923376133</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/corkfolklore/status/1228322700415860736" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">https://twitter.com/corkfolklore/status/1228322700415860736</a> Orthopaedic Hospital Cork Folklore Project in collaboration with the HSE conducted an oral history project focussing on the Orthapaedic Hospital in Gurranabraher. Many of the staff and services once provided at the Grattan Street Health Centre site were moved to St. Mary's Health Campus (St Mary’s Primary Care Centre) Gurranabraher, the former site of the Orthopaedic Hospital. <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/collections/show/10" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">HSE Orthopaedic Hospital Oral History Project (d'Orthopaedic)</a> Swimming Article Kieran Murphy and James Furey co-authored an article about <a href="https://tripeanddrisheen.substack.com/p/swim-city?s=r" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Swimming in Cork</a> which appeared in the online magazine Tripe + Drisheen. This article features a number of interview extracts collected as part of the Grattan Street Stories Project. Related Interviews CFP_SR00756_Quilligan_2019; CFP_SR00758_Broderick_2019; CFP_SR00670_OShea_2018; Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Cork Folklore Project Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Cork Folklore Project Audio Archive Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Cork Folklore Project Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource Cork Folklore Project Language A language of the resource English Type The nature or genre of the resource Audio Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource 16 .wav Files Oral History A resource containing historical information obtained in interviews with persons having firsthand knowledge. Interviewee The person(s) being interviewed Imelda Cunning Interviewer The person(s) performing the interview Kieran Murphy Duration Length of time involved (seconds, minutes, hours, days, class periods, etc.) 103 Minutes 3 Seconds Location The location of the interview Grattan Street Medical Centre Original Format The type of object, such as painting, sculpture, paper, photo, and additional data .wav Bit Rate/Frequency Rate at which bits are transferred (i.e. 96 kbit/s would be FM quality audio) 24bit / 48kHz Time Summary A summary of an interview given for different time stamps throughout the interview <table> <tbody> <tr> <td> 0.00.00 - 0.02.27 </td> <td> Background and House Grew up in Bathgate between Edinburgh and Glasgow in Scotland, mom is from Cork. Spent time in Cork as child granny from Greenmount. Great-grand parents lived in James Street. Granny from Barrack Street lived in Whitegate, married to a guard [Garda] from Cavan. 2 sisters and 2 brothers. 3 weeks in Cork, and holiday in October. Old house and moved to estate where lots of people to play with. Then moved to house on main road where lots of older people. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.02.27 - 0.04.23 </td> <td> Children’s Games Hide and Seek, chap door run (run away knock), elastics, skipping, marbles, kiss cuddle and torture (boys chased the girls and if you were caught you got to decide between as kiss, cuddle and torture), British Bulldogs (someone always got hurt doing it). </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.04.23 - 0.14.27 </td> <td> Memories of Granny (Grand Mother) Impact on family still, had a saying for everything. Saw funny side of things even though she had a hard life. Getting Imelda to go back to the butchers claiming “those aren’t four lean chump chops” Freedom of spending time in Whitegate, playing in Trabolgan- archway supposedly haunted by a duke. Granny’s house was rented, beside the barracks, had four bedrooms. Mattresses for them when they called over. Granny would cook scones, custard, stews. She played piano and sang. Loved music, had record of James Last. One of granny’s sayings: “Throw a bit of lipstick on brighten yourself up” She was small, wore glasses, long-sighted. She was a milliner and dress-maker. Annamae Aherne was a woman from the village who told Imelda her granny had made her first ball gown for her first dance. She did alterations for people. She had a Singer Sewing Machine with a foot pedal. In her 80s granny’s eyesight was going but she would work the foot pedal and Imelda thread the needle and guided it. Granny crocheted as well. She had lodgers. Eddie Tucker meteorologist at Roches Point lodged with granny for 25 years. Tony Cotter (meteorologist) lodged there for a while (Silvia was his wife). Headmaster at local school lodged with her for a while. Liam Cotter walked her dog in the rain and when he returned she had a warm towel ready for the dog not Liam! </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.14.27 - 0.18.18 </td> <td> Granny’s House in Whitegate Scotsman piper as a knocker on her front door. Beautiful view from her front door of the sea across to Cobh. There was a garage next door and she would sit and chat with Gerry O’Connell. Spent time on Corkbeg beach where the refinery and holding tanks are now. There was a ballroom there. Spent all day on the beach. Dad and granny would bring the stews and potatoes from the house to the beach. Inch beach, even if it was raining. In and out of the water all day. Inch had good waves to dive into. Cousins there as well. Lanagan cousins from Dublin, Gibson cousins from Leixlip. She loved Cork because it had better weather than Scotland. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.18.18 - 0.22.25 </td> <td> Stories from her Granny Granny said she heard a banshee the night before her husband died. Heard a noise at the door and opened it and there was no one there. Grandfather stationed in Blarney before Whitegate. Thinks her granny “liked to play the field a bit” and had arranged to meet different men and she had to send her sister to meet one and cancel one of the meetings. Granny’s sister cut off her granny’s long plaited hair. Imelda’s granddad used to cycle from Whitegate to Cavan to see his family and would get as far as Mullingar on the first day. Great grand parents lived on James Street Mary Ellen and Jeremiah Ahern, buried in Ballyphehane cemetery. Learned about them from great-aunt in Greenmount Buildings off Barrack Street. Dad was Scottish and had sense of Irishness but his mother didn’t as they left Northern Ireland as Catholics in a predominantly Catholic area. Imelda’s mom went back and did her “highers” exams the same year Imelda was doing hers. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.22.25 - 0.24.50 </td> <td> Grand-Aunt Grand-aunt was funny and had funny sayings like “drinking your tears” with laughter. A sideboard was where you kept dishes, condiments, sugar bowl, drawers with cutlery. Dish for the salt rather than salt shaker. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.24.50 - 0.31.26 </td> <td> School In Scotland: mixed school, state schools, catholic school. St Mary’s primary School Bathgate. Dad’s sister was a teacher and she came to that school when on her placement. Mistress of the infant school would dye her hair a different colour every week pink and blue. Some of the teachers psychologically unhinged. Nun who slapped people with a hoover slap and would run her knuckles down pupils’ spines. There was a mine underneath the school to train the boys how to work in a mine. It had good sports facilities. At Christmas they had a Ceilidh, which Imelda had at her wedding and everyone loved. She liked English and History. It annoys her that they weren’t taught Scottish history. Says there is a difference between rebellion and uprising. Very little Irish history on their curriculum in Scotland. She feels Scottish but has an affiliation with Ireland. She’s been in Ireland over 20 years and doesn’t think she will lose her accent. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.31.26 - 0.33.13 </td> <td> Family Tree Great grandfather was apparently good with horses and was a coachman in Ballymena House although there is no record of him in the archives. He lived until his nineties. And he was a gardener too. Worked in garden in Ayrshire. Granny didn’t speak about Northern Ireland at all and considered herself Scottish. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.33.13 - 0.36.33 </td> <td> Choice of Career and Career Path Didn’t know what she wanted to do in school, thought about optics but didn’t like physics. Applied for Podiatry in Edinburgh and Glasgow. Got a place in Glasgow and enjoyed it. Opened a practice in Bathgate, family involved in medicine. Dad was optician, sister dentist and sister optician. Moved to Dublin when she was going out with a man from Drogheda and worked in Inchicore and then moved back home when they split up. Got a job with greater Glasgow health board. And worked in Lothian. Shettleston in Glasgow. Job came up for diabetic unit in CUH, Dr O’Halloran looking for a podiatrist which she didn’t get but was second on the panel but didn’t understand what that meant. Later a job came up in the community and she took it, back in 1999. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.36.33 - 0.39.54 </td> <td> Choosing Podiatry for University & career. Dad’s influence Had been thinking about different options but couldn’t come up with anything better and felt pressurised to make a choice. Hated Podiatry after the first year as it was mostly revision for her and she was bored. She began to enjoy it in second year when there was more patient interaction and became more challenging. Her dad had a formula for all the children in school for which subjects they did. He thought that if you have a vocational job that you will always be employed, didn’t want them to be hired by large corporate companies where they could be fired. Her brother did law, brother is GP, sister dentist, sister optometrist. Thinks her dad was a bit closed to other occupations. It wasn’t bad advice but she won’t be using that approach with her children. A nephew doing economics and another doing architecture and they love them. Family is all fairly artistic but it wasn’t an option at the time. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.39.54 - 0.42.00 </td> <td> Father’s Optician Practice Imelda and family worked there. She could write prescriptions for lenses and repair glasses. Dad worked five days a week and two evenings as well. Didn’t have much time off. He had five kids had to work hard. He retired at 67. Still enjoys his whiskey. He’s very sociable, people would wait for two hours to go to see him. He would be buzzed for the next patient but he would still be talking to the previous one. Teachers in her school would know what Imelda was doing because they would have heard from her dad. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.42.00- 0.44.15 </td> <td> Living in Glasgow and College Loved people from Glasgow who are friendly and warm more so than Edinburgh. 17 when went to college, she had done 6 years in secondary school. Claire, a friend from school, did podiatry as well. But they picked a flat to live which was a “dry area” where no alcohol was served. Ski club in college. Imelda says if you can ski in Scotland you can ski anywhere because it’s dangerous and icy and with exposed rocks. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.44.15 - 0.48.06 </td> <td> Training Small college not affiliated with university, and it was a diploma. Not a degree and affiliated with Queen Margaret University in Edinburgh and Caledonia in Glasgow. On Crookston Road in a prefab where the clinics were. Because it was free everybody came and they could cater for 40 or 50 people. A podiatry school was established in Ireland about 6 years ago (2013) it’s in NUIG Galway University. Cork put in a bid for it but didn’t get it. [Whispers that Cork should’ve gotten it!] thinks that they bought the curriculum and course content from Glasgow. Glasgow was a small place so you got to know the lecturers well. Training was 9-5. Over the summer clinical set had to be done over the holidays because patients needed to be seen. 2 or 3 days of lectures and 2 or 3 days of clinics as well. Lots of hours of clinical training which she thought was good to get the practical experience as podiatry is a job that requires dexterity. She thinks the focus now in training is more on the background, and that a lot of people graduating now cannot treat a corn because they haven’t been shown properly or haven’t been exposed enough to it. Focus is also now more on wound care. Focus on wound care in high risk patients means you lose skills in other things like biomechanics and nail surgery. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.48.06 - 0.52.38 </td> <td> Role of Podiatrist Not about cutting toenails. They do cut toenails if there is something wrong with them. Holistic view of the patient. Look at the patient from the waist down. Biomechanics is the way people walk and the alignment of the joints and muscles. Hen toed and bow-legged. Some things can be corrected if seen early enough. Most of her patients are older, they are diabetics or have neurovascular disease or other neurological issues which you are not correcting just offloading to prevent ulceration. Diabetes on the increase and its complications can cause terrible things with feet- ulcers, gangrene etc. Wound care is a big part of what she does. Including removing skin, tissue and bone from wounds. Focus on wound care may not be what they should be doing. Issues with nail surgery. Hopes it will be sorted when State Registration comes in. 4 staff when Imelda started 20 years ago and there are 6 now. She thinks there should be over 60 now in her Cork area based on the population. There were 96 podiatrists in Glasgow when she worked there. Biggest population in HSE South. Fighting fire all the time not doing any prevention. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.52.38 - 0.57.00 </td> <td> Typical Client or Patient All high risk. Greater risk or have had ulceration, infection, amputation, gangrene. Active means they currently have one of those issues. Those with potential to develop problems may have problems with circulation, sensation or underlying medical conditions. Should be getting the moderate risk people and helping them from developing into Never-ending ‘like painting the Forth Bridge’. [colloquial expression for an unending task] Lots of diabetics. Majority of those with foot diseases are vascular because the vascular team doesn’t have a foot team. Mainly over 65s. But have people under 65 and have a few children too. Frustrating to only by offering a limited services because of lack of staff. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.57.00 - 0.58.28 </td> <td> Nail surgery Podiatrists enjoy doing nail surgery. When local anaesthetic issue is cleared up they will have to be retrained in nail surgery in NUIG (National University Galway). Not legal under Irish Medicines Board to use and buy and store anaesthetic. Could use it now if they could get a patient group directive going. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.58.28 - 1.01.50 </td> <td> Podiatry in Glasgow More of a general podiatry service. More structure in the services. Specialist clinics with pathways. A wider range than in Cork. Range of things that should be seen in Cork but were seen in Glasgow. Worked with foot care assistant. Did a biomechanics clinic. Did a nail surgery once a month to keep up to speed. Doing the same thing in Cork becomes monotonous and boring a bit of variety is more interesting and challenging. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.01.50 - 1.05.26 </td> <td> Impression of Grattan Street Thought it looked like Colditz because of the bars on the windows. Was feeling quite despondent about it. Thought “oh my god what have I done” Marion O’Donovan founded the podiatry service in 1967 in Greenmount Community Centre. Imelda had been working in Bishopbriggs in Glasgow seeing 30 patients a day- which was lunacy. Worked with foot care assistant and it was like a conveyer belt. She used a scalpel for the debridement [the removal of damaged tissue or foreign objects from a wound.] When she started with Marion they had 4 patients in the morning. Marion was very kind to her and didn’t want to scare her by giving her too many patients at the beginning. Told Marion “you could book in a few more!” Marion was very nice and ‘mothered’ </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.05.26 - 1.08.06 </td> <td> Big Changes of Staff Speech and language were there and left before Imelda started. Secretarial staff- there has been a huge turnover of staff from Admin support. Aisling who is the current agency staff is great. Imelda, Marion, Helen, Vicky were in Podiatry. Marion is retired. Helen has been there the longest. Helen does 2 days a week, Vicky does 3 days a week, Imelda does 4 days a week. PHNs change a lot, AMOs change a lot and admin staff has changed as well. Lots of people coming through Grattan Street and so Imelda knows a lot of people from different areas- a good form of networking. Good that she knows who to contact, especially about patients. [Phone Rings. Interview Paused] </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.08.06 - 1.09.31 </td> <td> [interview restarts] Dislikes Unsuitable Grattan Street Building Never thought it was a nice building. Bars on the windows. Hasn’t seen it painted. Money has not been spent on it. It’s a clinical environment which has not been well maintained. Imelda will not be sad when Grattan Street closes. Substandard. Holes in the wall. Will miss the camaraderie. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.09.31 - 1.10.42 </td> <td> Parking in Grattan Street and relations with Colleagues Parking has been a nightmare. There has nearly been fisticuffs about it. May have to move your car ten times when with a patient. Lucky to have free parking. On the whole got on well with colleagues, except for a few who were hard to get on with due to odd personalities. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.10.42 - 1.12.00 </td> <td> Patients’ Perspective of Grattan Street Imelda tries to get patients to complain about the holes and cracks in walls. People don’t want to complain but they are happy with the service and the people. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.12.00 - 1.15.30 </td> <td> Grattan Street vs a Different Environment St Mary’s Would like pleasant surroundings for the workplace where people spend so much of their time. Imelda describes Grattan Street as a kip. 20 years working in that environment is not good. Hopes that in St Mary’s the services can be expanded. Set up an ad hoc foot care clinic in Mayfield and it was a way of saving HSE money as patients were being prescribed bespoke footwear from GPs which is expensive and may not often be needed. Imelda can insert insoles into stock shoes which helps the patients and saves the HSE money. No shelves have been put in to stock the shoes. St Mary’s will have a space for storing shoes, there will be a workshop, a state-of-the-art sterilisation room and four clinical rooms. They are also going paperless. They will have a new computer system. This is possible because they are such a small unit. There are 8 filing cabinets in podiatry in Grattan Street and there will not be space in St Mary’s for these. Hopes that the camaraderie of Grattan Street will continue in St Mary’s, although she has heard the canteen is small and it’s hard to get to the kettle. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.15.30 - 1.21.12 </td> <td> Grattan Street, Attitudes to Migrants and Refugees Imelda started in Grattan Street in 1999 there had been a brain drain going on in Ireland with people leaving. Since there was no school of podiatry in Ireland they were relying on people from the UK coming to fill positions. One of Imelda’s first patients was very angry that an Irish person couldn’t be found to do her job. She told him not someone as good as she was! This patient had had a few children who had to leave to get work and he couldn’t understand how Imelda came in and got a job and they weren’t able to. Around this time refugees started to come into Ireland. Imelda was surprised by the racism of the over mainly 65 year old patients and what they thought it was acceptable to say. Imelda thinks it would be worse if she were black. She heard a lot of hatred towards immigrants because so many people had to leave Ireland to get work. Imelda pointed out that Irish people had to be accepted in places that they went to. People were suspicious of her coming into the country possibly because they weren’t used to people coming into the country. People would say things about immigrants taking “our jobs”. Wouldn’t expect to hear people say that so openly in Glasgow as a much more diverse city. Imelda doesn’t hear those kinds of comments now. She thinks that new graduates get a hard time from patients at first, because they are new, younger and it is almost a rite of passage. It can be hard for patients having been used to one clinician to switch to a new one. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.21.12 - 1.23.50 </td> <td> Change in Patients Imelda knows of a woman from Africa whose foot was put into a fire. She survived but the deformity she has is horrific. [1:22:23 phone rings and Imelda says she has to move her car] Woman was only 13 when this happened to her. Many similar stories and stories from older people of sexual abuse. Imelda feels ill-equipped to deal with it. If Imelda hears of it she has to report it, but the patients don’t want her to report it and just want to tell her in confidence. They have maybe never spoken to anyone about it before. They tend to open up as they see the same person repeatedly so they build up trust. [Pause Interview for Imelda to move her Car] </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.23.50 - 1.25.20 </td> <td> [Interview Restarts] Helping Patients beyond Podiatry In Imelda’s role she feels she is a bit of a social worker as well. Refers people to counselling services which are free in North and South Lee. For sexual abuse, deaths etc. Quite a few patients do take that help but you have to almost make the phone call for them. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.25.20 - 1.28.45 </td> <td> Future of Grattan Street Imelda doesn’t know exactly what is happening with Grattan Street but thinks other services are moving in. Thinks work will have to be done on the building if it is to keep functioning for the HSE. There was bucket in canteen collecting water every time it rained for a years. No one should have to work in an environment like that Imelda thinks. Imelda just feels that about Grattan Street that she will “close the door” and “put it behind me”. Hates the canteen and the building thinks it’s horrible, dirty and filthy. Thinks people like it because it’s small and lots of people know each other from having worked there together for a long time. She thinks that people will miss the people not the building. The building used to be the Dispensary which provided free healthcare she thinks. Her patients when she started used to tell her that. They told her the doctors were in the dispensary, she thinks it was free health care. They used to come to get medicine. Quaker meeting house before that, and they left it to the HSE. Marriage registry is also in Grattan Street but Imelda doesn’t know why anyone would want to get married there- thinks it’s horrendous! Sees people getting married and taking photographs while she is working and has to wait for them to finish. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.28.45 - 1.29.15 </td> <td> Grandmother Grandmother’s name: Eileen Ahern maiden name who became Eileen O’Reily when she married. “Drinking her tears” grand mother’s saying. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.29.15 - 1.32.23 </td> <td> State of Podiatry in Ireland and the Option of Private Practice Thinks that Grattan Street podiatry is the best podiatry service in the country, maybe outside of Galway because the school is there. Cork was the first place in the country to provide a podiatry service run by the HSE. Services need to be expanded. They could retain staff if there was more scope- unless someone is interested in wound care they will enter private practice rather than staying in Grattan Street. Imelda has been tempted to enter private practice. Imelda has done private practice as well in the past. Imelda is now a manager and misses being a clinician because she thinks that is what she does best. There was a podiatrist in Grattan Street while a patient had a cardiac arrest and the podiatrist got an ambulance and he/she was in such a flap and gave the patient’s home address and not the address for Grattan Street! Patient survived thankfully. And Grattan street now has an AED (Automated External Defibrillator). </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.32.23 - 1.33.10 </td> <td> What makes a good podiatrist. Have to be a good people person and be able to do a bit of social work. Have to be versatile. So many diverse different kinds of people come in. You have to adapt and try to relate to them as best you can. Good communication skills. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.33.10 - 1.37.21 </td> <td> Would Imelda choose podiatry again? Thinks she would but then doubts herself. Has enjoyed being a podiatrist. Doesn’t think there is anything that she would prefer to do. Podiatry takes a toll on your back partly due to poor posture and not having the correct equipment. Remembers some of her old patients who were great characters. There was a man who lived across the road and was washed out of his house. During the flood Imelda was in Neptune inoculating children against swine flu. Fiona Kelly was the secretary at the time and her husband’s car was swept away. People in the houses nearby had to live in a hotel for a while. One of the patients would call her Miss Imelda and the other clinician Miss Vicky. Learned that this area was the Middle Parish and funny that her great grandparents were born just up the road in James Street. [Interviewer does the final outro here but there is another part to the interview which follows] </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.37.21 - 1.43.03 </td> <td> Past Diseases and Vaccines Imelda didn’t see rickets in Cork even though she had seen a lot of it in Glasgow. “every second person who came into you had the wee bandy legs”. Lack of sunshine in Glasgow due to tenements and high rise. Polio and TB were big in Cork. But TB was a bit comparable to Glasgow. Her dad had TB and her uncle in Dublin had TB as well. People don’t remember what some of the diseases that can now be vaccinated for were actually like. Polio can have long term effects such as deformity, muscle wastage, smaller limbs, leg length difference which requires large platform shoes to make up the difference in the leg length. Debilitating diseases so important to get vaccinations as a child. Especially for TB which Cork did not do regularly you had to request it which she did with her own children. Her dad talks about when he got TB a lot because he missed a year of school due to it. He had to go to an asylum but his siblings didn’t get it. Imelda still has patients who had polio. Shoe adaptations or splints are needed for them. It is debilitating and unnecessary. Imelda thinks that some of her colleagues would have a different view to vaccinations than she would have. Thinks that to encourage people to get vaccinated they could be shown pictures of things that can happen as a result of not getting your child vaccinated. If that’s the choice between a small chance there might be side effect versus an epidemic of children getting polio. It’s no contest. Some colleagues might have sort of anti-vax [anti-vaccination] views. They may focus on the side-effects but not on the effects of getting the disease. She thinks it’s reasonable to weight up the facts and see that inoculation is safer. Thinks people have their free choice, although points out that there is talk of making it compulsory. Not certain that she agrees with whether it should be made compulsory or not. But thinks that new mothers have not seen any of these diseases and that they need to see them in action to realise that they do not want their children to have the disease. Doesn’t agree with taking away freedom of choice. Cannot operate as a dictatorship. [Interview Ends] </td> </tr> </tbody> </table> Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Imelda Cunning: Grattan Street, Healthcare, Working Life Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context CFP_SR00714_Cunning_2019; Relation A related resource Other Interviews in this Collection <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/240" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00696_O'Regan_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/242" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00704_Collins_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/243" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00706_Higgisson_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/244" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00712_O'Brien_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/245" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00713_Kearney_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/247" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00717_Ward_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/248" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00727_OhUigin_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/249" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00728_Scanlan_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/250" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00729_Mulcahy_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/251" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00732_Cassidy_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/252" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00760_Morrissy_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/253" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"> CFP_SR00762_OConnell_2019</a>; Language A language of the resource English Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 7 May 2019 Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Cork Folklore Project Audio Archive Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource Cork Folklore Project Type The nature or genre of the resource Sound Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource 3 .wav files Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Cork Folklore Project Description An account of the resource Imelda grew up in Bathgate between Edinburgh and Glasgow in Scotland. Her mother was from Cork so Imelda spent time in Whitegate in her youth where she enjoyed the relative freedom she had there playing children’s games and spending time on beaches like Corkbeg and Inch. Describes her Cork grandmother Eileen O’Reilly née Ahern who always saw the funny side of things. She was a milliner and dressmaker and took in lodgers, usually meteorologists working at Roches Point. She also claimed to have heard the banshee the night before her husband died. Speaks of her humorous grand-aunt who lived in Greenmount and describes her home including the sideboard and salt dish. “Drinking her tears” was one of her sayings. Imelda refers to her schooldays in Scotland including corporal punishment administered by nuns. Her school had a mine beneath it to train the boys to work in mines when they were older. Was not sure of her career when she was in school but she came from a medical family. Her father chose their school subjects with a view to them acquiring vocational jobs rather than corporate jobs where they could be fired. Discusses her father’s optician practice and how she and her family worked with him there writing prescriptions and repairing glasses. Speaks about moving to Glasgow for college, finding the people friendly and accidently living in an alcohol-free part of the city. Enjoyed the college ski club. Describes her podiatry clinical experience in Scotland. Explains that podiatry requires dexterity. Podiatrists work on a range of issues including biomechanics, diabetes, gangrene, neurovascular disease, wound care, ulcer prevention and more. Mentions the Irish Medicines Board regulatory issues surrounding podiatry nail surgery in Ireland at the time of interview. Explains that the typical podiatry patient in the Grattan Street Medical Centre is usually high risk. States that podiatry services need to be expanded so they deal with more moderate risk patients in order to catch early problems and thus prevent them becoming serious issues. Says that her first reaction to the Grattan Street building in 1999 was that it was like Colditz prison because of the bars on the windows. Explains that she does not share other staff’s love of the Grattan Street Building because of this and further criticises the leaky roof, holes in the walls, dirtiness of the canteen, and its general unsuitability as a clinical environment. Imelda encourages patients to complain about the conditions in the building but they don’t wish too as they are satisfied with the service. She has had positive experiences with other staff in spite of the building not because of it. She will miss the people not the building. Mentions a patient’s negative opinion of refugees arriving in Ireland in the past, but says that it’s no longer a common opinion. Expresses positivity in relation to the move to St. Mary’s Primary Care Centre Gurranbraher. Hopes that the services can be expanding and the workplace will be greatly improved including storage space, a computer system, space for filing cabinets. Remembers that her older patients spoke of the dispensary in Grattan Street where they received free medicines and doctors’ appointments. Expresses surprise that someone would want to get married in the Grattan Street marriage registry office as she does not like the building. Mentions that podiatry work requires you to adapt to people and situations and also negatively affects your back. Speaks of patients telling her things in confidence that go beyond podiatry and her attempts to assist them such as encouraging them to contact counselling services due to sexual abuse and bereavement. Recalls some incidents during flooding events while at work. Describes how she saw many cases of rickets in Glasgow but none in Cork, while Cork had a higher rate of patients with long-term effects from polio, including the need for shoe adaptations or splints. Speaks about vaccines and how to encourage people to take them. Suggests that the success of vaccines in suppressing diseases has meant that many parents haven’t seen any cases of these diseases and thus do not appreciate the risks they pose. Administration Alcohol Amputation Area Medical Officer Ballyphehane Beach Biomechanics Camaraderie Canteen Car Park Car Parking Career Childhood Children Children’s Games Christmas Client Clients Community Cork Corkbeg Corkbeg Beach Counselling Course Deformity Diabetes Disease Diseases Dispensary Doctor Edinburgh Employment Family Feet Flood Floods Foot Foot Care Gangrene Glasgow GP Grand-aunt Grandfather Grandmother Grandparents Grattan Street Grattan Street Medical Centre Greenmount Gurranabraher Health Health Career History Curriculum Holiday Holidays HSE Illness Inch beach Infection Irish History Irish Medicines Board Job Marriage Registrar Marsh Medical Medicine Middle Parish Music Nail Surgery Nails Neurovascular Disease Optician Optometrist Parking Patient Patients Playing Podiatry Polio Prescription Quakers Refugees Rickets Roches Point School Scotland Sickness Ski Skiing Speech and Language St. Mary’s Primary Care Centre Staff Surgery Swine Flu TB Teacher Teachers The Marsh The Middle Parish Trabolgan Training Tuberculosis Ulcer University Vaccination vaccine Vaccines Whitegate Work Work Environment Working life https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/files/original/0799810b32a752b6584e42af704415fe.jpg e245f89b3e8cbbb2c200a3033ee23a69 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Grattan Street Stories: Memory of Place Subject The topic of the resource Occupational Lore; Life History; Built Heritage; Health; Ireland; Cork; Middle Parish Description An account of the resource This collection focuses on a building on Grattan Street which has served as a Quaker Meeting House, a public Dispensary and as the Grattan Street Health Centre. The project was a collaboration between the CFP and the Cork North Community Work Department, Cork Kerry Community Healthcare, Health Services Executive HSE. The interviewees fall into two main groups: those who worked in the building and those who lived in the surrounding area and availed of the services provided in the building. This project follows on from the collaboration with the HSE in the “<a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/collections/show/10" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">HSE Orthopaedic Hospital Oral History Project (d'Orthopaedic)</a>”. There is a further connection between the two projects as many of the staff and services once provided in the Grattan Street Health Centre have now relocated to St. Mary's Health Campus (St Mary’s Primary Care Centre) Gurranabraher, the former site of the Orthopaedic Hospital. This topic of the relocation of services is also covered in some staff interviews. To date (October 2021) 13 interviews have been completed for the project. Interviewees discuss the Grattan Street building itself in terms of its historic significance, its benefits and drawbacks as a workplace. Broader themes related to or inspired by the building are also touched on including: personal relationship with the building, staff camaraderie, the problems with parking, memorable incidents at work, patient experiences and descriptions of the people and services for which the building catered. Healthcare professional interviewees detail their training, career progression and comparisons between Grattan Street and other workplaces. Their testimonies also provide a link with the community of patients they served giving further insight into attitudes to healthcare, diseases, vaccines, description of social conditions and the changes in medicine and technology in their working lives. Non-healthcare professional interviewees describe childhood experiences in or around Grattan Street (The Marsh or The Middle Parish), the social, cultural and economic conditions of the area, tenements, businesses, attitudes to and experiences of healthcare, vaccines, diseases, medicines and medical professionals as well as observed changes in these areas over time. Interviewees also reflect on the possible future uses of the Grattan Street building. Related Reference Sources <ul> <li>Barrington, R. (1987) Health, medicine and politics in Ireland, 1900–1970. Dublin: Institute of Public Administration.</li> <li>Butler D.M. (2004) The Quaker meeting houses of Ireland. Dublin : Irish Friends Historical Committee.</li> <li>Byrne, J. (2004) Byrne's dictionary of Irish local history. Cork: Mercier Press.</li> <li>Cooke, R. T. (1999) My Home by the Lee. Irish Millennium Publications: Cork.</li> <li>Dempsey, P. J. & White, L. W. ‘Childers, Erskine Hamilton’. Dictionary of Irish Biography [Accessed 18 October 2021]</li> <li>Harrison, R.S. (1991) Cork City Quakers 1655-1939: A Brief History. Cork.</li> <li>Houston, M. (2004). ‘Life before the GP’. The Irish Times. Available at : <<a href="https://www.irishtimes.com/news/health/life-before-the-gp-1.1158599">https://www.irishtimes.com/news/health/life-before-the-gp-1.1158599</a> > [Accessed 18 October 2021]</li> <li>Keohane, F. (2020) The Buildings of Ireland Cork City and County. New Haven and London: Yale University Press.</li> </ul> Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2019-2020 Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Interviewees: Edith O’Regan, 'Mary', Sean Higgisson, Aoife O’Brien, Eileen Kearney, Imelda Cunning, Jane Ward, Liam Ó hUigín, Joe Scanlan, Mary Mulcahy, Philomena Cassidy, Don Morrissy, Derek O’Connell Interviewer: <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=2&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=Kieran+Murphy" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Kieran Murphy</a>, (<a href="https://corkfolklore.org/community-oral-history-outreach-officer/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP Community Oral History Outreach Officer</a>) Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant Cork, Ireland 1940s-2020s; Waterford, Ireland; Dublin, Ireland; Limerick, Ireland; Relation A related resource Exhibition Artist Edith O’Regan-Cosgrave (also an interviewee for the project) created a visual artwork based around the Grattan Street Medical Centre building itself, as a workplace and health centre. The artwork incorporated direct quotations from the oral history interviews conducted for the project, and also included brief historical paragraphs about the building researched, written and edited by the <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/community-oral-history-outreach-officer/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP Community Oral History Outreach Officer</a> Kieran Murphy. This exhibition was launched on 6th February 2020 in “St Peter’s” on the North Main Street where a “Listening Event” was also held to mark the occasion. <img src="http://corkfolklore.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/Grattan-Poster-for-Email-286-by-400.jpg" alt="Grattan-Poster-for-Email-286-by-400.jpg" /> Presentation and Listening Event To coincide with the launch of the Grattan Street Stories Exhibtion on 6th February 2020 a listening event and presentation of the history of the Grattan Street Medical Centre building and description of the project was given by <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/community-oral-history-outreach-officer/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP Community Oral History Outreach Officer</a> Kieran Murphy. <img src="http://corkfolklore.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/427A7714-1.jpg" alt="427A7714-1.jpg" /> Presentation In 2019 at the OHNI conference the <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/community-oral-history-outreach-officer/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP Community Oral History Outreach Officer</a> Kieran Murphy discussed social media and oral history which included audio excerpts from the Grattan Street Stories Project along with photographs of the building. <img src="http://corkfolklore.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/Kieran-OHNI-e1634041838937.jpg" alt="Kieran-OHNI-e1634041838937.jpg" /> Audio Visual Presentation An audio-visual slideshow was produced featuring oral testimony from the Grattan Street Stories Project and combined with suitable images of Grattan Street and from Edith O’Regan-Cosgrave’s exhibition. This was created by <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/community-oral-history-outreach-officer/">CFP Community Oral History Outreach Officer</a> Kieran Murphy. <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RnjEtQeOb3I&t=1s&ab_channel=CorkFolklore" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Audio Visual Presentation Available to listen and view here.</a> Health and Vaccines Oral History Research Many of the interviews conducted for the Grattan Street project formed an integral part of the testimonies and research for the innovative <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/health/about" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">'Catching Stories' of infectious disease in Ireland </a>project funded by the Irish Research Council. <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/health/about" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"><img src="http://corkfolklore.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/Catching-Stories-Poster.jpg" alt="Catching-Stories-Poster.jpg" /></a> Social Media Numerous suitable audio excerpts from the oral history interviews have been edited and shared on CFP's social media channels. <a href="https://twitter.com/corkfolklore/status/1139167201582288901" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">https://twitter.com/corkfolklore/status/1139167201582288901</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/corkfolklore/status/1140909542240391168" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">https://twitter.com/corkfolklore/status/1140909542240391168</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/corkfolklore/status/1141264486768238592" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">https://twitter.com/corkfolklore/status/1141264486768238592</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/corkfolklore/status/1189872295923376133" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">https://twitter.com/corkfolklore/status/1189872295923376133</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/corkfolklore/status/1228322700415860736" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">https://twitter.com/corkfolklore/status/1228322700415860736</a> Orthopaedic Hospital Cork Folklore Project in collaboration with the HSE conducted an oral history project focussing on the Orthapaedic Hospital in Gurranabraher. Many of the staff and services once provided at the Grattan Street Health Centre site were moved to St. Mary's Health Campus (St Mary’s Primary Care Centre) Gurranabraher, the former site of the Orthopaedic Hospital. <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/collections/show/10" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">HSE Orthopaedic Hospital Oral History Project (d'Orthopaedic)</a> Swimming Article Kieran Murphy and James Furey co-authored an article about <a href="https://tripeanddrisheen.substack.com/p/swim-city?s=r" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Swimming in Cork</a> which appeared in the online magazine Tripe + Drisheen. This article features a number of interview extracts collected as part of the Grattan Street Stories Project. Related Interviews CFP_SR00756_Quilligan_2019; CFP_SR00758_Broderick_2019; CFP_SR00670_OShea_2018; Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Cork Folklore Project Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Cork Folklore Project Audio Archive Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Cork Folklore Project Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource Cork Folklore Project Language A language of the resource English Type The nature or genre of the resource Audio Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource 16 .wav Files Oral History A resource containing historical information obtained in interviews with persons having firsthand knowledge. Interviewee The person(s) being interviewed Jane Ward Interviewer The person(s) performing the interview Kieran Murphy Duration Length of time involved (seconds, minutes, hours, days, class periods, etc.) 126 Minutes 10 Seconds Location The location of the interview St Mary’s Primary Health Care Centre Gurranabraher Original Format The type of object, such as painting, sculpture, paper, photo, and additional data .wav Bit Rate/Frequency Rate at which bits are transferred (i.e. 96 kbit/s would be FM quality audio) 24bit / 48kHz Time Summary A summary of an interview given for different time stamps throughout the interview <table> <tbody> <tr> <td> 0.00.00 - 0.00.28 </td> <td> intro </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.00.28 - 0.02.41 </td> <td> Growing Up in County Dublin Grew up in Balbriggan County Dublin, seaside town between Dublin and Drogheda. When growing up she was allowed to Drogheda to shop by herself but not to Dublin because Drogheda was considered a safer town. [Jane mentions that Drogheda is not considered safe at present this is an allusion to drug gang related violence in Drogheda which was in the news around the time of the interview.] Also mentions Skerries as a seaside town in County Dublin. Went to school in Loreto Convent in Balbriggan at 4 and finished when 17 and refused the nuns’ offer to stay another year. Stayed in the same school for primary and secondary school, the benefit of which is having the same people with you. Had a school reunion about a year previously. Some of her classmates she didn’t recognise, but some of their names she also didn’t recognise. Says she loves Balbriggan. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.02.41 - 0.04.28 </td> <td> Moving House as Child Balbriggan and Skerries were just 4 miles apart, moved to Skerries when a teenager but considers herself to be from Balbriggan. Rivalry between the two towns and Skerries is considered to be nicer. Balbriggan was more “Wavin pipes”, more industry, Skerries was more for tourists. There was a holiday camp called Red Island that people in Dublin used to go to in Skerries. It was like the holiday camp in Dirty Dancing. [3:27-3:33 Aoife O’Brien who had been interviewed for the Grattan Street Project previously walks into the room at this point.] Skerries would have considered itself snobby as it has a rugby and sailing club. Even though she moved to Skerries she still went to school in Ballbriggan which was “not the done thing”. Her brothers went to school in Skerries and are married and live in Skerries. Bracken Court Hotel in Balbriggan which has been there forever and she remembers going there for her Holy Communion breakfast. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.04.28 - 0.07.13 </td> <td> Holy Communion Day It was a small group making their holy communion in the convent church rather than the town church. It was special in the sense that there were few children making their communion. Kathleen Gavin was given the wrong time for the communion and turned up an hour late and “the nuns ate her” and the nuns wouldn’t admit that they gave her the wrong time and she had to bring it in the next day to prove it to them. Kathleen still tells that story and is traumatised by it. She had to make her first holy communion by herself. It was a lovely sunny day and they all stood on the steps of the convent for a photograph. Confirmation was made in town. Now people will have a meal out after a communion or confirmation but in Jane’s time that was not always the case. But her aunt who lived next door brought her to the Grand Hotel (now the Bracken Court Hotel Balbriggan) for a lunch/brunch after the ceremony. And this was “a huge deal” because it was not a common occurrence at the time. For confirmation there were a few schools being confirmed at once. And there was a line of boys and a line of girls being confirmed at the same time in the church. All the girls wanted to be kneeling beside John Conway a boy who everyone fancied. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.07.13 - 0.10.15 </td> <td> Games when growing up She wasn’t big into sport. Lived in a big old haunted house which her grandmother left to her mother. It was near the sea. As children they were allowed onto the rocks by themselves. She played basketball in school but was not very good at it. Didn’t like that kind of confrontation. Played by the sea, it wasn’t a beach but rocks. Picnics and playing. Her dad built a ship in the garden, with a deck and sails. She was a big fan of Enid Blyton books as a child, especially the Secret Seven and the ‘Famous Five’ books. Her dad build them a Secret Seven type hut in the garden. As children they “went on mysteries”. They followed one man in imitation of the Enid Blyton books and decided that he was a smuggler. And they followed him up to a Martello Tower where he happened to be going to urinate. They had more freedom then, allowed to leave in the morning and return in the evening. That was the norm and there wasn’t the supervision that is present today. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.10.15 - 0.16.01 </td> <td> Old Family House Fancourt: big Georgian house. She hated leaving the house as a child. It was very expensive to keep the house and there were also rates to pay. In addition there were fees to pay for the convent school and there was five children going to school. So they moved to a smaller house in Skerries. Fancourt: Three storey, basement and land attached to it but there was more but it was sold to try to keep the house. Discusses the house and its jointly owned green area with the neighbouring houses. Haunted house: where priests were staying which was her sister’s bedroom- she saw a ghost of a monk. Other stories of ghosts including knocking on doors and foxhunters. Regrets the old furniture was sold, including servants bells. Jane is interested in auctions. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.16.01- 0.17.08 </td> <td> House in Skerries Small, terrace house. Skerries nice place to live by sea. Brother lived in Brambles estate and bought new house on the skerries terrace. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.17.08 - 0.23.13 </td> <td> Secondary School Loved school. Regrets being too good and not being bold. Wore green uniform. No street lights and was too far from town to meet friends after school at Loreto Convent. Loved the nuns though they were tough. Grateful to her parents for her education. Loved her friends, the school and its old building. Felt safe. Describes herself as average student not into sports. Few jobs for women when they finished school. English was her favourite subject. Would love to be librarian. Prefers physical books to E-books/Kindle. Pressure on students today at exam time. Criticises the Leaving Certificate points system where students opt for high points courses rather than one they are interested in. Importance of working at something you like: “Hard work won’t kill you but work you hate will” </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.23.13- 0.26.36 </td> <td> Nursing Training & Hunger Strike Incident Jane’s mother had been a nurse. When she finished school there was a shortage of nurses. The applied directly to hospitals for nursing. But hospitals wanted trained staff rather than students. Trained in Jervis Street Hospital where the shopping centre is in Dublin now was a general hospital. Saying about nurses and Dublin hospitals: “Vincent’s snobs, Mater ladies and Jervis Nurses” Recalls riots due to Hunger Strikes. A man pulled a gun on her on O’Connell Street. Night duty on ward on her own, 20-25 beds. 24 rioters and 1 Garda were in the same ward. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.26.36 - 0.31.48 </td> <td> Wanting to be a Nurse & Early Nursing Experience Played hospital as a child. Always wanted to work in nursing. Has enjoyed much of it. Would not advise anyone to do nursing. Recalls seeing a confused naked man on her first day. Worried crying about giving the wrong medication to patient. Nurse students were also staff. Loved Irish nurses in America when she was their because their training was very practical. Enjoyed her time in St Mary’s Hospital New Jersey USA. Film “FX Murder by Illusion” features the hospital she worked in. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.31.48 - 0.34.50 </td> <td> Hospital in USA and Differences in Immigrants’ Intention AIDS was a big issue in the hospital in USA Observes that most immigrant groups in USA wanted to stay there but Irish people wanted to return to Ireland. Impact of Irish on the world St Patrick’s Day Parade. Thinks Irish people are patriotic abroad and keen to return home. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.34.50 - 0.37.43 </td> <td> Discipline in Hospital Difficult senior nurses. The sense of hierarchy. Demeaning and mocking way junior nurses were spoken to was accepted. Jane was referred to as an “anencephalic”, a baby born without part of its head which will soon die. When you knelt down your uniform had to touch the ground. Ward sister demanded to see under Jane’s uniform to see she was wearing a slip under her uniform. Nurses were allowed to wear a cardigan at night but had to take it off in the morning. A nurse went to Saudi Arabia where she was murdered. Thinks they were strict about stupid things. Discipline was important. No one thought to question it. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.37.43 - 0.40.58 </td> <td> Story of nurses boycotting nursing event Did midwifery in Rotunda. The Scottish matron didn’t hire any of the students but hired Scottish nurses. Jane & fellow midwifery students boycotted the graduation event in protest at this. Matron spoke to them individually. A brave nurse refused to answer any questions unless her union representative. Jane’s class is the only one not to have a group photo because of the boycott. People didn’t defy superiors at the time. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.40.58 - 0.42.32 </td> <td> Effect of the Strict Discipline Some staff were panicky and nervous about making a mistake. May have incentivised people to cover up mistakes to avoid the repercussions instead of working something out. Matron could make personal remarks about nurses without repercussions: telling a nurse to fix her crooked teeth. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.42.32 - 0.44.22 </td> <td> Religion in Hospitals No MRSA in those days. Nuns ran a very clean and efficient hospital. Jervis was a Catholic hospital. Rotunda was a Protestant hospital, most of the staff were Catholic and they went to mass, then the Protestants went to service and were given tea and biscuits. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.44.22 - 0.50.00 </td> <td> Working as a Nurse in USA: differences to Irish system Had to sit an exam before working as a nurse in USA. VISA dependant on passing the exam. Irish nurses were not used to multiple choice exams at the time. They were also required to sit an English language examination to work as a nurse in the USA. Rented houses were arranged for the nurses. Jane had a car and dated a man in Washington at the time. An exciting time. Maximum was 2 patients to a room in USA vs larger wards in Ireland. In USA their reports were taken on a tape recorder rather than written. Patient’s doctor would still be their doctor once they went to hospital. DRG Diagnostic Related Grouping which was related to how many days insurance would be paid per patient per illness. Good life and money in USA which allowed Jane to do the Public Health course in UCD. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.50.00 - 0.56.20 </td> <td> Public Health Nursing Desire to come home. Discusses her relationship with a reporter/journalist in USA which ended when she returned to Ireland. Began work in Ballyfermot - highlight in public health career. Started a needle exchange for drug addiction. Dynamic and progressive area. Rough area but felt you were making a difference. Didn’t feel the same way when she moved to Cork. Public Health vs Hospital: In hospital you pass the patient to the next shift, but in Public Health you are responsible for all of your cases. Once her camera was stolen from her car when visiting a patient. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.56.20 - 1.00.49 </td> <td> Coming to Cork Came to Cork because husband was working there. Had to do an Irish oral exam to get the Public Health job in Cork. November 1992 got job in Grattan Street Health Centre. Got married January 1993. Staff had a lunch and cake in before her wedding, and a present even though she was only there for a month. Admires architecture of Queens University Belfast, where she could have gone to work in the 1980s. Remarks on the small decisions than influence one’s life and career. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.00.49 - 1.06.59 </td> <td> Impressions of Grattan Street Health Centre Work as Public Health Nurse Parking problems in Grattan Street. Met director in base Abbey Court House. “The one thing you learn in Grattan Street is how to park!” There was more space before the school [Educate Together] Grattan Street was a welcoming place. Public Health Nurse in Blackpool flats now demolished. There was a brothel in one. Fantastic people. Once left handbag behind in Blackpool. Mixed work in Ballyfermot but all child welfare in Cork- visiting houses. Discusses one case of child with broken leg where mother hadn’t done anything about it. So a social worker and Garda were needed to get the child to hospital. Jane had to go to court. The child was returned to the mother. Jane then had to still work with that mother subsequently. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.06.59 - 1.09.02 </td> <td> Impression of Danger in Some Areas Worked with St Vincent de Paul in Knocknaheeny. Never felt threatened. Privileged to get into flats that people would let no one else into. If she saw suspected stolen goods she and they knew that she was not interested in anything other than child welfare. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.09.02 - 1.11.35 </td> <td> Story of very Difficult Patient Hospitals can discharge patients but as PHN the patient can live in your area for decades. Nurses shared a rota to look after this man because the heavy workload. Digression to story about writing wrong date in calligraphy on a colleague’s wedding album. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.11.35 - 1.15.30 </td> <td> What makes a Good Public Health Nurse Get on with people. Make people relaxed. People need to trust you. Have to be honest. Not trying to be someone’s friend. Assessment of patient is important. Patients can become dependent on a particular PHN. Privilege to enter other people’s homes, especially when they won’t let other people into their homes eg social workers or Gardaí </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.15.30 - 1.19.30 </td> <td> Training and Meaning from Job Training didn’t prepare her for PHN. Compares it to jumping off a chair to train for parachute jump. End of career now. Disappointed at choices she made. She is now doing more management and less hands-on. Recalls times she felt she made a difference: making a joke with a terminal patient, assisting a family who had brought their father home to die to care for him when they were overwhelmed. Doesn’t feel like she is making a difference any more. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.19.30 - 1.21.20 </td> <td> Regrets the Management side of the Job As she was promoted she was had to do more management which she regrets. Is considering retiring or changing career. Would love to be a librarian or work with antiques or books. Discounts it as silly at this stage of her life. Is unhappy with her current work. Her staff say she makes a difference but she is not sure. She took a career break and her staff missed her. Feels too far away from where she started. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.21.20 - 1.26.40 </td> <td> Promotion to Vaccine and Management Role 1999 nursing strike. Jane was on strike committee. Picketed Abbey Court House on Sulllivan’s Quay. Meeting with management to decide whether the strikers could use the toilets and canteen. Outcome of the strike was that new job for a specialist in immunisation, vaccine. Jane was stabbed by a syringe by accident one day. Overnight Jane became Assistant Director, and colleagues at same grade insisted on calling her Senior Public Health Nurse which was the previous title. Recalls an Assistant Director who was victimised in a more severe way to Jane which went to mediation. It went away but it was nasty at the time Jane says. Jane was never invited to the Assistant Director Christmas lunch for years </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.26.40 - 1.29.26 </td> <td> Change from Clinical to Managerial Role Her role was a clinical role with no staff, vaccines following up on defaulters. Croke Park and Haddington Road agreements changed her role. Swine Flu vaccinating 1000 people a day in Neptune Stadium. School public health nurses were backbone of system. And the management system was at cross purposes. These nurses eventually came under her remit. Realised that she didn’t like management- doesn’t like taking responsibility for the mistake of others. Describes her management style as “Do it, do it, do it!” and she shouldn’t have to give a reason. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.29.26 - 1.33.20 </td> <td> Building in Grattan Street compared to Gurranabraher Loves the building. Old Quaker Meeting House. Graffiti of penis and scrotum that her elderly aunt was trying to figure out. Would have preferred to stay in Grattan Street. Recalls the old ventilation holes where pigeon droppings would land on your desk. Location of Grattan Street is good for the public and services. Grattan Street building requires work to maintain it. Unsure if it’s a positive move for services to Gurranabraher. Useful to be near Edel House [women’s shelter] and the Share Houses. She has 7 staff but the new office is for 4 people which she thinks is insulting. Doesn’t believe hot desking works. They are on a “room allocation review list” </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.33.20 - 1.35.09 </td> <td> Benefits of Grattan Street Health Centre Close to town- shops and the bank. Part of the community in Grattan Street. Close to Mercy Hospital. Building has a good feel. Felt at home there. Lots of history. The only thing people don’t miss in Grattan Street is the parking. Everyone went to the Grattan Street Christmas party. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.35.09 - 1.40.06 </td> <td> Relationship with community in Grattan Street Animosity is with neighbours regarding parking. Story about getting kitchen done by a man from Grattan Street and being concerned about parking. School next door- issue with parking- children don’t live in the area. Tricky relationship with the school. Story of previous principal of the school trying to get clampers to clamp all the cars belonging Grattan Street staff. Other stories about the difficulties caused by parking and the uneasy relationship with the school. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.40.06 - 1.40.55 </td> <td> Other Stories Mentions that there are stories about affairs in Grattan Street but doesn’t want to tell them. Says Grattan Street was a good place to work. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.40.55 - 1.44.55 </td> <td> Vaccine Storage Fridges Temperature Control Vaccines have to be kept in fridges between 2 degrees and 8 degrees. The Cold Chain- ensures that the vaccines are at the right temperature including when transported. Vaccines have to be monitored and recorded twice a day. Some people think Jane is over the top with her care of vaccines. She doesn’t think so. Vaccines are very expensive and important when going to school. Found it hard being responsible for the vaccines even when not at work. Story that she called about the vaccines from a Gondola in Venice is not true! Hundreds and thousands of euro worth of vaccines at a time when Order through United Drug. She sees the price every time that she orders which is stressful to see the cost. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.44.55 - 1.44.55 </td> <td> Difficulties Moving Vaccines to Gurranbraher Dreaded moving the vaccine in Grattan Street because there’s no lift. Complications of moving vaccine fridges and the required procedure. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.44.55 - 1.44.55 </td> <td> Funny story about Monitoring Electricity for Vaccine Fridges during Storm Electricity was to be cut off due to replacing telegraph poles. Needed generator to keep electricity on for the vaccine fridges. Jane had asked many times for a back-up generator but never received one. Was asked by superior to protect the vaccine fridges from a storm, which had never been asked before. Generator set up in Grattan Street yard. Jane inquired how the back-up would be physically changed if the power goes out? The solution was that the toilet light was to be left on and the electricity workers would see driving past if the power failed. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.49.55 - 1.51.51 </td> <td> Moving Vaccines during Floods Older man told Jane that Grattan Street is in a depression and so there are never any power cuts. One problem during big floods in Grattan Street when wall near Mercy broke. Jane was doing vaccines for Swine Flu in Neptune at the time. With steps up to Grattan Street Health Centre and vaccines on top floor Jane thought they were safe. She was informed an amphibious craft was to come to move the vaccines. A Ford Fiesta arrived. They were put in St. Finbarr’s Hospital for the night. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.51.51 - 1.54.25 </td> <td> Future of Vaccines Takes the vaccine care very seriously so that it’s both safe and effective. In third world vaccine storage is more complicated. Tyndall Institute is developing a patch that will deliver vaccines rather than needles. Makes comparison to Star Trek. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.54.25 - 2.01.07 </td> <td> Vaccine Take Up and vaccination policies Is very pro-vaccine Mentions problem with social media spreading misinformation about vaccines. And the damage that can cause. Doesn’t argue with vaccines with friends and family. Following up with child who had only received some of the required vaccine, the mother brought the child to an area with a measles epidemic. Thinks more education is needed and PHNs need to be very positive about vaccines. Thinks the HPV vaccine is a no-brainer. Need to dispel vaccine myths. Approximately 1500 euro to vaccinate a child fully. Wonders whether the fact the vaccination schemes are free of charge makes some people take it for granted and not value it. Some countries have a no vaccination no school policy. Minister for Health at the time Simon Harris had been discussing a similar policy in Ireland. In some countries there are penalties for not getting vaccinations eg withdrawal of Child Benefit. In Ireland the decision is left to the individual. Some parents think that because all other children are vaccinated that their child will be safe. Story of an unvaccinated child whose mother with only let the child play with vaccinated children! “Every vaccine is a little victory” </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 2.01.07 - 2.01.54 </td> <td> Opportunity for Interviewee to say anything not yet mentioned Describes the interview as better than a counselling session. Reiterates that she has gone far away from where she started out in her career and it may be time to step back. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 2.01.54 - 2.05.57 </td> <td> Hopes for Future of Grattan Street Doesn’t believe Grattan Street can be sold. There was lots of pressure on them to move, which Jane felt was unnecessary. Jane’s preference was to move in the summer when the schools are closed because there would be no need to do vaccinations, but they were forced to move during term time. Is not sure what services are remaining in Grattan Street. Mentions a piece of furniture that she would love to have from Grattan Street. Hopes the future of Grattan Street will benefit the community. Discussion about Grattan Street being opened for heritage week or an open day but it never happened. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 2.05.57 - 2.06.10 </td> <td> Outro. Interview Ends. </td> </tr> </tbody> </table> Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Jane Ward: Grattan Street, Healthcare, Working Life Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context CFP_SR00717_Ward_2019; Relation A related resource Other Interviews in this Collection <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/240" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00696_O'Regan_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/242" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00704_Collins_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/243" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00706_Higgisson_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/244" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00712_O'Brien_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/245" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00713_Kearney_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/246" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00714_Cunning_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/248" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00727_OhUigin_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/249" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00728_Scanlan_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/250" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00729_Mulcahy_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/251" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00732_Cassidy_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/252" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00760_Morrissy_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/253" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"> CFP_SR00762_OConnell_2019</a>; Language A language of the resource English Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Cork Folklore Project Audio Archive Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource Cork Folklore Project Type The nature or genre of the resource Sound Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource 2 .wav files Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 4 June 2019 Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Cork Folklore Project Description An account of the resource Jane grew up in Balbriggan and Skerries County Dublin. Describes her love of the Georgian house her family lived in and her love of old buildings and antiques before they moved to a smaller home. Recalls her first holy communion where one girl arrived late and had to experience the ceremony on her own. Speaks of some childhood games and playing and picnicking by the sea. Enjoyed school at Loreto Convent Balbriggan even though the nuns were strict. English was her favourite subject. Talks about her desire to become a nurse and her experiences in Dublin hospitals. Describes the strict discipline and hierarchy in hospitals including the way superiors exercised power over how nurses were required to dress and commented on their physical appearance with impunity. Jane outlines the negative impacts of this culture including fear of making a mistake and the incentive to cover up of mistakes. Outlines a rare challenge to authority when nurses boycotted a graduation ceremony. Mentions the role of religion in hospitals. Outlines her time spend nursing in USA, a romantic relationship and her emigrant experience there before returning to Ireland to pursue Public Health Nursing (PHN), which she prefers as it feels she is making a difference. Discusses moving to Cork and her early positive impressions of Grattan Street Medical Centre and its staff. Speaks about the Grattan Street building itself, including its sense of history, graffiti on its outside walls, and its convenient location in the city centre and proximity to other services. Describes the problems with car parking and the resulting tensions with neighbours. Jane speaks of her PHN work in Blackpool and a court case involving a child and social worker. Outlines the characteristic of a good PHN, and how much of the role is learned through experience. Regrets the turn her career has taken towards management and away from dealing with patients. Discusses the 1999 nursing strike which lead to a new role for an immunisation specialist which she was hired for. Describes how colleagues insisted on referring to her by her previous title, refusing to acknowledge her promotion and equal status. Describes her role including overseeing Swine Flu vaccinations. Explains the vaccine cold storage system, the sense of responsibility for ordering them and overseeing them. Tells stories of when vaccines were relocated during a flood to protect them, and when the electricity was monitored during a storm in case the power was cut to the vaccine fridges. Mentions vaccine policies, myths and technological developments. Outlines her preferred time to move services from Grattan Street to St Mary’s Primary Healthcare Centre Gurranabraher. Abbey Court House America Antique Antiques Apartments Balbriggan Ballyfermot Belfast Blackpool Books Boycott Broken Leg Buildings Built Heritage Car Park Car Parking Child Childhood Games Childhoood Children Children’s Health Christmas Party Co Dublin Community Confirmation Cork County Dublin Court Croke Park Agreement Discipline Drogheda Dublin Edel House Emigrant Emigrant Experience Emigrants Emigration Enid Blyton Family Flats Games Garda Georgian ghost Ghosts Graffiti Grattan Street Grattan Street Health Centre Gurranabraher Haddington Road Agreement Haunted house Health Hierarchy Holy Communion Holy Communion Breakfast Home Hospital House Housing Hunger Strikes Hygiene Industry Injection Irish Language Jervis Street Hospital Knocknaheeny Management Martello Tower Matron Medical Medicine Medicines Mercy Hospital Midwife Midwifery MRSA Needle Needle Exchange Neptune Stadium Nun Nuns Nurse Nursing Nursing Training Parking PHN Playing Public Health Public Health Nurse Public Health Nursing Quaker Meeting House Quakers Queens University Belfast Reading Regret Regrets Religion Religion in Hospitals Rent Renting Rotunda Sea Seaside Shops Siblings Skerries Social Work St. Finbarr’s Hospital St. Vincent de Paul Storm Swine Flu Teenager The Cold Chain Trade Union Trade Unions Trades Union Union Unions USA Vaccination vaccine Vaccine Fridge Vaccine Myths Vaccine Storage Vaccines https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/files/original/d3568d256018c2628eb28ab4536e9a96.jpg 18106e276a42c57377f1bca3ae962d2d https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/files/original/fc7a9d14e9dfd1673b8cc2c5901b112d.mp3 825a0448cf288e30077a2fdf1a402967 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Grattan Street Stories: Memory of Place Subject The topic of the resource Occupational Lore; Life History; Built Heritage; Health; Ireland; Cork; Middle Parish Description An account of the resource This collection focuses on a building on Grattan Street which has served as a Quaker Meeting House, a public Dispensary and as the Grattan Street Health Centre. The project was a collaboration between the CFP and the Cork North Community Work Department, Cork Kerry Community Healthcare, Health Services Executive HSE. The interviewees fall into two main groups: those who worked in the building and those who lived in the surrounding area and availed of the services provided in the building. This project follows on from the collaboration with the HSE in the “<a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/collections/show/10" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">HSE Orthopaedic Hospital Oral History Project (d'Orthopaedic)</a>”. There is a further connection between the two projects as many of the staff and services once provided in the Grattan Street Health Centre have now relocated to St. Mary's Health Campus (St Mary’s Primary Care Centre) Gurranabraher, the former site of the Orthopaedic Hospital. This topic of the relocation of services is also covered in some staff interviews. To date (October 2021) 13 interviews have been completed for the project. Interviewees discuss the Grattan Street building itself in terms of its historic significance, its benefits and drawbacks as a workplace. Broader themes related to or inspired by the building are also touched on including: personal relationship with the building, staff camaraderie, the problems with parking, memorable incidents at work, patient experiences and descriptions of the people and services for which the building catered. Healthcare professional interviewees detail their training, career progression and comparisons between Grattan Street and other workplaces. Their testimonies also provide a link with the community of patients they served giving further insight into attitudes to healthcare, diseases, vaccines, description of social conditions and the changes in medicine and technology in their working lives. Non-healthcare professional interviewees describe childhood experiences in or around Grattan Street (The Marsh or The Middle Parish), the social, cultural and economic conditions of the area, tenements, businesses, attitudes to and experiences of healthcare, vaccines, diseases, medicines and medical professionals as well as observed changes in these areas over time. Interviewees also reflect on the possible future uses of the Grattan Street building. Related Reference Sources <ul> <li>Barrington, R. (1987) Health, medicine and politics in Ireland, 1900–1970. Dublin: Institute of Public Administration.</li> <li>Butler D.M. (2004) The Quaker meeting houses of Ireland. Dublin : Irish Friends Historical Committee.</li> <li>Byrne, J. (2004) Byrne's dictionary of Irish local history. Cork: Mercier Press.</li> <li>Cooke, R. T. (1999) My Home by the Lee. Irish Millennium Publications: Cork.</li> <li>Dempsey, P. J. & White, L. W. ‘Childers, Erskine Hamilton’. Dictionary of Irish Biography [Accessed 18 October 2021]</li> <li>Harrison, R.S. (1991) Cork City Quakers 1655-1939: A Brief History. Cork.</li> <li>Houston, M. (2004). ‘Life before the GP’. The Irish Times. Available at : <<a href="https://www.irishtimes.com/news/health/life-before-the-gp-1.1158599">https://www.irishtimes.com/news/health/life-before-the-gp-1.1158599</a> > [Accessed 18 October 2021]</li> <li>Keohane, F. (2020) The Buildings of Ireland Cork City and County. New Haven and London: Yale University Press.</li> </ul> Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2019-2020 Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Interviewees: Edith O’Regan, 'Mary', Sean Higgisson, Aoife O’Brien, Eileen Kearney, Imelda Cunning, Jane Ward, Liam Ó hUigín, Joe Scanlan, Mary Mulcahy, Philomena Cassidy, Don Morrissy, Derek O’Connell Interviewer: <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=2&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=Kieran+Murphy" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Kieran Murphy</a>, (<a href="https://corkfolklore.org/community-oral-history-outreach-officer/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP Community Oral History Outreach Officer</a>) Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant Cork, Ireland 1940s-2020s; Waterford, Ireland; Dublin, Ireland; Limerick, Ireland; Relation A related resource Exhibition Artist Edith O’Regan-Cosgrave (also an interviewee for the project) created a visual artwork based around the Grattan Street Medical Centre building itself, as a workplace and health centre. The artwork incorporated direct quotations from the oral history interviews conducted for the project, and also included brief historical paragraphs about the building researched, written and edited by the <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/community-oral-history-outreach-officer/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP Community Oral History Outreach Officer</a> Kieran Murphy. This exhibition was launched on 6th February 2020 in “St Peter’s” on the North Main Street where a “Listening Event” was also held to mark the occasion. <img src="http://corkfolklore.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/Grattan-Poster-for-Email-286-by-400.jpg" alt="Grattan-Poster-for-Email-286-by-400.jpg" /> Presentation and Listening Event To coincide with the launch of the Grattan Street Stories Exhibtion on 6th February 2020 a listening event and presentation of the history of the Grattan Street Medical Centre building and description of the project was given by <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/community-oral-history-outreach-officer/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP Community Oral History Outreach Officer</a> Kieran Murphy. <img src="http://corkfolklore.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/427A7714-1.jpg" alt="427A7714-1.jpg" /> Presentation In 2019 at the OHNI conference the <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/community-oral-history-outreach-officer/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP Community Oral History Outreach Officer</a> Kieran Murphy discussed social media and oral history which included audio excerpts from the Grattan Street Stories Project along with photographs of the building. <img src="http://corkfolklore.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/Kieran-OHNI-e1634041838937.jpg" alt="Kieran-OHNI-e1634041838937.jpg" /> Audio Visual Presentation An audio-visual slideshow was produced featuring oral testimony from the Grattan Street Stories Project and combined with suitable images of Grattan Street and from Edith O’Regan-Cosgrave’s exhibition. This was created by <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/community-oral-history-outreach-officer/">CFP Community Oral History Outreach Officer</a> Kieran Murphy. <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RnjEtQeOb3I&t=1s&ab_channel=CorkFolklore" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Audio Visual Presentation Available to listen and view here.</a> Health and Vaccines Oral History Research Many of the interviews conducted for the Grattan Street project formed an integral part of the testimonies and research for the innovative <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/health/about" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">'Catching Stories' of infectious disease in Ireland </a>project funded by the Irish Research Council. <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/health/about" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"><img src="http://corkfolklore.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/Catching-Stories-Poster.jpg" alt="Catching-Stories-Poster.jpg" /></a> Social Media Numerous suitable audio excerpts from the oral history interviews have been edited and shared on CFP's social media channels. <a href="https://twitter.com/corkfolklore/status/1139167201582288901" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">https://twitter.com/corkfolklore/status/1139167201582288901</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/corkfolklore/status/1140909542240391168" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">https://twitter.com/corkfolklore/status/1140909542240391168</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/corkfolklore/status/1141264486768238592" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">https://twitter.com/corkfolklore/status/1141264486768238592</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/corkfolklore/status/1189872295923376133" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">https://twitter.com/corkfolklore/status/1189872295923376133</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/corkfolklore/status/1228322700415860736" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">https://twitter.com/corkfolklore/status/1228322700415860736</a> Orthopaedic Hospital Cork Folklore Project in collaboration with the HSE conducted an oral history project focussing on the Orthapaedic Hospital in Gurranabraher. Many of the staff and services once provided at the Grattan Street Health Centre site were moved to St. Mary's Health Campus (St Mary’s Primary Care Centre) Gurranabraher, the former site of the Orthopaedic Hospital. <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/collections/show/10" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">HSE Orthopaedic Hospital Oral History Project (d'Orthopaedic)</a> Swimming Article Kieran Murphy and James Furey co-authored an article about <a href="https://tripeanddrisheen.substack.com/p/swim-city?s=r" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Swimming in Cork</a> which appeared in the online magazine Tripe + Drisheen. This article features a number of interview extracts collected as part of the Grattan Street Stories Project. Related Interviews CFP_SR00756_Quilligan_2019; CFP_SR00758_Broderick_2019; CFP_SR00670_OShea_2018; Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Cork Folklore Project Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Cork Folklore Project Audio Archive Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Cork Folklore Project Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource Cork Folklore Project Language A language of the resource English Type The nature or genre of the resource Audio Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource 16 .wav Files Oral History A resource containing historical information obtained in interviews with persons having firsthand knowledge. Interviewee The person(s) being interviewed Liam Ó hUigín Interviewer The person(s) performing the interview Kieran Murphy Duration Length of time involved (seconds, minutes, hours, days, class periods, etc.) 59 Minutes 41 Seconds Location The location of the interview Ballyphehane Original Format The type of object, such as painting, sculpture, paper, photo, and additional data .wav Bit Rate/Frequency Rate at which bits are transferred (i.e. 96 kbit/s would be FM quality audio) 24bit / 48kHz Time Summary A summary of an interview given for different time stamps throughout the interview <table> <tbody> <tr> <td> 0.00.00 - 0.00.31 </td> <td> intro </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.00.31 - 0.02.55 </td> <td> Memories of Grattan Street and surrounding area Shops and Buildings Grattan Street was a busy street with many businesses. Most important was the fire brigade. When the new St Francis Church was being built (Broad Lane church as it was called by people in the Middle Parish) the fire brigade amalgamated with Sullivan’s Quay and the priest of Old Broad Lane church moved into the old fire brigade building while new church was being built. Children missed the excitement of the fire brigade. Very vibrant street. 6 pubs: Kellehers, Crosses, Landers, Carrols (later called the Tostal Inn), Ramble Inn (owned by Mrs Brick) two Murphys public houses near Broad Lane which runs from Grattan Street to North Main Street. Shops and sweet Shops: The Rodisses, The People’s Dairy, The M Laundries, 2 Gents Hairdressing Saloons (called barber shops): Leahy’s and Keanes. Where the Community Centre is now was called Mechanics Hall, because the mechanics had a union and meetings there. Later it was known as Matt Talbot Hall. There were lots of tenement houses in the area. [Liam’s phone rings.] </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.03.06 - 0.05:04 </td> <td> Tenement Houses, Lanes, playing in Graveyard Where Patrick Hanely Buildings are now there were tenement houses. Liam only barely remembers them as they were being demolished in the late 1940s and early 1950s. They were derelict sites for a while, which was his playground. St Peter’s Cemetery down Peter Church Lane, playing among the headstones, and hiding or planking cigarettes. Shops: Manning’s Shops at corner of Henry Street and Grattan Street, Mrs Mullins at corner of Coleman’s Lane. From Coleman’s Lane to Adelaide Street there were 4 or 5 houses there with 4 or 5 families in each house. Remembers Shinkwin? Family, the Dineens. When they moved out they went to Gurranabraher, Ballyphehane and the suburbs in Ballincollig. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.05:04 - 0.06.56 </td> <td> Childhood Games and Activities Very little Traffic on the roads at the time. Liam was living in Henry Street round the corner from Grattan Street. Recalls soccer matches from one end of the street to the other and wouldn’t see a car. Friends who came from Blarney Street or Barrack Street couldn’t understand why the streets were so wide and loved it for a game of football. If a woman with a pram approached while they were playing football they would pick up the ball or if they played near the Mercy Hospital they knew that they should keep quiet without anyone telling them and Liam thinks that has changed today. Many of his friends live in Grattan Street and everyone was a happy family until there was a row and they had a battering match with “stones down the quarry”. They used to swim by the Mercy Hospital by the ladder. And then on to ‘the pipe’ up the Lee Fields and then the weir and every second day they had the Lee Baths one day for boys one for girls. Today it’s mixed. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.06.56 - 0.11.32 </td> <td> Poverty-Buying on Credit and using Pawn Shops Could get messages or shopping on tick or on credit. Milk, bread, quarter (pound) of cheese. There was no bottle of milk you had to bring in your own jug. If you ran out of money the shopkeeper would write it into a book and at the end of the week you could pay it off. A few people could afford not to be ‘on tick’. There were a few pawn shops on the North Main Street one near north Gate Bridge Jones, another across from Coleman’s Lane called Twomeys. There may have been more. There was one at the bottom of Shandon street owned by Jones as well. There were 18 or 19 pawn shops around the city one at bottom of Patrick’s Hill, one by fire brigade station on Sullivan’s Quay, two on Barrack Street. People would pawn clothes. Tradesmen would pawn trowels on Monday morning. Often for drink/ alcohol. Wives would pawn husband’s suit and take it back the following Saturday for going to mass. Nearly everyone used the pawn it was the forerunner to the Credit Union. If you pawned a pair of shoes for 10 shillings, you got a docket and you had to pay 11 shillings to get it back. Wives would be stressed making sure they could get the husband’s suit back in time for mass. It was a thriving business. If you didn’t claim your pawned items after a certain period it was put for sale in the window. Some people would pawn things openly. Other people would hide it under a shawl, or pretend to be pawning something for someone else. People felt ashamed. Almost everyone was scraping a living. Even some shopkeepers looked after people who may not have had enough to pay at the end of the week. At Christmas the shopkeeper would give you a present of a Christmas Cake or Christmas Candle depending on what type of customer you were. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.11.32 - 0.13.02 </td> <td> Work, Pawns, Showing off Wealth Liam doesn’t remember what or whether his family pawned. Liam’s dad was a docker which was paid on a daily basis and his mother was shrewd enough to put away some money every day. He knew that relations of his pawned things though. Bracelets, wedding ring, engagement ring, rarely a watch very few people had watches. Liam knew someone who went to work in Dagenham and he came back a Dagenham Yank with a different accent “a twang” and a watch. He walked into centre of Henry Street, pulled up his sleeve and pretended to be winging his watch while looking at Shandon clock tower just to show off his watch. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.13.02 - 0.13.46 </td> <td> Telephone Phones were also very scarce. One shop in Henry Street had a phone and there was a queue there for people wanting to use it. There was another phone booth by Vincent’s Bridge coming down Sunday’s Well. Liam remembers playing there and being afraid to go in to answer the phone. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.13.46 - 0.18.37 </td> <td> Tenement conditions, Emigrants, Social Comparison, Fuel Poverty Laneways around there: Philip’s Lane from Grattan Street to North Main Street. Skiddy’s Castle from Grattan Street to North Main Street. Coleman’s Lane, Peter Church Lane (now Avenue), Broad Lane (at the back of the church), all on to North Main Street from Grattan Street. Conditions were basic looking back with an outdoor toilet. One family on Henry Street had ten families with one cold tap in back yard and one toilet between them. They had to clean out every morning and bring an enamel bucket upstairs every morning. Had an inferiority complex about relations coming home from England. The relatives would be dressed up in finery but later Liam discovered they were also badly off but made the effort when coming home. The story of someone’s uncle who came back from America after 40 years and the family had moved out to the suburbs and they had a barbeque. And the uncle used the toilet inside the house. He said he used to eat inside and the toilet was outside and now it is reversed! They used newspaper instead of toilet paper. Turf and timber blocks for fuel for heating which father got going out the Straight Road. Some people got a voucher for a peck of coal which might only be a large shovel full. Some families got vouchers for free shoes like in the shop Furlongs in South Main Street (owner may have been lord mayor later) Liam wasn’t sure where the vouchers came from- maybe the Health Board. Doesn’t think there was any child benefit. Maybe the Sick Poor would provide the vouchers. They would visit people and the people would try to hide that they were calling. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.18.37 - 0.22.42 </td> <td> Cooking, Bathing, Hygiene and Medicines No cooking facilities only the fire. Mother would cook pot of potatoes on the fire and then transfer to the hob. 1948 no electricity in Henry Street at the time. When they got gas in mother told him not to leave kitchen door open to hide it from Liam’s grandmother who lived upstairs and was the real tenant. It wasn’t an oven it was a thing on a stand with two rings on it. Older people were afraid of being gassed. Saturday night the galvanised bath was put in front of fire with hot water and washed, and if you were the last person in the bath the water would be dirty. And then the children were lined up against the wall to get a weekly does of cod liver oil, or Brutlax, California syrup of figs, Senna? All because of worms. Some newspaper put on the table and hair combed with fine tooth comb to get rid of lice- it was an ordeal. Brutlax was like chocolate but a laxative. Milk of magnesia used as well. Given those every Saturday night to prevent you getting sick. Some of them had a terrible taste. If someone got sick taken to the dispensary. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.22.42 - 0.24.12 </td> <td> Children’s Games Different for boys and girls Spent much time in the derelict site where Patrick Hanley Buildings are now, used to connect to Cove street. They had battering matches with stones and they were going to the Mercy Hospital 4 or 5 times a week. They used to play chasing hiding from the nuns around the Mercy Hospital. Could bring a spinning top and hit is with a whip up and down the road without fear of traffic. Girls would tie a rope to a pole and swing around it and skipping as well. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.24.12 - 0.31.57 </td> <td> Food, traditions, routines. Lunch at Work Porridge for breakfast which you eat if you were given. His grandchildren now have a choice of 5 cereals. Goodie- bread and milk mixed maybe with sugar sprinkled on it. Some shops on North Main Street like Simcox or Currans Bakery you could get bread wrapped in soft tissue paper which was kept in a drawer at home for when visitors came to use for the toilet because it was better than newspaper. Potatoes and cabbage. Father loved pigs meat: pig’s heat, backbone, pig’s tail, crubeens. Liam still loves a crubeen except for the trouble of cooking of it, and it’s messy to eat. Mother was reared around Vicar Street. Barrack Street, Blarney Street, Shandon Street: that’s the way people lived because there was little Gurranabraher built and Ballyphehane wasn’t built yet. Tripe and drisheen is still a favourite, can get from Reilly’s in the market. Tripe cut into little pieces, with cornflower, onions, “white sauce”, drisheen put in later. Tripe and drisheen would be weekly. Liam loved the pig’s tongue because it was lean. Set day for each food. Liam’s dad was a docker and he would cut the ear off the pig’s head, put it in a sandwich with bread and butter, wrap in newspaper and that was his lunch. He wasn’t the only one. Thinks tripe is from sheep’s stomach. Blood in the drisheen. Connie Dodgers for Lent allowed one meal and two collations. Con Lucey said you could have a biscuit with a cup of tea as a collation. Liam thinks it was Larry McCarthy’s bakery that made a biscuit twice as big as the normal one. For Lent had to fast every Friday and couldn’t eat meat, except for people of a certain age. Religion was a big thing for people at the time. Lent didn’t bother Liam’s dad. Dockers worked hard. Where Elysian Tower is now, where the Eglinton Baths were Liam went with his mother and a bowl of soup and bread and butter and a tea towel over it. The dockers sat on the kerb eating their soup and sandwiches and they were all black with dirt no washing of hands. All the work was shovelling coal, Liam worked there for 2 days and had enough of it- nearly wanted a small shovel to fill the shovel he had. His dad was small but very wiry and strong. “They were marvellous people” </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.31.57- 0.37.05 </td> <td> Pastimes, Shops and Opening Hours Dad spent time in the pub maybe too much. People listened to the radio or sat in front of the fire reading the newspaper. Some people with go hunting or play football or hurling. Liam plays golf now but at the time it was only for the elite doctors and solicitors. Liam’s dad never stood inside a golf club. Liam was 10 when his mother died she would offer him tripe and drisheen or a creamy cake for dinner and he would choose the cake. The corner shops are gone now because of the supermarkets. Corner shops on Henry Street were: Bode’s?, Mannings, Horrigan’s, Dermot’s on Adelaide Street. Dermot’s was first all-night shop in the city- wouldn’t be there during the day. Open from 8pm to 8am. A salesman in coca cola told Liam that Dermot lived on Pope’s Quay and owned a Morris Minor car and he drove it to Adelaide Street 7 days a week and the car was ten years old and there wasn’t 5,000 miles on it because that was all the driving he did. In Ballypheane Liam sees people carrying lots of bags after shopping in Aldi on Tory Top Road. Liam remembers going to Dermot’s for quarter pound of cheese (3 or 4 slices), half pound of tea, 2 eggs, there were no fridges so you bought and you ate them there was little storage. Dermot would put greaseproof paper over the blade and cut perfectly a few slices of cheese which had come from a timber box. Girls were interested in the box for making cots for dolls. There was no variety of cheese available just the one block. Sugar was available in quarter pounds rather than big bags. Men coming home from the pub would be sent back out to get a box of cocoa or milk from Dermot’s. There was no one on the street after 12 o’clock unlike today when there’s lots of people around after nightclubs. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.37.05 - 0.39.00 </td> <td> Death of Mother and Family Living Arrangements When Liam’s mom died his aunt who had 6 children moved upstairs from Liam. She has 5 daughters and 1 son and the son died of meningitis at 4 years old. Liam’s grandfather was dead. Aunt moved to grandmother in Vicar Street to look after her. Liam was going to school in Mardyke, father’s place during the day, went to grandmother’s in Vicar Street for food and washing and then back to the Marsh to sleep. He skipped school for almost 3 months (‘on the lang’) until the school wrote to his dad, who gave him a lecture. He was nearly 14 then and on the verge of leaving school anyway. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.39.00 - 0.44.13 </td> <td> The Dispensary now Grattan Street Health Centre, Tinsmith and Nurse Lots of cases of meningitis. Everyone in Cork used to go to the Dispensary. Everyone now in their 70s seems to remember Dr Cagney. He would give a bottle of coloured water. If you forgot your bottle you had to go to Mr Gamble the tinsmith in Grattan Street. He made ponnies, gallons, billycans. But when plastic came in there was no need for tinsmiths. Remembers getting injection or vaccination from Dr Cagney, thinks it may have been for smallpox but is not sure. He dreaded the needles for the syringes which were “like six-inch nails”. You went through a gate, into a yard and there were steps leading up to the entrance. A grey-haired woman maybe called Mrs O’Keefe. There were benches like in a church. There were hatches. You queued up for the doctor. And the hatches gave you the medicine. Other place for illness was Mercy Hospital. Recalls a midwife Nurse Anthony who called to people’s houses. Liam thought when younger than it was the midwife who brought babies on her bicycle. Aunt lived on Thomas Street (a continuation of Peter’s Street) to the back entrance of the Mercy Hospital where the “dead house” was where Liam’s mother was laid out. Remembers the Quirkes and the Horgans, Glandons?, McCarthys living there too and they all moved out when Mercy took over the whole block. Liam doesn’t remember playing around inside the Dispensary. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.44.13 - 0.45.35 </td> <td> Making vs Buying Lunch People who worked in Dispensary didn’t live in area. Doesn’t think people make lunches for work anymore. In modern day people go to shops like Spar for sandwiches and rolls. Wives/mothers used to make “lunches for them in the morning” for children who were working and there was a can with milk, tea and sugar. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.45.35 - 0.46.14 </td> <td> Families Living in Dispensary Grattan Street Thinks Mrs O’Keefe was only working there, possibly the cleaner. Mrs O’Keefe may not have been her name. Liam doesn’t think they were charging people in the dispensary. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.46.14 - 0.50.55 </td> <td> Attitude to health, Pubs, Fights, Market Gardens, Childhood Mischief There was no such thing as being left on a trolley. The Mercy hospital was the only hospital Liam knew, and every child in the Marsh went there at least once after a fall, hit with a stone on the head, a few stitches. Although, Liam’s aunt lost a son to meningitis. Didn’t have the medicines we have today. They were simple times but he doesn’t remember going hungry ever. Lots of pubs on Grattan Street and people were spending lots of time and money which put a burden on the family. Saturday night on Grattan Street there would usually be a fight, stripped to the waist. Bonfire night used to be a great night but no longer. No awareness of mental health. Called the Lee Road the Madhouse Road. First coloured person Liam ever saw was on Sheares Street and when they saw him they called him “Johnny the Black” and they got a chase. A chase was very important for children at the time. Fisherman on Wise’s Quay near Vincent’s Bridge the children used to throw stones in to frighten the fish away and the fisherman would chase them. Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday the market gardeners would bring their produce on horse and carts to the Coal Quay and the shopkeepers would come to buy vegetables off them. Liam and the children would steal (“knock off”) some cabbage and carrots. “Oliver Twist was only trotting after us”. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.50.55 - 0.51.15 </td> <td> Sweets You’d get a few sweets in Woolworths from the girls who worked there, to prevent them trying to steal them! </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.51.15 - 0.55.10 </td> <td> WW2 Air Raid Shelters in Cork Three air raid shelters on Sheare’s Street, 2 in Henry Street and maybe a few in Grattan Street, at least one. O’Connell on Sheares Street was in charge of air raid shelter no 3. Fear of being bombed by German’s during World War 2 mass concrete buildings rather than underground. Liam has photograph of an air raid shelter on Patrick Street outside the Victoria Hotel and a photograph of it being knocked down. The son of the man who had the key to air raid shelter no 3 would rent out the space to old children if it was raining and they wanted to use it to play cards. In the 1940s. he lived at corner of Moore Street and Sheares Street. They were being demolished in 1948 or 1949. Air raid shelter remains inside the door of Elizabeth Fort and there are 2 on the grounds of the South Infirmary (Victoria Hospital), they’ve now been converted to stores. If you stand at bottom of South Terrace and you look up at “Rock Savage” on top of the hill at the back of the South Infirmary you can see it protruding out. Liam remembers the LDF became the FCA and that their “top coats” were good as blankets during the winter as you could put your hands into the pockets. Nearly every house had an army coat on the bed. Everyone was issued with a gas mask, Liam has one from a friend of his. Everyone had to be measured for their gas mask at the city hall or in schools. Liam’s dad wasn’t not in the LDF but his uncle was and it was his coat that was on the bed. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.55.10 - 0.59.24 </td> <td> Grattan Street, Dispensary, surrounding lanes, Terence MacSwiney connection Grattan Street was busy, vibrant street, always something happening there. Can’t believe seeing the traffic there now. Liam took a photograph of Prince Charles stopped in traffic outside the plaque to Patrick Hanely Buildings. The Dispensary was a historical place, there was a time when Grattan Street was a river and Meeting House Lane from North Main Street (at the side of Bradleys) was the entrance to any of the buildings on Grattan Street. Henry Street was known as Penrose Quay. On Adelaide Street at the back of where Curran’s Restaurant was there was a square called Penrose Square- after the Penrose Family that lived in Tivoli. If you come down Coleman’s Lane from Grattan Street and enter North Main Street up on the wall there are four plaques for the building where Terence MacSwiney was born. People think he was born in Blackpool because they confuse him with Tomas MacCurtain. Terence married one of the Murphy brewers. Liam is very interested in Terence MacSwiney and loves talking about him, maybe because he comes from the same area in Cork. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.59.24 - 0.59.41 </td> <td> Outro. Interview Ends. </td> </tr> </tbody> </table> Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Liam Ó hUigín: Grattan Street, Healthcare, The Marsh Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context CFP_SR00727_OhUigin_2019; Relation A related resource Other Interviews in this Collection <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/240" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00696_O'Regan_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/242" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00704_Collins_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/243" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00706_Higgisson_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/244" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00712_O'Brien_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/245" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00713_Kearney_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/246" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00714_Cunning_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/247" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00717_Ward_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/249" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00728_Scanlan_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/250" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00729_Mulcahy_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/251" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00732_Cassidy_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/252" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00760_Morrissy_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/253" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"> CFP_SR00762_OConnell_2019</a>; Other Interviews with Liam in the CFP Archive <a href="http://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/134" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00422_OhUigin_2012</a>; <a href="http://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/document/2" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00439_OhUigin_2011</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/67" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00539_OhUigin_2015</a>; Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Cork Folklore Project Audio Archive Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource Cork Folklore Project Language A language of the resource English Type The nature or genre of the resource Sound Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource Audio Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 24 July 2019 Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Cork Folklore Project Description An account of the resource Liam grew up on Henry Street in The Marsh and recalls playing football on Grattan Street which was busy and full of activity with businesses, pubs, shops a fire station, barber shops and tenements. He discusses some shops and games in more detail. Speaks of the poverty in the Middle Parish which necessitated buying goods on credit and selling clothes and jewellery to pawnshops. Mentions pawn locations. Mentions bringing empty bottles to shops to fill them with milk. Discusses the conditions of the tenement houses in the Middle Parish including the sanitation arrangements such as outdoor toilets and the use of newspaper as toilet paper, he also mentions heating issues including timber, turf and coal which was available via a voucher scheme. Further discusses cooking, washing in the tenements including the introduction of gas and electricity. Also mentions medicines for lice and worms administered at home. Says that boys and girls played different games separately when he was growing up. Mentions some of these games in more detail. Discusses foods (including tripe and drisheen, pig’s tongue, Connie Dodgers) meal routines and the shops where food was purchased. Liam and his mother brought lunch to his father where he worked on the docks. Returns to the topic of corner shops and shopping and the types of food available there, further comparing this to supermarkets today. Speaks of the death of his mother and the change in living circumstances that this entailed. Describes getting a vaccination in the dispensary, what it was like inside and who worked there. Mentions fights outside bars at night time. Talks about air raid shelters built in Cork city during the Second World War, what they looked like and where they were located. Accommodation Adelaide Street Air Raid Shelter Alcohol Bakeries Bakery Ballypheane Ballyphehane Barbers bars Bathing Baths Billycan Bonfire Night Bread Breakfast Broad Lane Buildings Bullycans Business businesses Buying on Credit Cagney Car Cars Catholic Devotion Catholicism Cemetery changing technology Chase Chemist Childhood Childhood Games Children Children’s Games Christmas Christmas Cake Church Churches Cigarettes Class Clothes Clothing Coal Coal Quay Coleman’s Lane Community Centre Connie Dodgers Cooking Corner Shop Corner Shops Credit Credit Union Crubeen Crubeens Customer Customers Dagenham Yank Death Dermot’s Shop Disease Diseases Dispensary Docker Dockers Docks Dr Drink Drisheen Eglinton Baths Elizabeth Fort Elysian Tower Emigrant Emigrants Emigration Employment Families Family Fast Fasting Father Fighting Fights Fire Brigade Fire Station Fishermen Food Football Friends Friendship Fuel Fuel Poverty Gender Roles Golf Grandmother Grattan Street Grattan Street Health Centre Grattan Street Medical Centre Graveyard Great Coat Hair Lice Hairdresser Hairdressers Headstones Health Heating Henry Street Hobbies Home Hospital House Illness Illnesses Jewellery Lanes Laneways LDF Lee Lee Baths Lee Fields Lent Lice Living Arrangements Local Defence Force Lunch Manning’s Shop Mardyke Marsh Mass Mass-Going Meal Meals Meat Medication Medicine Medicines Meningitis Mental Health Mercy Hospital Middle Parish Midwife Mischief Money Mother North Main Street Nurse Nurses Opening Hours Outdoor Baths Outdoor Swimming Outdoor Toilet Parents Pastimes Patrick Hanley Buildings Pawn Shops Pawning Pawns Pawnshops Peter Church Lane Pharmacist Pharmacy Phone Phones Planking Playing Poverty Public House Public Houses Pubs Race Radio Religion River Lee Sandwich Sanitation School Schooldays Second World War Shandon Shandon Bells Sheares Street Shoes Shopkeeper Shops Sick Sickness Skipping Skipping School Slang Soccer Social Conditions South Main Street Spinning Top Sport St Francis Church St Peter’s St Peter’s Cemetery St. Francis Church Street Games Streets Sugar Sullivan’s Quay Sweets Swim Swimming Telephone Telephones Tenement tenement houses Tenements Terence MacSwiney The Lee The Marsh The Middle Parish Theft Tin Tinsmith Toilet Toilets Tory Top Road Traditions Traffic Tripe Tripe and Drisheen Vaccination vaccine Vaccines Vegetables Vincent’s Bridge Voucher Vouchers Watches Weir Winter Woolworths Work Working World War II World War Two WW2 https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/files/original/45972ec60a5886287a836a9c8ebc7384.jpg ae9fc409612d45e7999000aeb670923e https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/files/original/45dcc7f3bcbe8251b1e9e4a7322c87cd.wav 998539b47d95038fac740b777fd27632 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Grattan Street Stories: Memory of Place Subject The topic of the resource Occupational Lore; Life History; Built Heritage; Health; Ireland; Cork; Middle Parish Description An account of the resource This collection focuses on a building on Grattan Street which has served as a Quaker Meeting House, a public Dispensary and as the Grattan Street Health Centre. The project was a collaboration between the CFP and the Cork North Community Work Department, Cork Kerry Community Healthcare, Health Services Executive HSE. The interviewees fall into two main groups: those who worked in the building and those who lived in the surrounding area and availed of the services provided in the building. This project follows on from the collaboration with the HSE in the “<a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/collections/show/10" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">HSE Orthopaedic Hospital Oral History Project (d'Orthopaedic)</a>”. There is a further connection between the two projects as many of the staff and services once provided in the Grattan Street Health Centre have now relocated to St. Mary's Health Campus (St Mary’s Primary Care Centre) Gurranabraher, the former site of the Orthopaedic Hospital. This topic of the relocation of services is also covered in some staff interviews. To date (October 2021) 13 interviews have been completed for the project. Interviewees discuss the Grattan Street building itself in terms of its historic significance, its benefits and drawbacks as a workplace. Broader themes related to or inspired by the building are also touched on including: personal relationship with the building, staff camaraderie, the problems with parking, memorable incidents at work, patient experiences and descriptions of the people and services for which the building catered. Healthcare professional interviewees detail their training, career progression and comparisons between Grattan Street and other workplaces. Their testimonies also provide a link with the community of patients they served giving further insight into attitudes to healthcare, diseases, vaccines, description of social conditions and the changes in medicine and technology in their working lives. Non-healthcare professional interviewees describe childhood experiences in or around Grattan Street (The Marsh or The Middle Parish), the social, cultural and economic conditions of the area, tenements, businesses, attitudes to and experiences of healthcare, vaccines, diseases, medicines and medical professionals as well as observed changes in these areas over time. Interviewees also reflect on the possible future uses of the Grattan Street building. Related Reference Sources <ul> <li>Barrington, R. (1987) Health, medicine and politics in Ireland, 1900–1970. Dublin: Institute of Public Administration.</li> <li>Butler D.M. (2004) The Quaker meeting houses of Ireland. Dublin : Irish Friends Historical Committee.</li> <li>Byrne, J. (2004) Byrne's dictionary of Irish local history. Cork: Mercier Press.</li> <li>Cooke, R. T. (1999) My Home by the Lee. Irish Millennium Publications: Cork.</li> <li>Dempsey, P. J. & White, L. W. ‘Childers, Erskine Hamilton’. Dictionary of Irish Biography [Accessed 18 October 2021]</li> <li>Harrison, R.S. (1991) Cork City Quakers 1655-1939: A Brief History. Cork.</li> <li>Houston, M. (2004). ‘Life before the GP’. The Irish Times. Available at : <<a href="https://www.irishtimes.com/news/health/life-before-the-gp-1.1158599">https://www.irishtimes.com/news/health/life-before-the-gp-1.1158599</a> > [Accessed 18 October 2021]</li> <li>Keohane, F. (2020) The Buildings of Ireland Cork City and County. New Haven and London: Yale University Press.</li> </ul> Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2019-2020 Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Interviewees: Edith O’Regan, 'Mary', Sean Higgisson, Aoife O’Brien, Eileen Kearney, Imelda Cunning, Jane Ward, Liam Ó hUigín, Joe Scanlan, Mary Mulcahy, Philomena Cassidy, Don Morrissy, Derek O’Connell Interviewer: <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=2&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=Kieran+Murphy" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Kieran Murphy</a>, (<a href="https://corkfolklore.org/community-oral-history-outreach-officer/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP Community Oral History Outreach Officer</a>) Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant Cork, Ireland 1940s-2020s; Waterford, Ireland; Dublin, Ireland; Limerick, Ireland; Relation A related resource Exhibition Artist Edith O’Regan-Cosgrave (also an interviewee for the project) created a visual artwork based around the Grattan Street Medical Centre building itself, as a workplace and health centre. The artwork incorporated direct quotations from the oral history interviews conducted for the project, and also included brief historical paragraphs about the building researched, written and edited by the <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/community-oral-history-outreach-officer/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP Community Oral History Outreach Officer</a> Kieran Murphy. This exhibition was launched on 6th February 2020 in “St Peter’s” on the North Main Street where a “Listening Event” was also held to mark the occasion. <img src="http://corkfolklore.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/Grattan-Poster-for-Email-286-by-400.jpg" alt="Grattan-Poster-for-Email-286-by-400.jpg" /> Presentation and Listening Event To coincide with the launch of the Grattan Street Stories Exhibtion on 6th February 2020 a listening event and presentation of the history of the Grattan Street Medical Centre building and description of the project was given by <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/community-oral-history-outreach-officer/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP Community Oral History Outreach Officer</a> Kieran Murphy. <img src="http://corkfolklore.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/427A7714-1.jpg" alt="427A7714-1.jpg" /> Presentation In 2019 at the OHNI conference the <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/community-oral-history-outreach-officer/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP Community Oral History Outreach Officer</a> Kieran Murphy discussed social media and oral history which included audio excerpts from the Grattan Street Stories Project along with photographs of the building. <img src="http://corkfolklore.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/Kieran-OHNI-e1634041838937.jpg" alt="Kieran-OHNI-e1634041838937.jpg" /> Audio Visual Presentation An audio-visual slideshow was produced featuring oral testimony from the Grattan Street Stories Project and combined with suitable images of Grattan Street and from Edith O’Regan-Cosgrave’s exhibition. This was created by <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/community-oral-history-outreach-officer/">CFP Community Oral History Outreach Officer</a> Kieran Murphy. <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RnjEtQeOb3I&t=1s&ab_channel=CorkFolklore" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Audio Visual Presentation Available to listen and view here.</a> Health and Vaccines Oral History Research Many of the interviews conducted for the Grattan Street project formed an integral part of the testimonies and research for the innovative <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/health/about" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">'Catching Stories' of infectious disease in Ireland </a>project funded by the Irish Research Council. <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/health/about" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"><img src="http://corkfolklore.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/Catching-Stories-Poster.jpg" alt="Catching-Stories-Poster.jpg" /></a> Social Media Numerous suitable audio excerpts from the oral history interviews have been edited and shared on CFP's social media channels. <a href="https://twitter.com/corkfolklore/status/1139167201582288901" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">https://twitter.com/corkfolklore/status/1139167201582288901</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/corkfolklore/status/1140909542240391168" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">https://twitter.com/corkfolklore/status/1140909542240391168</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/corkfolklore/status/1141264486768238592" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">https://twitter.com/corkfolklore/status/1141264486768238592</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/corkfolklore/status/1189872295923376133" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">https://twitter.com/corkfolklore/status/1189872295923376133</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/corkfolklore/status/1228322700415860736" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">https://twitter.com/corkfolklore/status/1228322700415860736</a> Orthopaedic Hospital Cork Folklore Project in collaboration with the HSE conducted an oral history project focussing on the Orthapaedic Hospital in Gurranabraher. Many of the staff and services once provided at the Grattan Street Health Centre site were moved to St. Mary's Health Campus (St Mary’s Primary Care Centre) Gurranabraher, the former site of the Orthopaedic Hospital. <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/collections/show/10" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">HSE Orthopaedic Hospital Oral History Project (d'Orthopaedic)</a> Swimming Article Kieran Murphy and James Furey co-authored an article about <a href="https://tripeanddrisheen.substack.com/p/swim-city?s=r" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Swimming in Cork</a> which appeared in the online magazine Tripe + Drisheen. This article features a number of interview extracts collected as part of the Grattan Street Stories Project. Related Interviews CFP_SR00756_Quilligan_2019; CFP_SR00758_Broderick_2019; CFP_SR00670_OShea_2018; Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Cork Folklore Project Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Cork Folklore Project Audio Archive Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Cork Folklore Project Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource Cork Folklore Project Language A language of the resource English Type The nature or genre of the resource Audio Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource 16 .wav Files Oral History A resource containing historical information obtained in interviews with persons having firsthand knowledge. Interviewee The person(s) being interviewed Joe Scanlan Interviewer The person(s) performing the interview Kieran Murphy Duration Length of time involved (seconds, minutes, hours, days, class periods, etc.) 88 Minutes 55 Seconds Location The location of the interview Middle Parish Community Centre, Grattan Street Original Format The type of object, such as painting, sculpture, paper, photo, and additional data .wav Bit Rate/Frequency Rate at which bits are transferred (i.e. 96 kbit/s would be FM quality audio) 24bit / 48kHz Time Summary A summary of an interview given for different time stamps throughout the interview <table> <tbody> <tr> <td> 0.00.00 - 0.00.30 </td> <td> Intro </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.00.30 - 0.01.41 </td> <td> Memories of dispensary and Vaccination Dispensary was a beautiful looking building especially as it was surrounded by tenements. Barrett family were caretakers. 6 GPs worked there and remembers 4: Dr Galvin (low-sized woman), Dr Jimmy Young (who played hurling for Cork), Dr Kiely (male), Dr Michael Cagney his family’s GP, delivered him and his brother at home. Waiting room was like church seats. His mother usually brought with him. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.01.41 - 0.06.06 </td> <td> Vaccination in the Dispensary Grattan Street Vaccination: his dad brought him. Front door was in Grattan Street. Queue of boys outside. None of the boys who came out looked happy, they all suffered from the fear and pain. Joe was about 8 years old. Instrument doctor had was like a branding iron for cattle or a bolt. The needle was the size of a nail. Dad held his wrist and arm very tight. His dad brought him for ice-cream afterwards. When he was 12 there was another round of vaccines and he was determined not to take them until he discovered they were like sugar cubes not needles. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.06.06 - 0.09.24 </td> <td> Fleas and Head Lice treatment Everyone had fleas and headlice, but some of his friends still deny that they had it possibly out of shame. Everyone left their doors open, as they had nothing to rob. Dads got paid on Friday night and there was a small party at the weekend- raspberry and crisps in the pub. Went to the dispensary to get prescription for head lice. When mother cut his hair she put it in newspaper and threw it in fire and you could hear fleas and lice banging. “Scabs and bits of hair here and there” You could see dead fleas and lice on the back of other boys collars in school. DDT “defestor” Mrs Shinnick? Pharmacist gave them a green bottle which smelled. The liquid burned the scalp. Fine tooth comb to get the dead lice out. The smell would last for hours. And in school the following day people would recognise it and know you had had lice. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.09.24 - 0.10.53 </td> <td> Smoking Doctor trying to get him to give up smoking Dr Jimmy Young (or maybe Dr Cagney) moved to a private clinic on the South Mall. Joe was smoking as a young teenager. If he was caught a neighbour would kick him in the arse before telling his dad. His dad never hit him but would put his hands on his belt which was sufficient threat. Dad brought him to Dr Young to be told how bad smoking was. And while he was telling Joe to give up cigarettes he was smoking a Woodbine cigarette at the time. People smoked everywhere except church. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.10.53 - 0.12.07 </td> <td> Dared to ask Garda for a cigarette Doesn’t drink or smoke now. Had to take a dare when asked by a friend. Friend dared him to ask a Garda for a cigarette. Garda kicked him in the arse. Walked like John Wayne for a week! </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.12.07 - 0.15.30 </td> <td> ‘Kick the Bucket’: hypochondriac ‘character’ in Dispensary A head cold was serious at times. Practically impossible to get a house call from a doctor. So they would be bundled up in sheets like a mummy and transported to the dispensary. Mother saw a man in the waiting room nicknamed “Kick the Bucket” because he was a hypochondriac convinced he was going to die soon. Joe saw him as he got older and went to the doctor on his own. Kick the Bucket died at 81 and the news spread faster than the fire at the Opera House or Jennings. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.15.30 - 0.15.46 </td> <td> End of Dispensary After a while doctors got their private surgeries and A&Es accident and Emergencies opened. The dispensary sort of dwindled out. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.15.46 - 0.16.42 </td> <td> Grattan Street injuries Playing as Children Lots of memories from around Grattan Street area. Born on Devonshire Street near Pat MacDonald Paints, and there was a big population living in the Marsh. More than 100 children playing on the streets around Peter Street and Grattan Street. Alleyways, where car parks are now, there were their soccer pitches. They counted 120 potholes in their soccer pitch, big enough to fall knee deep into. If you fell in you could twist an ankle or break a leg. Friends would lift you out of the way of the pitch but you had to crawl to the Mercy Hospital yourself because the match had to go on. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.16.42 - 0.18.59 </td> <td> Battles and fights with rival groups of boys Their rivals were the Coal Quay boys. Saturday evening they would raid the Coal Quay for the left over rotten fruit. They had timber palettes set up as a barricade and after 12 o’clock mass on a Sunday the Coal Quay boys would come. (had to go to mass otherwise someone would tell the Presentation Brother or you parents. Joe did miss a few) Battering match would start. Rotten apples. Soggy bananas. Tomatoes were the best. No stones. Whoever ran out of ammunition first you had to run away. 30 guys running down Coleman’s Lane would be easy targets. But the Marsh lads could spread out on Grattan Street. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.18.59 - 0.24.29 </td> <td> Halloween skull as Jack O Lantern from Tomb in St Peters There was no real fighting just wrestling. Maybe some fighting with firsts. No kicking someone in the head. Boxing with community centre against Mitchelstown. Joe couldn’t hit a small boxer and they had to stop the fight. Around the same time it was Halloween in St Peter’s graveyard all the tombs and headstones were in the centre not along the side. They were able to get into the tombs and went in with a match and were surrounded by bones in the dark. Didn’t need pumpkins they decided they would get a nightlight scandal, buy matches from Mr Barry and get a skull from the tomb and scares girls. Heard something moving in the tomb one night. His dad was a postman and he had a big torch but Joe could never find it when he wanted it. Always bring cigarette butts out of the tomb. Used safety pins to get the most out of the cigarette. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.24.29 - 0.26.24 </td> <td> Cigarettes and getting money from empty bottles 8pm in the evening and at 8am the doctors and surgeons left or arrived at the Mercy Hospital, and they could’ve smoked in their offices at the time. Doctors sometimes threw away a cigar butt. Sometimes the children followed a doctor for 10 minutes and he might not throw the butt away! As they got older they went to Mr Barry’s shop and could get 2 fags (cigarettes) and a match for an empty bottle of Lucozade, which they could get from the Mercy Hospital. All the glasses were returnable at the time. They decided to take more bottles. 2 bottles would get you 4p four pence and you could go to the pictures (cinema) for 3p thruppence (three pence) and have money left over for cigarettes and a match. Tanora bottles from Jennings. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.26.24 - 0.31.03 </td> <td> Fishing for Money trouble with the Bailiff Dermot’s Cake shop on Adelaide street best cakes and creamy milks straight form the cow. Decided to take up poaching to get some money. Lots of mullet and salmon in the river at the time. Was rarely caught poaching because he could plank (hide) them at home within a few seconds. Sold them to Burns on Douglas Street, the Uptown Grill in MacCurtain Street (which must have lasted 60 years) the woman there said to bring over any more because they’re so fresh the blood is still hot in them! Mr Hurley the bailiff caught him occasionally and took his fishing rod and reported him to his mother and tell her to send Joe over to collect his fishing rod. He’d ask which rod was his in a room full of confiscated rods. Joe’s was the cheapest “Black Prince” but he’d get a more expensive one. Needed money for cinema and chips. Best two chippers: Hayden’s on Shandon Street and Kiely’s on Maylor Street. Wrapped in newspaper, lots of vinegar and salt. Tastiest part was to squeeze the vinegar out of the newspaper even with the dye running in it. Slogging apples down the Mardyke selling to woman Dooney Dawney. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.31.03 - 0.34.24 </td> <td> Money & Sweets: Selling fishing Rod & tricking shopkeeper Sold the rod for money to an angler and bought a cheap rod again. He was a well-known angler on the Lee. Good anglers and fairly good anglers but luck plays a big part. Ahern sisters owned a shop a Sheare Street (Sheares Street). Penny bars and sweets ‘blackjack’, ‘cough no more’, ‘macaroon’ (Erinmore tobacco). Asked for penny bar that was up high so she would have to climb up and they would take a bar from the lower shelf. They once took it in turns to ask how much a bar was even thought they were all a penny and she eventually banned them all for life from the shop. It took them a year or two to get back on good terms. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.34.24- 0.35.55 </td> <td> Safety of City in Past, Making floats for fishing, Social & Income Inequality Never any trouble when growing up. Joe’s 2nd eldest son is 38 lives on Northside, daughter on the southside and eldest son still lives in the Marsh. His children would say the Marsh was a great place to rear children. Where the Woolshed Bar [on Sheares Street] is now used to be Woodford Bournes the wine makers. And on the corner Paddy worked the guillotine to make ‘the corkies’ corks for the wine bottles for Woodford Bournes. Joe’s dad was a friend of Paddy & “they used have a drink together”. Joe would go to Paddy for bits of cork to make floats for fishing. He would bore a hole through the cork for the fishing line. “so we got everything for nothing”. Even got clothes from Coal Quay for very little. Some of his friends deny that they ever wore clothes from the Coal Quay. Joe thinks there was no in between either you were rich or you were poor. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.35.55 - 0.36.45 </td> <td> Story of Man with nothing worth stealing Remembers old man second-next-door-neighbour and there was someone prowling around his house. He had nothing worth stealing only a transistor radio which everyone had so there was no one to sell it to. This neighbour shouted out “come on in if you want something. I have nothing and you’re welcome to half of that!” </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.36.45 - 0.38.50 </td> <td> The Marsh today: Families vs Students Joe’s son Michael would still love to raise his children in the Marsh area, even with the volume of traffic. Joe thinks the Grattan Street area cannot take anymore offices or traffic. He says that the HSE have many of the buildings. Joe is lucky as he owns his own house. Married a Coal Quay girl Breda Dineen. There are plans to build student accommodation with 350 rooms on Grattan Street where the Munster Furniture and Hardware was. Joe says he will sell up and leave the parish if that is built. It will break his heart to do it but he can’t put up with any more. Talks about Edel House being discussed on the radio. And thinks there were a lot of “undesirables” in there. In recent times they were warned to behave themselves on the streets and Joe thinks that they do. He thinks that as well as genuine cases there are people looking for houses. Joe would like the HSE to take some buildings further out in areas like Montenotte, Model Farm Road and the Lee Road. He thinks that people who work for the HSE live in these places so won’t choose them for buildings to provide services. As a result buildings and services are put in the city centre. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.38.50 - 0.40.25 </td> <td> Shawlies and booming trade on Coal Quay South Main Street, Castle Street, North Main Street when he was a child was booming. Joe’s grandmother was a shawlie. Joe’s wife re-enacts the shawlies. Joe remembers vermin everywhere on Coal Quay especially on Monday morning. Near where Bodega is now where Clayton Love’s used to be, the Loft Carpet is there now shawlies could trade in there too. You could trade indoors but you paid more to be out of the rain than trading outside. Joe’s grandmother traded under the clock and only sold fish- mackerel and apples. You’d be surprised how many ‘lords and ladies’ would buy their fruit and veg in the Coal Quay because it was fresh with mud still on the cabbage brought in by farmers on horse and cart. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.40.25- 0.41.15 </td> <td> Ryan’s Pub on North Main Street and sleeping Farmers Mary Ryans bar many people went in there in the mornings for a ‘pick me up’ to keep warm. Farmers would abandon the horse and cart to go in there. Most horses would know their way home even if the farmer had too many “nips of Powers”. The farmer would fall asleep in the back of the cart and wake up in Blarney or Ovens. Joe would jump on the back of the cart without the farmer knowing and go out the Carrigrohane Straights which was the countryside then. Then they might swim in the Lee Fields sometimes in their clothes. ‘We were young, foolish but happy’. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.41.15 - 0.42.05 </td> <td> Food, Shoes and the Pawn Weren’t getting T-bone steaks at home. But they had potatoes, vegetables and homemade skull (bread). Was never hungry. Mother would get remnants of lino from the Munster Furniture and Hardware and cut them for insoles for their shoes. They had good shoes for going to mass which you had to take off straight away at home to be sent to Jones’s Pawn on the end of Shandon Street. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.42.05- 0.43.30 </td> <td> School Violence and good teacher Hated St Joseph’s School because always got kicked in the ankle or had his toe stepped on or a clatter on the back of the ear for not being able to spell. Left there and went to St Francis School and the entrance was from North Main Street by Bradley’s Supermarket or by Broad Lane beyond the dispensary. Learned more in last two years in St Francis from lay teachers than he did from St Joseph. Teachers may have scolded them but never hit them. “Anything you don’t understand ask me” the teacher told them. Joe was watching the clock for when to leave, and watching the tides to know when the tides were bringing back the fish. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.43.30 - 0.44.50 </td> <td> Changes in the Marsh for families: safety & shopping Joe’s son would love to live in the Marsh to rear his children. Couldn’t let them run around on the street with the traffic. But they would have Fitzgerald’s Park and close to Mercy Hospital. 5 minutes from 3 different supermarkets. Sometimes hear people singing or shouting coming back from the pub. The neighbours come to watch. Only incident he remembers in 36 years is that a few car mirrors were broken. Grattan Street is off the beaten track despite Washington Street being so close. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.44.50 - 0.46.15 </td> <td> Food or not at School Not given food in St Francis School but given food in St Joseph’s in the morning “to toughen you up for the beating you would get in the afternoon”. Cocoa and creamy buns in the morning. A few years later they cut back to scones which weren’t the same! One time Joe didn’t get cocoa and a bun because his dad had gotten a promotion. And it upset Joe that all his friends got it. At the age of 10 or 11 he was in St Francis “the Rowdy Boys College”. St Peter and Pauls School was before Joe’s time. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.46.15 - 0.48.17 </td> <td> Food and Cooking Homemade skull or loaf of bread. His mother would make the bread. And nine times out of ten it would turn out right. the Hills were the biggest population of their aunts and cousins. Across the road from them was nanny Hill. Joe would get his dessert there. For school lunch he’d go home and get a sandwich with soup in the winter and diluted raspberry. Cheese sandwich- “poor man’s meat”. Very lucky to get a ham and cheese sandwich. When going back to school he would pause outside his house no 9 Devonshire Street. Across the road was 34 Nanny Hill’s house and she would bring over the heel of homemade skull plastered with blackcurrant jam which he’d eat on the way back to St Joseph’s on the ‘Dyke [Mardyke] only 5 minutes’ walk, but took him 10 or 15 minutes because he didn’t want to be punctual. He would get a punch from a brother for having a ring of jam around his lips. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.48.17 - 0.49.40 </td> <td> School beating by Presentation Brother and boy’s father’s revenge There is a [Presentation] brother who is now married and living in Grange with a son and daughter. Joe would call him names if he ever met him again. A friend of Joe’s spent three nights in the Mercy Hospital after a beating from this brother. He made him take down his trousers until he only had his Y-front underwear on and beat him there with a four-foot bamboo cane. He was lying on his belly in the Mercy. There’s a black fire escape in St Joseph’s which is still there. The father of that boy had the brother hanging over the fire escape. People were screaming. And Joe and others were hoping that he would drop him. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.49.40 - 0.51.39 </td> <td> Relief after school, Priest Friend assisting the Marsh Community Joe’s life began when he left that school because the fear was gone. He was able to concentrate in school then. In St Joseph’s the teacher was only interested in teaching 4 or 5 smart guys and the rest were punch bags. When Joe was 21 he had as good a job as any of his peers. The brothers were sadists he says. Thinks it took 5 years to become a priest and 7 to become a brother. They were young men who had never seen life and mostly put there by their parents. A retired priest, friend of Joe’s, ‘an t-athair Ó Murchú’ who was the priest in St Peter and Paul’s and is now in Belgooley. Joe goes down to him once a week on a Sunday and they bring him a creamy cake. When people were fighting for things in the parish he supported them, even when they weren’t agreeing with the HSE. The car park where Munster Furniture is the HSE were talking about putting a multi-storey car park there 30 years ago which was diverted to Dunnes Stores Car Park. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.51.39 - 0.53.03 </td> <td> The Marsh Community object to multi-storey carpark People in the Marsh chained themselves across Grattan Street to stop trucks coming in to build a multi-storey car park. But they told the Gardaí in advance so they were on their side and they had no trouble. Joe knew the sergeant well and they used advise them the best way to have a peaceful protest and yet stop everything. Joe has many other memories but feels a little bit under pressure because of the recorder. Other things that they did ‘fighting for their rights’ because they could see offices and buildings going up that they opposed. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.53.03 - 0.58.30 </td> <td> Problems with multi-storey car park and Student Accommodation in the Marsh Was in a meeting with the Council and Paul Moynihan from City Hall explained what was happening. The council own so much of the car park and building to right of Munster Furniture and Hardware. So if the council don’t sell these to the new developers there won’t be enough room for the student accommodation. Joe doesn’t have anything against students but object to their parties which have aged some local residents. Thinks in the past students didn’t behave how they do now. Joe & his wife decided they’d leave if the student accommodation is built, they don’t mind whether they go to the northside or to the southside, but somewhere on a bus route or somewhere near the city. Joe says he’s getting emotional because he always swore that he would die in the Marsh. Joe would like to see a small 5 or 6 storey hotel being built instead and there’s space for coaches. Or family housing being built. They named out other places where student accommodation could be built eg. The Good Shepherd building across from the Lee Fields and Joe was told the students would have so far to walk because they would be high-end students. Joe says the students behave like riff-raff when they are drunk. He was told the accommodation would have security. Joe knows one of the security men for the student accommodation on Lancaster Quay and they are behaved inside the complex but outside there is no control. Joe fears that students will be drinking in doorways in the Marsh or outside on tables which are being built for them to study on. Joe said that if they are 320 high-end students they will have cars and nowhere to park them, and they will have more money for alcohol. So Joe said the riff-raff students would be better! Joe can’t believe a walk from St Anne’s to UCC is too far. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.58.30 - 1.04.41 </td> <td> Sicknesses past and changes now People died from diseases which no one knew what caused them. Some diseases that were killing people have simple cures now. Joe is more concerned about sicknesses today including insects like ticks and leeches. They would go to the dispensary for medication and prescription. If anything was too serious they would send you to the A&E but first get you to sign a form saying you had visited him so that he could get paid. Lots of measles. Chickenpox. Mumps used to be a killer disease especially for men as it could make you impotent. If you went to get medication from the Dispensary you had to bring your own empty bottle. Completely different attitude from doctors now. Might have been given tablets even if there was nothing wrong with you. People who were sent to St Anne’s because of a drinking/ alcohol problem for a few weeks but never came out. Joe didn’t get a clip in the ear growing up but he did do it for his children. Joe used to drink and just wanted to sleep after it. He thinks that women today wouldn’t take the abuse that women used to put up with. One man who went to St Anne’s was signed out by his niece years later and he was afraid of the double-decker bus and went back in of his free will to St Anne’s. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.04.41 - 1.06.53 </td> <td> Issues with HSE Services in the city Centre Joe hopes HSE look elsewhere for offices rather than in the city centre. Methodone clinics around Cork Joe was told need to be in the city because they won’t travel for it which means it needs to be near Grattan Street. There’s a Community Garda. But Joe and his wife have not seen a Garda on the beat for three weeks. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.06.53 - 1.09.04 </td> <td> Work of the Middle Parish Community Centre Joe and others including George [Patterson] do their best to keep the Middle Parish Community Centre going. Narcotics anonymous rent out a room upstairs. Alcoholics Anonymous, Gamblers Anonymous. There’s been no vandalism. Joe saw a man he knew going to Narcotics Anonymous outside La Verna near St Francis Church and he shook his hand because he was proud of him for trying to give up. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.09.04 - 1.26.27 </td> <td> Experiences as an alcoholic and trying to give up Joe describes himself as a “dry alcoholic”. Joe hasn’t drunk for six years. He didn’t realise he had a drink problem because he was never aggressive or barred from anywhere. It took Joe years to realise he was unable to home after work without first going to the pub. And that he was having a few pints in a number of bars and that this was adding up to ten pints a night. He decided eventually that he would stop. If someone had told him that he had a drink problem he would have been “highly insulted” and thought he could stop drinking any time he wanted. He went to a few AA meetings and they didn’t suit him. He used to smoke 55/60 cigarettes a day while driving articulated trucks long distance for 35 years all over Ireland. He gave up cigarettes and thought it would be easier to give up alcohol. Ten years ago he gave up alcohol for 2 years. Alcoholics’ Anonymous saying is ‘one day at a time’. He was down in Inchydoney Hotel with his family and dogs. He was tired after lots of driving to Dublin, Wicklow and delivering salt to Killybegs. He kept track of his progress being off alcohol and appreciated the support of his wife. He went into the hotel and had some coke. The Munster Final was on. While waiting at a busy bar for more Coke he saw two men he knew drinking stout. And he ordered a pint of Murphys stout after he saw them. He made ten attempts to leave the pint there, but it overpowered him. He had a devil on one shoulder and a guardian angel on the other. He usually drank a pint in four sups. He went close to the toilet for his first sup in case he was sick from not being used to drinking after two years. He ordered a half-pint of Murphys. He felt fairly content because he felt he could handle the alcohol now. He had two pints of Beamish in Forde’s with a friend of his on a Friday. And slowly he was having more pints and on Wednesdays as well as Fridays until “the drink had a hold of me again”. He knew he couldn’t handle whiskey. Collapsed three times due to liver poisoning. He had to come home from Turkey when he collapsed, his doctor said they saved his life. He wasn’t allowed to eat or drink for 4 days. His GP was waiting for him at midnight when he arrived home in Cork and brought him to the Mercy. He told Joe he was lucky because his liver function was only at 52% working. It took 17 hours for his liver to get to 53% working. After a few weeks he started drinking again. He collapsed at home one morning unconscious for 20 seconds. GP took tests. Went to the Regional Hospital and put in intensive care. Dr Seamus O’Mahony was his liver specialist out there. Seamus told him not to waste his time if he was going to keep drinking and not to come to him without his wife because she would tell the truth about his drinking. Doctor asked him how many units he drank and Joe asked to speak in pints not units. Joe said 20 pints. The doctor said that’s a lot to have in a week. And Joe’s wife said that’s on a Saturday! Two drinking sessions on a Saturday. He was getting liver function tests on a regular basis and his liver was getting stronger. Joe used to give up alcohol two days before going to the doctor but didn’t realise that alcohol makes triglycerides in the body which take days to be broken down. Joe used drink cans of beer at home when his wife was away. He would vomit it up after two ‘slugs’ or gulps. And then he would try to drink it again. He said that you have to admit it to yourself that you have a problem. He realised that if he didn’t stop he wouldn’t see his five grand-children grow up. He has never been happier than he is now sober. His children can ring him at any time for a lift. And his children can depend on him. Joe still takes one day at a time. Joe knew a guy who was 33 years sober and he went to London and started drinking and was knocked down by a bus. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.26.27 - 1.28.44 </td> <td> Family living in the Dispensary building Grattan Street Barrett family who lived in the Dispensary had children who are still alive living in southside who would be older than him. “they were all genuine down to earth people”. To the left of where the marriage registrar is now is where they lived. On the right hand side was an old lady sitting in a box like a phone box cut in half. And she would take people’s details as they entered. The double doors to the clinic were closed. The Barrett sons went to St Joseph’s School as well. Joe jokes about a previous interview I had with a friend of his Liam O hUiginn, and jokingly says he’s a very old man. Joe also apologises again for not being used to “speaking in public” pointing at the digital recorder. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.28.44 - 1.28.55 </td> <td> Outro. Interview ends. </td> </tr> </tbody> </table> Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Joe Scanlan: Grattan Street, Healthcare, The Marsh Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context CFP_SR00728_Scanlan_2019; Relation A related resource Other Interviews in this Collection <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/240" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00696_O'Regan_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/242" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00704_Collins_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/243" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00706_Higgisson_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/244" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00712_O'Brien_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/245" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00713_Kearney_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/246" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00714_Cunning_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/247" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00717_Ward_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/248" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00727_OhUigin_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/250" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00729_Mulcahy_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/251" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00732_Cassidy_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/252" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00760_Morrissy_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/253" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"> CFP_SR00762_OConnell_2019</a>; Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Cork Folklore Project Audio Archive Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource Cork Folklore Project Language A language of the resource English Type The nature or genre of the resource Sound Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource Audio Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 25 July 2019 Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Cork Folklore Project Description An account of the resource Joe recalls the dispensary on Grattan Street, its waiting room and the names of the doctors who worked there. He describes in detail his visit there to get a vaccination as a child. Discusses medical treatments administered at home by his mother including those for fleas and head lice. Recalls as a teenager being told by a doctor who was smoking to give up smoking. Comments on how widespread smoking was at the time. Humorous story about asking a Garda for a cigarette. Story of Cork character ‘Kick the Bucket’, a young man who was convinced he was going to die very soon but lived to be 81. Speaks of playing on the streets of The Marsh and The Middle Parish as a child and how they would go to the Mercy Hospital if they were injured playing football. Describes rival groups of boys from Grattan Street and the Coal Quay having fruit throwing fights. Describes how as a child he used a skull from a tomb in St Peter’s Cemetery to use as a Jack O Lantern. Returns to the topic of underage smoking and acquiring cigarettes from adults. Explains a form of recycling where he collected empty glass bottles to return to a shop in exchange for money. He used the money for cigarettes and matches or to pay for a cinema ticket. Recalls Dermot’s Cake shop on Adelaide Street. Talks about his passion for fishing, avoiding the bailiff and selling his fish catch to local fish and chip shops. Tells of his fishing rob being confiscated by the bailiff and retrieving it. Mentions children taking sweets from a shop on Sheares Street without paying for them. Discusses income inequality and buying clothes on the Coal Quay. Explains how he made floats for fishing from wine bottle corks made by his dad’s friend for Woodford Bourne’s on Sheares Street. Reflects on crime and safety in the city centre and tells the story of a house being burgled where the owner shouted out that he had nothing worth stealing. Outlines some long standing Grattan Street residents’ concerns about their neighbourhood today including students, student parties, students drinking on the street, cark parks, bus routes, student accommodation, Edel House, increased traffic, methodone clinics, community Gardaí and the HSE’s use of buildings in the city centre. Remembers Shawlies on the Coal Quay, including his own grandmother. Describes the products sold there and farmers bringing vegetables with dirt on them by horse and cart. Mentions Ryan’s Pub on North Main Street and how the farmers might frequent it. Speaks of the simple food and meals he ate, and how his shoes were pawned but bought back in time to wear for mass. Recalls the violence and fear of St Joseph’s School and wanting to leave to go fishing. Speaks of his preference for St. Francis School where he was not beaten and learned a lot. Outlines getting food and cocoa in the morning at school. Tells the story of a father confronting a Presentation Brother for an excessive beating to his son. Talks about food and his mother making bread and mentions other foods and treats from his grandmother. Speaks about fatal diseases in the past including mumps. To receive medication in the dispensary you had to bring your own empty bottle. Speaks about the work of the Middle Parish Community Centre especially in relation to addiction. This prompts Joe to speak of his own story of dealing with his alcohol addiction, the risks alcohol posed to his health, liver disease, his desire to see his grandchildren grow up and his happiness now he has successfully remained sober for many years. Mentions the Barrett family who lived in the dispensary building. Accommodation Addiction Adelaide Street Alcohol Alcoholics Anonymous Alcoholism Alleys Angler Angling Animals Anti-Social Behaviour Asylum Bailiff Bar bars boys fighting Bread Building Built Heritage Car Car Park Caretaker Carpark Cars Cart Cemetery Characters Childhood Children Children’s Games Chipper Chippers Chips Cigarettes Cinema City Centre Clothes Coal Quay Cocoa Coleman’s Lane Community Cooking Cork Characters Corporal Punishment Crime Dermot’s Shop development Disease Diseases Dispensary Doctor Doctors Drink Edel House Families Family Farmers Father Fighting Fights Film Films Fish and Chips Fishing Fishing Rod Fitzgerald’s Park Fleas Food Forde’s Friends Fruit Gamblers Anonymous Games Garda Gardai Grandmother Grattan Street Graveyard Halloween Headlice Health health and hygiene Home Home Ownership Horse Horse and Cart Horses House House Ownership Housing HSE Hygiene Ice-cream Illness income inequality Inequality Joseph’s School Kick the Bucket Lee Fields Lice Liver Liver Disease London markets Marsh Mass Meals Medication Medicine Mercy Hospital Methodone Middle Parish Money Mother Mumps Munster Furniture Munster Furniture and Hardware Narcotics Anonymous North Main Street Parents Parking Pawn Pawn Shop Pawn Shops Pawning Pawns Pawnshop Pawnshops People Pharmacist Pictures Playing Pothole Potholes Poverty Prescription Presentation Brothers Priest Produce protests Pubs Recycling Religion Ryan’s Bar Ryan’s Pub Safety School Selling Shawl Shawlies Shawls Sheares Street Shoes Shopkeeper Shopping Shops Sickness smoking Sober Sobriety St Anne's Mental Asylum St Joseph’s School St Peter’s St Peter’s Cemetery St. Anne's Asylum St. Anne’s St. Francis Church St. Francis School St. Peter’s Cemetery Stealing student accommodation Students Sweets Swim Swimming Tanora Teacher Teachers Teenager The Marsh The Middle Parish Theft Tomb Treat Treats Uptown Grill Vaccination vaccine Vaccines Vegetables Violence Waiting Room Woodbine Woodbines Woodford Bourne Woodford Bourne's Woodford Bournes https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/files/original/5a12a13477964b25b69f75f2bb25cb9f.jpg 92941d1f36ec70e22d111e1ae6bd8aaf https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/files/original/ded71df4ad3ab331b0cf5c7251f30b49.mp3 fd09d477a4cf5b7b759b54b399f2493c Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Grattan Street Stories: Memory of Place Subject The topic of the resource Occupational Lore; Life History; Built Heritage; Health; Ireland; Cork; Middle Parish Description An account of the resource This collection focuses on a building on Grattan Street which has served as a Quaker Meeting House, a public Dispensary and as the Grattan Street Health Centre. The project was a collaboration between the CFP and the Cork North Community Work Department, Cork Kerry Community Healthcare, Health Services Executive HSE. The interviewees fall into two main groups: those who worked in the building and those who lived in the surrounding area and availed of the services provided in the building. This project follows on from the collaboration with the HSE in the “<a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/collections/show/10" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">HSE Orthopaedic Hospital Oral History Project (d'Orthopaedic)</a>”. There is a further connection between the two projects as many of the staff and services once provided in the Grattan Street Health Centre have now relocated to St. Mary's Health Campus (St Mary’s Primary Care Centre) Gurranabraher, the former site of the Orthopaedic Hospital. This topic of the relocation of services is also covered in some staff interviews. To date (October 2021) 13 interviews have been completed for the project. Interviewees discuss the Grattan Street building itself in terms of its historic significance, its benefits and drawbacks as a workplace. Broader themes related to or inspired by the building are also touched on including: personal relationship with the building, staff camaraderie, the problems with parking, memorable incidents at work, patient experiences and descriptions of the people and services for which the building catered. Healthcare professional interviewees detail their training, career progression and comparisons between Grattan Street and other workplaces. Their testimonies also provide a link with the community of patients they served giving further insight into attitudes to healthcare, diseases, vaccines, description of social conditions and the changes in medicine and technology in their working lives. Non-healthcare professional interviewees describe childhood experiences in or around Grattan Street (The Marsh or The Middle Parish), the social, cultural and economic conditions of the area, tenements, businesses, attitudes to and experiences of healthcare, vaccines, diseases, medicines and medical professionals as well as observed changes in these areas over time. Interviewees also reflect on the possible future uses of the Grattan Street building. Related Reference Sources <ul> <li>Barrington, R. (1987) Health, medicine and politics in Ireland, 1900–1970. Dublin: Institute of Public Administration.</li> <li>Butler D.M. (2004) The Quaker meeting houses of Ireland. Dublin : Irish Friends Historical Committee.</li> <li>Byrne, J. (2004) Byrne's dictionary of Irish local history. Cork: Mercier Press.</li> <li>Cooke, R. T. (1999) My Home by the Lee. Irish Millennium Publications: Cork.</li> <li>Dempsey, P. J. & White, L. W. ‘Childers, Erskine Hamilton’. Dictionary of Irish Biography [Accessed 18 October 2021]</li> <li>Harrison, R.S. (1991) Cork City Quakers 1655-1939: A Brief History. Cork.</li> <li>Houston, M. (2004). ‘Life before the GP’. The Irish Times. Available at : <<a href="https://www.irishtimes.com/news/health/life-before-the-gp-1.1158599">https://www.irishtimes.com/news/health/life-before-the-gp-1.1158599</a> > [Accessed 18 October 2021]</li> <li>Keohane, F. (2020) The Buildings of Ireland Cork City and County. New Haven and London: Yale University Press.</li> </ul> Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2019-2020 Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Interviewees: Edith O’Regan, 'Mary', Sean Higgisson, Aoife O’Brien, Eileen Kearney, Imelda Cunning, Jane Ward, Liam Ó hUigín, Joe Scanlan, Mary Mulcahy, Philomena Cassidy, Don Morrissy, Derek O’Connell Interviewer: <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=2&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=Kieran+Murphy" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Kieran Murphy</a>, (<a href="https://corkfolklore.org/community-oral-history-outreach-officer/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP Community Oral History Outreach Officer</a>) Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant Cork, Ireland 1940s-2020s; Waterford, Ireland; Dublin, Ireland; Limerick, Ireland; Relation A related resource Exhibition Artist Edith O’Regan-Cosgrave (also an interviewee for the project) created a visual artwork based around the Grattan Street Medical Centre building itself, as a workplace and health centre. The artwork incorporated direct quotations from the oral history interviews conducted for the project, and also included brief historical paragraphs about the building researched, written and edited by the <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/community-oral-history-outreach-officer/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP Community Oral History Outreach Officer</a> Kieran Murphy. This exhibition was launched on 6th February 2020 in “St Peter’s” on the North Main Street where a “Listening Event” was also held to mark the occasion. <img src="http://corkfolklore.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/Grattan-Poster-for-Email-286-by-400.jpg" alt="Grattan-Poster-for-Email-286-by-400.jpg" /> Presentation and Listening Event To coincide with the launch of the Grattan Street Stories Exhibtion on 6th February 2020 a listening event and presentation of the history of the Grattan Street Medical Centre building and description of the project was given by <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/community-oral-history-outreach-officer/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP Community Oral History Outreach Officer</a> Kieran Murphy. <img src="http://corkfolklore.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/427A7714-1.jpg" alt="427A7714-1.jpg" /> Presentation In 2019 at the OHNI conference the <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/community-oral-history-outreach-officer/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP Community Oral History Outreach Officer</a> Kieran Murphy discussed social media and oral history which included audio excerpts from the Grattan Street Stories Project along with photographs of the building. <img src="http://corkfolklore.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/Kieran-OHNI-e1634041838937.jpg" alt="Kieran-OHNI-e1634041838937.jpg" /> Audio Visual Presentation An audio-visual slideshow was produced featuring oral testimony from the Grattan Street Stories Project and combined with suitable images of Grattan Street and from Edith O’Regan-Cosgrave’s exhibition. This was created by <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/community-oral-history-outreach-officer/">CFP Community Oral History Outreach Officer</a> Kieran Murphy. <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RnjEtQeOb3I&t=1s&ab_channel=CorkFolklore" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Audio Visual Presentation Available to listen and view here.</a> Health and Vaccines Oral History Research Many of the interviews conducted for the Grattan Street project formed an integral part of the testimonies and research for the innovative <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/health/about" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">'Catching Stories' of infectious disease in Ireland </a>project funded by the Irish Research Council. <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/health/about" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"><img src="http://corkfolklore.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/Catching-Stories-Poster.jpg" alt="Catching-Stories-Poster.jpg" /></a> Social Media Numerous suitable audio excerpts from the oral history interviews have been edited and shared on CFP's social media channels. <a href="https://twitter.com/corkfolklore/status/1139167201582288901" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">https://twitter.com/corkfolklore/status/1139167201582288901</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/corkfolklore/status/1140909542240391168" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">https://twitter.com/corkfolklore/status/1140909542240391168</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/corkfolklore/status/1141264486768238592" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">https://twitter.com/corkfolklore/status/1141264486768238592</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/corkfolklore/status/1189872295923376133" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">https://twitter.com/corkfolklore/status/1189872295923376133</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/corkfolklore/status/1228322700415860736" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">https://twitter.com/corkfolklore/status/1228322700415860736</a> Orthopaedic Hospital Cork Folklore Project in collaboration with the HSE conducted an oral history project focussing on the Orthapaedic Hospital in Gurranabraher. Many of the staff and services once provided at the Grattan Street Health Centre site were moved to St. Mary's Health Campus (St Mary’s Primary Care Centre) Gurranabraher, the former site of the Orthopaedic Hospital. <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/collections/show/10" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">HSE Orthopaedic Hospital Oral History Project (d'Orthopaedic)</a> Swimming Article Kieran Murphy and James Furey co-authored an article about <a href="https://tripeanddrisheen.substack.com/p/swim-city?s=r" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Swimming in Cork</a> which appeared in the online magazine Tripe + Drisheen. This article features a number of interview extracts collected as part of the Grattan Street Stories Project. Related Interviews CFP_SR00756_Quilligan_2019; CFP_SR00758_Broderick_2019; CFP_SR00670_OShea_2018; Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Cork Folklore Project Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Cork Folklore Project Audio Archive Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Cork Folklore Project Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource Cork Folklore Project Language A language of the resource English Type The nature or genre of the resource Audio Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource 16 .wav Files Oral History A resource containing historical information obtained in interviews with persons having firsthand knowledge. Interviewee The person(s) being interviewed Mary Mulcahy Interviewer The person(s) performing the interview Kieran Murphy Location The location of the interview <div class="element"> <div class="element-text">Cork Folklore Project Hub, North Cathedral Visitor Centre, Roman Street</div> </div> <div class="element"></div> Original Format The type of object, such as painting, sculpture, paper, photo, and additional data .wav Bit Rate/Frequency Rate at which bits are transferred (i.e. 96 kbit/s would be FM quality audio) 24bit / 48kHz Time Summary A summary of an interview given for different time stamps throughout the interview <table> <tbody> <tr> <td> 0.00.00 - 0.00.21 </td> <td> Intro </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.00.21 - 0.02.56 </td> <td> Tenement Life and Friendships Mary grew up in 44 Grattan Street. Despite there being tenements it was a magic experience. It was one big happy family, everyone knew and helped one another. All the children played and went to school together. 6 families lived in 44 Grattan Street, all had lots of children and still friends and went to each other’s marriages. Tenements today would be apartments. All had separate entrance but one main toilet in the yard. It was tough but they knew no other experience and everyone was the same. There was one family which was a bit better off than them, but they received the same treatment from them as everyone else and never interfered with their friendship. She still knows where all her neighbours are, and for going to funerals. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.02.56 - 0.04.08 </td> <td> Typical Day Get up, have breakfast go to St Maries of the Isle school [Bishop Street Cork], and most of Middle Parish went to that school at the time. Came home for lunch and returned to school at 2pm. And finished school at 3pm. Then went home, did the homework and went to play on the street. There were no cars on the street but there was an occasional horse and cart. Played all their games on the street: skipping and pickey. One of Mary’s happiest time because all the children were at the same level- no one was looking down on them. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.04.08 - 0.09.58 </td> <td> Children’s Games Skipping and Piggey Skipping and piggey with a piggey box or a shoe polish box taken from someone’s house. Mary’s sister-in-law once did not have any chalk to draw the boxes for piggey (or picky or pickey) [hopscotch] and she broke the finger of her mother’s holy statue of the virgin Mary and used it instead of chalk. Mary describes it as innocent, there was no harm involved. The statue was on the landing. They didn’t have the money to buy chalk. Still laugh about that story today. Release- game. Boys and girls were involved. 6 or 10 children all in a square drawn on the ground. One appointed to stay in the box. Someone would shout “Release” and everyone would scatter and hide. And the person in the square had to try to find them. Cat and Dog- game Place a small stick which is pointed a both ends at the edge of a kerb. Then take a bigger stick and hit it so it would fly into the air. The person who hit their stick the furthest would win. It was simple but very enjoyable. Hide and Go Seek- game [doesn’t give a description] Thunder up the Alley- game Lighting papers and put them up the drainpipe/chute and the draught took it up the chute. Mary says they should not have done that but they did, and says that they were bored. Playing Shop and Playing House- game Used the tombstones in the Protestant graveyard [St Peter’s on Grattan Street] They put all their “googles”? [8:10-8:20] on the tombstones and their friends came to “buy” them. They used coloured glass for sweets. Played with neighbours boys and girls. Run Away Knock-game People would claim they would tell Mary’s parents about playing this game but they never did because they knew it was innocent. Reminisces about childhood with friends now. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.09.58 - 0.11.21 </td> <td> Compares her childhood with that of today Things that she did people might frown on eg. playing on a tombstone. Mentions having a picnic on a gravestone on holidays. Contrasts this with deliberate vandalisation of graves. Wasn’t afraid of graveyard because her mother said mother said that “The living are doing the harm the dead can’t do anything to you”. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.11.21 - 0.12.48 </td> <td> Food and Meals Porridge for breakfast sometimes called gruel. They had tea and could toast bread in front of fire, no toasters. Doesn’t think there were cornflakes at the time. Simple life but great happiness. “everybody was on the same level” “we had nothing but we had everything” “we had love, happiness, peace and there’s no money can buy these things”, “If you hadn’t it you did without it.” </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.12.48- 0.15.09 </td> <td> Pawn Shops There were loan offices available but Mary said they would try to avoid those because they couldn’t afford it. There was only one man’s wages coming into the family. Pawn shops were “rampant” at the time. Suits for Sunday mass were sent to the pawn on Monday morning and on Thursday when you got your wages you would get the suit back out from the pawn. “that was living in my time”, “no shame in it” People had to survive and get food for their children, and wages were small. “We managed”. Her brother doesn’t agree with her that they were the happiest days of their lives. If they got something it was like Christmas. “We made do with what we had.” </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.15.09 - 0.16.32 </td> <td> A Sunday Treat A penny on Sunday from her father for sweets. There was shop across from where they lived. They could get bonbons and other sweets. 4 farthings in a penny. You could get change from a penny! Thinks most people were happy at the time. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.16.32 - 0.18.58 </td> <td> Clothes: Repairs and Hand-me-downs Fathers would repair shoes. They would buy leather form Davisons Shop [16:40 or Davidsons?] shop on North Main Street. Used a strip of leather to put heels on shoes using a “Last” [cobbler’s last- a tool similar to the shape of a human foot used to make or repair shoes] tacked leather onto the shoe Used paring knife to remove excess leather. And then “Blackened it with the polish”. Repaired both shoe heels and soles. It was expensive to send them to the shoemaker and they couldn’t afford it. Tough times but great times. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.18.58 - 0.22.57 </td> <td> Father’s work in the Munster Arcade and his family bringing him Lunch Father, mother 6 children 4 boys and 2 girls lived in one floor of a 5 floor tenement. Dad worked as porter in the Munster Arcade. His job involved work around the shop and delivering parcels. Munster Arcade and Cashes were the best shops in Cork, very expensive. His children used to help their dad. Galvanised pot for tea and bread and butter brought to his work for his lunch. Everyone did something similar for lunches at the time. Couldn’t afford to buy ham. No such thing as going to a café for them. Munster Arcade was an elite shop for people who had big jobs. The staff were very lovely. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.22.57 - 0.29.30 </td> <td> Father having to Deliver a Tie. Attitude of the Elite. Once a woman from Montenotte or St Luke’s bought a tie for her husband and Mary’s father had to deliver the tie at 5.30pm when he was due to finish at 6pm. Father often spoke, cribbed and cursed about that incident. “That’s the way people lived at that time like. They were up there like and we were down here.” She puts this attitude down to ignorance. “They wanted to be up there looking down on us” but “We were better off because we had what they couldn’t buy: love and contentment.” Describes a world of the haves and have nots. Feels sorry for people who have to pretend that they are well-off rather than being themselves. Describes her thinking as old-fashioned. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.26.04 - 0.29.30 </td> <td> Change of Attitudes to Work today. Positive Change in role of men in Housework. Thinks everything is “put on a plate” for people- that everything must be done for them and people are not grateful for what they have. Thinks it’s degrading to tell people “but that’s your job.” Men were never expected to do housework or look after children in the past and now it’s changed and she is glad. Fathers would take children for walks, fishing or to matches. But everything else was done by the mother. Is glad that her children turned out well, thinks it was worth her effort raising them when she thinks back. Recalls a recent news story of a 10 year old drunk and questions the role of parents today. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.29.30 - 0.30.45 </td> <td> Pub Culture Then and Now Describes how when men were paid their wages they would go to the pub, and how women and children were not allowed in pubs. Believes children were not allowed in pubs then. Thinks now women are worse than men from what she hears as regards drinking behaviour. Believes this is unfair on children. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.30.45 - 0.33.48 </td> <td> Mother bringing them on Trips, Youghal, Swimming Describes parents as salt of the earth. Had to be home at a certain time. Could play on the street as there was very little traffic. They were taken to Fitzgerald’s Park or Lee Fields for an outing One Sunday in August would be trip to Youghal. Train to Youghal. Thousands of people like cattle there. Train stopped near the beach. And came home at 6pm in the evening. People wouldn’t believe you had been to the beach unless you got sunburned. Swam in Youghal. No bathing togs! Sandwiches on the beach. Learned to swim in Youghal. Her children went to the lifesaving clubs. It was essential that time </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.33.48 - 0.45.47 </td> <td> Mother and Making Ends Meet: Pawns, Meals, Food Shopping Mother pawned father’s suit to make ends meet. And not ashamed of it. It was the thing to do to feed the children. Remembers her mother cooking stews and potatoes. Big bowl of potatoes in the centre of the table and everyone for themselves with butter on them! Tripe and Drisheen- good for the stomach. Beautiful dish. The dug of the lamb. Milk, onions, mushrooms, thicken with white sauce, and add potatoes. Mary still makes it as a winter dish. Her sons like it but not her daughters or daughter in laws. It’s still sold in O’Reilly’s in the English Market which was only around the corner from Grattan Street. Kidneys- skirts and kidneys. Kidneys referred to as “sheep’s pooley bags” [pooley: urine cf Sean Beecher Cork Slang: https://corkslang.com/pooley] Offal and offal bones, liver. The main dishes for the working classes. They were not able to afford steak. Today people are too squeamish about offal. English Market: The Chicken Inn. O’Reilly’s Tripe and Drisheen. Everyone had their own butcher. English Market was very basic when Mary was younger. Coal Quay was brilliant on a Saturday. Cornmarket Street used to be full of stalls, clothes, people, tinned food. Annie Punch half way down Cornmarket Street a big woman and a Cork character- “The Mother of the Coal Quay” blond, happy-go-lucky and funny person. Selling second-hand clothes at the time, although now they sell new clothes. It was very popular at Christmas. There’s snobbery about going into the Coal Quay today. Shop on corner Twomeys was popular. People would buy their Christmas Trees and decorations- Annie Punch was the main dealer for these. Saturday morning farmers would come to the city to sell their vegetables. There were also local shops that they supported. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.45.47 - 0.48.26 </td> <td> Christmas Might not have had a Christmas Tree but Santa Claus always came. They had chicken for Christmas dinner couldn’t afford a turkey Christmas Eve night her own children were frightened by her husband dresses as Santa Clause outside the window. They made their own fun back then. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.48.26 - 0.53.02 </td> <td> Singsongs and Music Singsongs after the pub which they could hear in bed a night. O’Callaghan’s Pub for the sing song. And opposite the protestant graveyard was the parting place at the end of the night. “Bill Bill” played the trumpet in The Workingman’s Band used to play it at 1am after the pub. The Workingman’s Band The Workingman’s Band played various wind instruments. They would meet in the club and march up Grattan Street and they were meant to turn left up to Patrick Street but one man turned right and people discovered he wasn’t playing his instrument! “They were very happy days” Songs at the singsong: “Mother mo Chroí”, “Kathleen Mavourneen”, “I’ll take you Home Again Kathleen”, “South of the Border- Down Mexico Way” Saturday night was the singsong and they would all make mass on Sunday morning in the Confraternity in St Peter and Paul’s Church for 8am mass or in St Francis church. Mary admired that they all stuck together. The men used take their pint but they never abused or neglected their families. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.53.02 - 0.57.46 </td> <td> Dancehalls and Father’s Strict Timekeeping Dances were held from 8pm-11pm in St. Francis Hall on Sheares Street. If they arrived home late her father would say: “I said 11 not five past” wouldn’t be allowed go the following week. Feels lucky that they were disciplined in this way. Her father was very strict but that all parents were like that at the time. Gresham Rooms on Maylor Street off Patrick Street was another place for dances, which their father was reluctant to let them attend as it was further away than St. Francis Hall. The Arcadia was an enjoyable place for dances. At dances the men were on one side of the room and women on the other. Women would run to the ladies toilet if an undesirable man came across the dancehall to ask them for a dance. “What a scatter!” Ladies choice: halfway through the night the women would have to ask the men for a dance. You could be reported and removed from the hall for refusing a dance. Lists some bands and singers: Victor Silvester, Clipper Carltons, Joe Mac and the Dixielanders. Terry McCarthy had died the week of this interview was a great singer. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.57.46 - 1.00.43 </td> <td> Funeral and Memories of Terry McCarthy and Music in Churches Beautiful funeral mass even better than that for a bishop! Large crowd at the funeral. Well organised and felt like being in heaven. When Mary was 80 her family invited Terry McCarthy to sing for her and he sang great old songs not pop music. Thinks that pop music is unsuitable to play at funerals and masses. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.00.43 - 1.08.51 </td> <td> Dancehalls: Rules, Learning, Locations and no Dances at Lent You couldn’t refuse a dance at a dancehall. And you couldn’t dance unless you were asked. A “legger” was a bad dancer. Types of dances: tango, quick step, foxtrot, and waltz. Learned how to dance at the dancehalls from each other and from a dancing partner at the dance. They would practice dancing at home with the sweeping brush! People would help and teach you when dancing. Some of the men were very proud of their dancing and would be showing off. Could get a glass of milk and buy tea and cake later on. Dance Halls: The Arcadia was the main ballroom in Cork was open 9pm until 2am, near Kent Station. Gresham Rooms. Dance near [Collins] Barracks and near Tivoli. Cork Boat Club on the Marina dancing finished at 2am and then they had to walk home. Once a friend Pauline from the Marsh who was an opera singer sang on the way home from the Marina but a Garda arrived and asked them to leave. Mary describes herself as a “chorus girl” rather than a solo singer! No dancing or dancehalls during Lent. So they met at the same time and went for a walk out the Lee Road. No vandalism at the time. “We made our own enjoyment” They would talk about fellas or sing while on their walk. They all went and came back as group from the Marsh/Middle Parish. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.08.51 - 1.12.23 </td> <td> Illnesses Measles, whooping cough, scabies, diphtheria- which 3 in her family had, Mary was the carrier. Puts it down to lack of hygiene. Diphtheria was the killer disease aside from TB. Her 3 family members were isolated in St Finbarr’s Hospital. Doctor told her mother to put her uninfected daughter into the hospital with the others to catch diphtheria and recover from it. Mary spent much of her time crying while in isolation and having to look out the window at her parents. It was sad. There were many medical tests. Recalls a neighbour who had polio. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.12.23 - 1.15.48 </td> <td> Dispensary Grattan Street: Doctors and Medicines There were 6 doctors in the local Dispensary on Grattan Street. each area had its own doctor. People from the Marsh/ Middle Parish had Dr Cagney. Dr Cagney was very strict, very cross, “what else can I give you now beside a car?!” he said to Mary’s mother. Dr Cagney was a big man and elderly at the time and his son became a doctor too. [Dr Michael Cagney was his son, see: <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/253">CFP_SR00762_OConnell_2019</a>] Parishes Food it was like a tonic. Everyone liked the taste of it. You didn’t need a prescription for it. You brought an empty bottle to the dispensary after having visited the doctor who gave you a note with details of your required medicine and your bottle would be filled up accordingly in the dispensing unit. Cod liver oil was also recommended and was got in the Dispensary. Recalls giving her children cod liver oil with an orange to improve the taste. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.15.48 - 1.21.08 </td> <td> Queuing in Dispensary for Doctor. Pharmacist and Caretaker Had to queue up on benches for up to 2 hours. There were 6 doctors, Dr Cagney was theirs. You’d get a prescription and then hand that to the dispensing unit on the way out. Thinks she recalls there being a Dr Fennell there as well. No appointments you just queued up. Beautiful atmosphere in there. She would know people there. Mentions 2 caretakers who lived on site. She knew is as “The Quakers” although she never met them but was aware that they had once lived there. Beautiful courtyard. Two families lived there either side of the front entrance: Morrissy’s (the dispenser) and Lucey’s or Healey’s were there caretakers. The daughters of the Morrissy’s would have been friends with Mary. [see also <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/252">CFP_SR00760_Morrissy_2019</a>;] Would see their neighbours in the waiting room. Couldn’t afford a private doctor. Different doctors there for different parts of the city. The Cagney’s were very popular, Dr Cagney’s son Michael took over. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.21.08 - 1.26.50 </td> <td> The Waiting Room could be very full with people. if the 6 doctors were present. Convenient living in Grattan Street as they were across the road. Very few chemists at the time. Everyone hoped they would get Parishes Food illnesses Polio and diphtheria. They weren’t afraid of the diseases, would be sometimes delighted to get sick to avoid school. Whooping cough and chickenpox were normal diseases. Treatment for whooping cough was mostly rest. There was an old saying “we got over the measles” Her brother Paddy was seriously affected by diphtheria. Symptoms of diphtheria You felt like your throat was coming up through your mouth. Thinks about how her parents coped with having children in St Finbarr’s isolation ward when they had no transport. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.26.50 - 1.32.00 </td> <td> Christmas Party and ‘Simple Living’ of the Past There was a Christmas party for all the children with a bottle of watered down rasa/raza (raspberry cordial) and sweets. Everybody was on the same level except for a few who were slightly better off but they All going to the same school St Mary’s of the Isle. Great neighbourliness. Thinks they were very lucky and that their parents kept them “on the straight and narrow”. Says there was a lot of problems alcohol and drink but not in her family- suggests some people may not have had enough money to pay for food due to alcoholism. John O’Shea [likely the same O’Shea interviewed CFP00774] wrote a book about the “Red City” the Northside of Cork. Much of the book Mary agreed with and identifies with eg. box cars, collecting wood and making bundles out of it to sell it. “What we had to do to make a couple of bob” eg the Pawn shops. People were happy to live that way she thinks. Simple living. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.32.00 - 1.33.25 </td> <td> Quakers and Grattan Street The Quakers did live in Grattan Street, it was their religion. Mary says her daughter-in-law is working in Grattan Street. It was a lovely building. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.33.25 - 1.34.19 </td> <td> School behind Dispensary St. Francis Boys School was at the back of the dispensary. “Rowdy Boys College” was what it was called at the time. Thinks that there is a private school in there at the moment. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.34.19 - 1.35.04 </td> <td> Happiness and Gratitude Reiterates that they were the happiest days of her life games as children, made their own enjoyment and is grateful for her good parents. And feels sorry for people today who aren’t as lucky. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.35.04 - 1.36.31 </td> <td> LDF Local Defence Force Recalls the LDF (Local Defence Force) marching and as being part of the army and they wore berets. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.36.31 - 0.00.00 </td> <td> Attitude towards the dispensary Dr Cagney lived on Summerhill North. His son took over. Mark Cagney the radio presenter is related to that family. Dr Cagney looked after Mary’s mother Mary. Says Dr Cagney senior was abrupt but had respect for the elderly which is not always the case today, thinks that sometimes elderly people can be treated as just a number. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.39.20 - 1.44.48 </td> <td> The Franciscans They were friendly, spiritual and gave people time. People knew the Franciscans personally they weren’t snobs and you could invite them into your house for tea. The Franciscans were out more. Many people in Grattan Street were in the choir in St Francis. They also hosted a Christmas party for the children. Recalls them being funnier and more down to earth than regular priests. Went to mass in St Francis. St Peter and Paul’s was their parish church to which they went once a month for the confraternity meeting for rosary and prayers on Monday night and the following Sunday there was a confraternity mass at 8am on Sunday. Had to be fasting from the night before to receive holy communion. They had breakfast then after mass. On some Sundays they might have a rasher and egg- their father would get priority for a good breakfast. On Sunday would do their homework, go to Fitzgerald’s Park, Lee Fields to the outdoor baths. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.44.48 - 1.48.22 </td> <td> Religion: Fasting Rules and Rejecting Man-made Religious Rules Today Fasted before Holy Communion and for Good Friday, they didn’t eat meat which was easy as they didn’t have much meat, but it is harder now for her to abstain from meat. Doesn’t fast on Good Friday anymore, she would eat meat. She has “no scruples” anymore about eating meat on Friday. “It don’t bother me” She feels she has “did my bit” and “we did more than our bit”, they didn’t have to do what they did. She considers these rules and restrictions to be manmade laws. She decides for herself now whether to eat before communion or on Fridays. Would prefer to go back to a basic, simple religion which would include going to mass and a few prayers at night, but without all the dogmatic things and novenas. Thinks that some people in the past probably didn’t bother following all those rules. People felt they were guilty of sin and felt it and went to confession. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.48.22 - 1.55.12 </td> <td> Confession: Unfair on Children and Story of a Lenient Priest Mary used to teach young “itinerant” or traveller children for their First Holy Communion. Brought them for their first confession to the North Cathedral. The children were speaking so loudly that she could hear their sins and recalls one of them saying “I stucked out me tongue at me nanny” and thinks it was wrong that children were made to feel guilt and sin about something so small. People would say “you’d go to hell”. She thinks this was very wrong. She thinks that she took these rules to heart and Jesus never expected people to behave as they were required to. “Everything we did was a sin” “We went to confession shaking” “We came up the hard way, we were guilty of stupid things.” And says that their parents were the same way. They were chastised at home. Kissing a boy was considered to be a sin, but she doesn’t believe it was a sin in retrospect. Priest in North Cathedral who was reputed to say “God bless you my child” in response to any confessed sin no matter how grave. There used to be queues for this Fr Hart. Says that she would know herself whether something was wrong or right. Some people took sins too far, and some people would stay away from confession for years because they were so afraid of what their sin was even though it was not that serious. People went to Fr Hart in the North Chapel/ North Cathedral because of his easier approach. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.55.12 - 1.56.22 </td> <td> No Sex before Marriage There was “very clean living before we got married”. There was never sex involved before her marriage. And she believes this was the right way. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.56.22 - 2.01.24 </td> <td> First Holy Communion and Children Understanding Religion Was teaching the Northside traveller children in St Mary’s Cathedral (North Cathedral) as she was in the Legion of Mary on Brown Street. Doesn’t think that children really understand their religion when they are so young so they should wait until they are older, maybe 12 years old before they make their first holy communion. Recalls her own First Holy Communion as being very serious. Got dressed and had a veil and went to a photographer on Windmill Road. Everything was so respectful and disciplined. Mary returns to discussing the funeral mass for Terry McCarthy to compare the beauty and respect of that mass. Her own communion dress was made for her, as most people did at the time. Visited all her cousins for her First Holy Communion and “got the few bob” received money from family members and went home to count it on the table. She gave her parents some of the money. Thinks today that children make about 1,000 euro on their First Holy Communion and that this has become its real purpose and meaning. The church is full for Holy Communion day but the next Sunday they are not present. Mary made her own communion in South Chapel because she was going to St Mary’s of the Isle School. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 2.01.24 - 2.07.46 </td> <td> Grateful for her Happy Memories and Good Friends Recalls her happiness and friends from school. Friendship, respect for parents, teachers and friends were her memories of the past. Still in contact with those old friends. Sincere friendships and bonds. “Always keep your friends” is what Mary recommends. She meets her friends to reminisce and recall things that she might have forgotten. She would never dismiss anything that happened years ago. [02.04.10 ] “I’ll tell you something now like” when she can’t sleep things from the past come back to her and she thinks about them for hours. Feels lucky she has these lovely memories to fall back on. Very simple living and they shopped locally. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 2.05.16-2.07.55 </td> <td> Shops, Sweets, Candy Apples on Gerald Griffin Street The milk emporium the daily lived second-next-door to them and they sold milk and eggs, butter. Tuckshop was underneath for sweets. There were shops on every corner, you could go into “Candy apples was a big thing at the time” There was a place near the North Cathedral on Gerald Griffin Street where a woman would stick a lollipop stick into an eating apple, cover it in sugar and put it into a holder to sell it. Bullseyes, clove rocks, bonbons were the sweets “we were reared on” and they are all coming back. They never had chocolate. Mary says that she didn’t expect to have been speaking for so long. Mary asks the interviewer what time it is, he responds that it’s after 1pm. One son calls to her for dinner but he will “help himself”. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 2.07.46- 2.07.55 </td> <td> Outro </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 2.07.55 </td> <td> Interview Ends </td> </tr> </tbody> </table> Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Mary Mulcahy: Grattan Street, Healthcare, The Marsh Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context CFP_SR00729_Mulcahy_2019; Relation A related resource Other Interviews in this Collection <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/240" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00696_O'Regan_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/242" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00704_Collins_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/243" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00706_Higgisson_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/244" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00712_O'Brien_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/245" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00713_Kearney_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/246" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00714_Cunning_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/247" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00717_Ward_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/248" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00727_OhUigin_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/249" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00728_Scanlan_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/251" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00732_Cassidy_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/252" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00760_Morrissy_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/253" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"> CFP_SR00762_OConnell_2019</a>; Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Cork Folklore Project Audio Archive Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource Cork Folklore Project Language A language of the resource English Type The nature or genre of the resource Sound Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource Audio Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1 August 2019 Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant Cork Folklore Project Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Cork Folklore Project Description An account of the resource Mary grew up on in a tenement on Grattan Street where there was a toilet in the yard strong sense of community. She attended school in St. Maries of the Isle as most children from The Middle Parish did and Came home for lunch. Played children’s games on the street including: skipping, piggey, release, cat and dog, hide and go seek, thunder up the alley, playing shop, playing house, runaway knock Speaks of enjoyment and happiness in simple things even in the straightened economic circumstances that prevailed in the communities of her childhood. Discusses the prevalence of pawn shops on how they were relied on. Recalls joy as a child when they got money for sweets as a treat. Explains how her father like other men at the time would repair their shoes at home. Her father worked in the Munster Arcade and the family took it in turns to bring him lunch there Discusses the differences in social class at the time Speaks about the positive change in men’s role in housework today Describes an annual family day trip to Youghal for swimming and a picnic. Talks about shops and the stalls and sellers in the English Market and Coal Quay where food was bought for typical meals including stews, potatoes, tripe and drisheen, skirts and kidneys, offal, offal bones and liver. Mentions some Christmas traditions in her family. Remembers hearing men having a regular parting singsong while leaving the pub at night. Recounts a humorous story about musician in the Workingman’s Band pretending to play his instrument in a parade. Remarks on parents’ strict time keeping in her childhood which was a useful skill as an adult. Describes what dances in dancehalls were like, especially St. Francis Hall. Gives description of the rules and functioning of the dances as well as learning to dance. Outlines common diseases in her childhood, including diphtheria which she contracted. Describes symptoms of diphtheria spending time in hospital isolation to cure diphtheria. Remembers GP Dr Cagney in the dispensary on Grattan Street and the medicines available on site from the pharmacist including Parishes Food. Further describes the dispensary, its waiting room and how the caretaker and pharmacist lived in the building. Talks about religious devotion, mass going, the rosary, fasting prior to holy communion and confraternity meetings in St. Francis church. Criticises aspects Catholic religious practice such as fasting (which she describes as manmade), confession and whether children can comprehend their First Holy Communion . Humorous story of priest in the North Cathedral who gave lenient penances for confession. Describes candy apples made and sold on Gerald Griffin Street. Alcohol Baths Candy Apples Children’s Games Christmas Class Class Attitudes Coal Quay Confession Cork Boat Club Diphtheria Division of Housework Drinking Elite English market Fasting Fitzgerald’s Park Food Franciscans Friends Friendship Funerals Gerald Griffin Street Gratitude Grattan Street Gresham Rooms Happiness Happy Memories Health Holidays Illness LDF Lee Fields Lent Local Defence Force Marriage Massgoing Medicine Memories Middle Parish Neighbours North Cathedral Offal Philosophy of life Polio Pub Culture Pubs Quakers Religion Religious Observation Role of Men Role of Women Routine Sanitation School Sex Sheares Street Shopping Shops Showbands Singing Skirts and Kidneys Slang Songs St Francis Church St Francis Hall St Maries of the Isle St Peter and Paul’s Church St. Francis Hall Sweets Swim Swimming Tenements The Arcadia The Marsh Traffic Train Transport Tripe Tripe and Drisheen Work Working class Youghal https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/files/original/9f20f6c48d278f9ca879e280140ef8e0.jpg efdc5558ab0726b9c2293bf4e6256a2f https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/files/original/a1ba5504bd7a52abcb7434cb2161c705.wav 11be78bce6c458d3767c6787f3b08c4a Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Grattan Street Stories: Memory of Place Subject The topic of the resource Occupational Lore; Life History; Built Heritage; Health; Ireland; Cork; Middle Parish Description An account of the resource This collection focuses on a building on Grattan Street which has served as a Quaker Meeting House, a public Dispensary and as the Grattan Street Health Centre. The project was a collaboration between the CFP and the Cork North Community Work Department, Cork Kerry Community Healthcare, Health Services Executive HSE. The interviewees fall into two main groups: those who worked in the building and those who lived in the surrounding area and availed of the services provided in the building. This project follows on from the collaboration with the HSE in the “<a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/collections/show/10" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">HSE Orthopaedic Hospital Oral History Project (d'Orthopaedic)</a>”. There is a further connection between the two projects as many of the staff and services once provided in the Grattan Street Health Centre have now relocated to St. Mary's Health Campus (St Mary’s Primary Care Centre) Gurranabraher, the former site of the Orthopaedic Hospital. This topic of the relocation of services is also covered in some staff interviews. To date (October 2021) 13 interviews have been completed for the project. Interviewees discuss the Grattan Street building itself in terms of its historic significance, its benefits and drawbacks as a workplace. Broader themes related to or inspired by the building are also touched on including: personal relationship with the building, staff camaraderie, the problems with parking, memorable incidents at work, patient experiences and descriptions of the people and services for which the building catered. Healthcare professional interviewees detail their training, career progression and comparisons between Grattan Street and other workplaces. Their testimonies also provide a link with the community of patients they served giving further insight into attitudes to healthcare, diseases, vaccines, description of social conditions and the changes in medicine and technology in their working lives. Non-healthcare professional interviewees describe childhood experiences in or around Grattan Street (The Marsh or The Middle Parish), the social, cultural and economic conditions of the area, tenements, businesses, attitudes to and experiences of healthcare, vaccines, diseases, medicines and medical professionals as well as observed changes in these areas over time. Interviewees also reflect on the possible future uses of the Grattan Street building. Related Reference Sources <ul> <li>Barrington, R. (1987) Health, medicine and politics in Ireland, 1900–1970. Dublin: Institute of Public Administration.</li> <li>Butler D.M. (2004) The Quaker meeting houses of Ireland. Dublin : Irish Friends Historical Committee.</li> <li>Byrne, J. (2004) Byrne's dictionary of Irish local history. Cork: Mercier Press.</li> <li>Cooke, R. T. (1999) My Home by the Lee. Irish Millennium Publications: Cork.</li> <li>Dempsey, P. J. & White, L. W. ‘Childers, Erskine Hamilton’. Dictionary of Irish Biography [Accessed 18 October 2021]</li> <li>Harrison, R.S. (1991) Cork City Quakers 1655-1939: A Brief History. Cork.</li> <li>Houston, M. (2004). ‘Life before the GP’. The Irish Times. Available at : <<a href="https://www.irishtimes.com/news/health/life-before-the-gp-1.1158599">https://www.irishtimes.com/news/health/life-before-the-gp-1.1158599</a> > [Accessed 18 October 2021]</li> <li>Keohane, F. (2020) The Buildings of Ireland Cork City and County. New Haven and London: Yale University Press.</li> </ul> Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2019-2020 Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Interviewees: Edith O’Regan, 'Mary', Sean Higgisson, Aoife O’Brien, Eileen Kearney, Imelda Cunning, Jane Ward, Liam Ó hUigín, Joe Scanlan, Mary Mulcahy, Philomena Cassidy, Don Morrissy, Derek O’Connell Interviewer: <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=2&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=Kieran+Murphy" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Kieran Murphy</a>, (<a href="https://corkfolklore.org/community-oral-history-outreach-officer/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP Community Oral History Outreach Officer</a>) Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant Cork, Ireland 1940s-2020s; Waterford, Ireland; Dublin, Ireland; Limerick, Ireland; Relation A related resource Exhibition Artist Edith O’Regan-Cosgrave (also an interviewee for the project) created a visual artwork based around the Grattan Street Medical Centre building itself, as a workplace and health centre. The artwork incorporated direct quotations from the oral history interviews conducted for the project, and also included brief historical paragraphs about the building researched, written and edited by the <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/community-oral-history-outreach-officer/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP Community Oral History Outreach Officer</a> Kieran Murphy. This exhibition was launched on 6th February 2020 in “St Peter’s” on the North Main Street where a “Listening Event” was also held to mark the occasion. <img src="http://corkfolklore.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/Grattan-Poster-for-Email-286-by-400.jpg" alt="Grattan-Poster-for-Email-286-by-400.jpg" /> Presentation and Listening Event To coincide with the launch of the Grattan Street Stories Exhibtion on 6th February 2020 a listening event and presentation of the history of the Grattan Street Medical Centre building and description of the project was given by <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/community-oral-history-outreach-officer/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP Community Oral History Outreach Officer</a> Kieran Murphy. <img src="http://corkfolklore.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/427A7714-1.jpg" alt="427A7714-1.jpg" /> Presentation In 2019 at the OHNI conference the <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/community-oral-history-outreach-officer/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP Community Oral History Outreach Officer</a> Kieran Murphy discussed social media and oral history which included audio excerpts from the Grattan Street Stories Project along with photographs of the building. <img src="http://corkfolklore.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/Kieran-OHNI-e1634041838937.jpg" alt="Kieran-OHNI-e1634041838937.jpg" /> Audio Visual Presentation An audio-visual slideshow was produced featuring oral testimony from the Grattan Street Stories Project and combined with suitable images of Grattan Street and from Edith O’Regan-Cosgrave’s exhibition. This was created by <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/community-oral-history-outreach-officer/">CFP Community Oral History Outreach Officer</a> Kieran Murphy. <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RnjEtQeOb3I&t=1s&ab_channel=CorkFolklore" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Audio Visual Presentation Available to listen and view here.</a> Health and Vaccines Oral History Research Many of the interviews conducted for the Grattan Street project formed an integral part of the testimonies and research for the innovative <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/health/about" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">'Catching Stories' of infectious disease in Ireland </a>project funded by the Irish Research Council. <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/health/about" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"><img src="http://corkfolklore.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/Catching-Stories-Poster.jpg" alt="Catching-Stories-Poster.jpg" /></a> Social Media Numerous suitable audio excerpts from the oral history interviews have been edited and shared on CFP's social media channels. <a href="https://twitter.com/corkfolklore/status/1139167201582288901" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">https://twitter.com/corkfolklore/status/1139167201582288901</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/corkfolklore/status/1140909542240391168" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">https://twitter.com/corkfolklore/status/1140909542240391168</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/corkfolklore/status/1141264486768238592" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">https://twitter.com/corkfolklore/status/1141264486768238592</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/corkfolklore/status/1189872295923376133" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">https://twitter.com/corkfolklore/status/1189872295923376133</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/corkfolklore/status/1228322700415860736" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">https://twitter.com/corkfolklore/status/1228322700415860736</a> Orthopaedic Hospital Cork Folklore Project in collaboration with the HSE conducted an oral history project focussing on the Orthapaedic Hospital in Gurranabraher. Many of the staff and services once provided at the Grattan Street Health Centre site were moved to St. Mary's Health Campus (St Mary’s Primary Care Centre) Gurranabraher, the former site of the Orthopaedic Hospital. <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/collections/show/10" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">HSE Orthopaedic Hospital Oral History Project (d'Orthopaedic)</a> Swimming Article Kieran Murphy and James Furey co-authored an article about <a href="https://tripeanddrisheen.substack.com/p/swim-city?s=r" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Swimming in Cork</a> which appeared in the online magazine Tripe + Drisheen. This article features a number of interview extracts collected as part of the Grattan Street Stories Project. Related Interviews CFP_SR00756_Quilligan_2019; CFP_SR00758_Broderick_2019; CFP_SR00670_OShea_2018; Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Cork Folklore Project Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Cork Folklore Project Audio Archive Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Cork Folklore Project Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource Cork Folklore Project Language A language of the resource English Type The nature or genre of the resource Audio Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource 16 .wav Files Oral History A resource containing historical information obtained in interviews with persons having firsthand knowledge. Interviewee The person(s) being interviewed Philomena Cassidy Interviewer The person(s) performing the interview Kieran Murphy Duration Length of time involved (seconds, minutes, hours, days, class periods, etc.) 65 Minutes 2 Seconds Location The location of the interview Cork Folklore Project Hub, North Cathedral Visitor Centre, Roman Street Original Format The type of object, such as painting, sculpture, paper, photo, and additional data .wav Bit Rate/Frequency Rate at which bits are transferred (i.e. 96 kbit/s would be FM quality audio) 24bit / 48kHz Time Summary A summary of an interview given for different time stamps throughout the interview <table> <tbody> <tr> <td> 0.00.00 - 0.00.22 </td> <td> Intro </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.00.22 - 0.02.23 </td> <td> Tenement House Growing Up- Conditions and facilities Grew up in 44 Grattan Street, a tenement house. 4 or 5 families in the house. 6 children in her family, and 6 in another family. Another family with 2. 14 children in the one house. Very happy, great neighbours. Shop underneath their house: “shop on the lap” they called it. It sold sugar, milk, tea. The people who ran the shop lived in the shop as well. A 4-storey house including the attic. The people who lived in the attic had their kitchen on the ground floor. They had no sink, there was one toilet shared by the house and one tap in the yard. There was no electricity, or gas. They used oil lamps, primus store and a coal fire. Everyone lived like that so they “didn’t know any better”. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.02.23 - 0.06.27 </td> <td> Neighbours, Shops and Streets on & near Grattan Street Next door in 45 Grattan Street was Gamble the tinsmith. Similar type house arrangement. 46 Grattan Street was O’Callaghan’s Pub, even though the owners got married they had their whole family living above the pub. Phil doesn’t think that arrangement could be called a tenement because the house contained all one family. Then there was Peter’s Street, and the Mechanics’ Hall where the Community Centre is now. Fr Lynch from St Peter and Paul’s was good to the poor and he gave the children of the parish a party in the Mechanics’ Hall where children were given a suitable present, eg. a doll. The children looked forward to that each Christmas. Beyond that there was the quarry all the houses previously there were gone. After the quarry there were 3 or 4 tenement houses before you came to Henry Street. Same type of houses. There was also Bobby Lloyd’s shop on the corner sold pots, pans and kitchen utensils. Then Henry Street, and across the road from it was Henrietta’s Shop run by Johno (Johnno) where they got milk or bread. There was a lane behind that with a terrace of houses. There were two pubs beyond that one called Crosses and the other was Kellehers. Beyond that was Francis Street with Randy Hourigan’s shop on the corner. Beyond that was the corner of Bachelor’s Quay where the Doll’s House was with steps up to it which was also a tenement. Around the corner was formerly Dolly Perry’s Nursing Home but was turned into tenements when Phil knew it. Then there was Grenville Place where George Boole had lived, and that area had tenements. Then you returned to Henry Street. The old part of the Mercy Hospital was also there. Then there was Moore Street, Coach Street, and back to Grattan Street. All that area was the circle in which the children were allowed to play. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.06.27 - 0.07.52 </td> <td> Playing Children’s Games Played tops and whips. Cat and Dog. Piggy. Skylockers. Skylockers: Long strip of crepe paper with some sand in the centre and tied with string. And put string onto the end of it and threw it up in the air and hope that it would come down again and not get caught in the electric wires. Had to make their own enjoyment not like today where people can just press buttons. Chaineys & Playing Shop Used broken coloured glass (calls it mixed spice) to play shop on the footpath. Everyone was the same and everyone joined in. People pretended to be buying some of their shop items which were the pieces of broken glass. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.07.52 - 0.10.49 </td> <td> More Neighbours, Shops and Streets on & near Grattan Street Phil runs through the buildings and streets on Grattan Street from her house but going in the other direction to which she did before. No 43 Grattan Street’ The People’s Dairy which had eggs, milk, buttermilk, bread. Beyond that was a wholesale place called O’Connors and he had shoes for the shops he was wholesaler for. Above his place was a tenement. No 41 Grattan Street: The M Laundries (M Laundry) with a tenement above it with 3 families. No 40 Grattan Street was the fire station and everyone knew it, and the firemen because they were local. No 39: Barber shop with tenement above it. Next was another barber: Gerry Kane, with tenements above it. Next Roddis which sold pots, pans and tin things. Next was another shop. Then Broad Street and on the other side of it was another tinsmith, another Gamble. There were 3 Gamble brothers from Grattan Street, all of them tinsmiths. After that was a quarry and the houses were gone. Across the road was the old St Francis Church. Coming back down Grattan Street from there was the Third Order Hall. Then a laundry with more tenements. Then another tinsmith. Then Moll Hog’s Mrs Hourigan, a sweet shop at the corner of Broad Lane. Then the Rambler’s Inn, a pub. When that was vacated the Franciscans took it over for their accommodation and they took over the fire station when the new church was being built. Then there was a shoemaker called Rice with tenements above it. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.10.49 - 0.11.35 </td> <td> The Dispensary/ Grattan Street description of the building and who lived there And then “the Quakers” or the dispensary now Grattan Street Health Centre. The Morrissy family [see <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/252">CFP_SR00760_Morrissy_2019</a>;] of the chemist on one side of the arch on the dispensary facing onto Grattan Street, and the caretaker lived on the other side, her name was Nellie Long but she was known as Mrs Healy. Morrissy family had two girls and a boy and Phil “mixed with them”. Phil’s family had no garden so they played in the courtyard in the dispensary, which she describes as “a big airy place” there was lots of space compared with where Phil lived. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.11.35 - 0.14.28 </td> <td> More tenements after the dispensary, continuing tour of Grattan Street. Then “Moll Murph’s” (Moll Murphy) the potato lady. Bridgie on the corner selling sweets. Then Peter Church Lane, down which there were tenements, even though they were only small houses. The McCarthy’s were the only ones to have a house. The grandmother of Terry McCarthy lived down the lane. Terry had recently died at the time of the interview. He sang with the Dixies and sang with Michael Ring junior. Then there was the graveyard [St Peter’s Cemetery] which they knew as “The Proddy Woddys”, down the lane from that was a school and St Peter’s Church which is a centre now on the North Main Street. Phil says they “never mixed with them” ie Protestants. After that was Buckley’s builder’s yard over head was the Manning’s family with some families members married. After that another tenement with Murphy’s on the ground floor and Buckley’s on the first floor. Then more people above them. After that another tenement with the Healey’s lived. Then the quarry and then Coleman’s Lane which had houses and the Kenny’s lived in the first house. Tiny houses. Back on Grattan Street there was Looney’s Shop which sold everything: butter, eggs, bread etc. Then there were two more houses Frankie Scannell lived next to Looney’s Shop and worked in the Fire Station. After that another tenement with 3 or 4 families and then it came to Adelaide Street. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.14.28 - 0.17.41 </td> <td> Memories of the Dispensary “But the Quakers was nice, it was an airy place” big, huge high ceilings. The garden was inside a bit. [Phil refers to the Grattan Street Health Centre/ Dispensary building as ‘the Quakers’] The big door was never open, the side door was open, but there was a bell on the door and you could ring the bell. Inside were the doctors. The dispensary had about 8 doctors, 4 on either side, in a big hall with rooms off of it. Benches outside each doctor. No appointment. Every area had its own doctor. Phil had Dr Cagney. There was a Dr Moran for another area. You got medicine on the way out from the chemist, in a little hole in the wall. If you wanted cough bottle you brought your own bottle. It wouldn’t surprise Phil if you received tablets in a matchbox. You had to queue up to get that. You’d bring your bottle with you from home. Two or three benches outside each doctor’s door. It was like one big dance hall. There was no appointment but you knew what time he would be there at. And if you had to call the doctor he would come to you at home. Dr Cagney was abrupt but a very good doctor. Mark Cagney who was a presenter on TV3 [now Virgin Media One] was related to Dr Cagney. Phil says Dr Cagney was fabulous, but abrupt: “you’d be afraid like”, “you wouldn’t ask him questions” “the glasses would be down there” [Phil puts her glasses at to the end of her nose and looks over them doing an impression of Dr Cagney.] </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.17.41 - 0.19.00 </td> <td> LDF (Local Defence Forces) Training & Uniform The LDF (Local Defence Forces) used to train in the dispensary building [during WW2]. They had a “browny” uniform and a hat with a slit in it. Something like the Slua Muirí. They may have trained in the courtyard because there was space in “the Quakers”. They had to dress up in their uniforms. Mr Burns (or Byrne’s) who lived in Phil’s tenement was in the LDF. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.19.00 - 0.19.26 </td> <td> Sense of Community, Safety and Togetherness Everyone went to school together and brought each other. There was great harmony, great neighbours and a very happy childhood. It was safe to walk the streets then in a way it is less so today Phil thinks. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.19.26 - 0.20.47 </td> <td> Daily Routine, School, Shopping, Streetscape Had breakfast and their mother would bring them to school St Maries of the Isle. She would walk with them as far as across the street from the courthouse [on Washington Street] and after that there were no roads to cross so they could walk on their own from that point. Their mother would meet them again at that point for lunchtime to take them home. There was much less traffic than today, mostly horses and carts. The horses and carts with milk churns came to the Nolan’s next door. You brought your jug to the dairy, Nolan’s Dairy and filled it up with milk. During school they went home at 12:30 for their dinner. And her mother would meet them and bring them back at the start and end of lunch. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.20.47 - 0.22.07 </td> <td> Father, Work, Parenting and Strict Timekeeping Phil’s dad was working in the Munster Arcade as a draper’s porter. Everything was within walking distance. He had to wake up at 6:45 to be in work for 8:30, he was a great timekeeper. When Phil and her siblings started to go to work her father said “one call now and one call only for the morning.” (meaning that he would call/wake them once only in the morning.) They had to go to Dunlop’s for 8am. Mother would bring the younger children to school. He would do the “first shift” for the working children. He was very strict, “you wouldn’t get around him. If he said no that was it.” A good father. She thinks it was possible to say no to one’s children back then but that is no longer the case today. Her mother was a bit softer. You dare not miss your call because you didn’t get paid when you were out of work. You didn’t get paid even if you were out sick. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.22.07 - 0.23.22 </td> <td> No Sick Pay, Simple Remedies for Sickness Recalls a young man feeling sick at work. Someone suggested he go home but he said he couldn’t because his mother would kill him! So if you were out of work you were out of pay, so there was very little sickness as a result! “If you were sick you got your Tanora and your aspro” [Aspirin/ Disprin/ Panadol] that was the medicine they had from the chemist. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.23.22 - 0.27.43 </td> <td> After School, Food, Dinner, Rationing After school they would eat or go out to play. They had dinner in the middle of the day, when they came home at lunchtime from school. Might have bread and jam later- if you got jam you would be delighted. They were never hungry. Dinner would be stew. Something in a pot big enough for the whole family 6 children and the two adults 8 altogether. They didn’t have chops or steak. They had tripe and drisheen. You ate it whether you liked it or not because there was nothing else. Ration books from 1939-1945 butter was made up in 12 ounces. 16 ounces in the pound. The rations allowed 12 ounces for 2 people, 6 ounces each for a week. Tea was rationed. Mr Burns went to England (where Phil thinks the rationing may not have been as severe?!) and he was able to bring back the Van Houten’s Cocoa and his wife Mrs Burns would always share it with Phil’s family whatever they had- it was like Christmas. Doesn’t think that eggs were rationed- if you had the money you could buy them. Cannot say whether bread or milk was rationed. Sugar, tea, butter were rationed. There were vouchers for shoes issued by the Health Board. And you would get the vouchers from the Dispensary, (“The Quakers”). Phil’s mother would know about the vouchers, Phil was only a child at the time so wouldn’t know much about it. She says that if they did get vouchers they wouldn’t tell anyone because they were “very grand” she says in a joking posh accent. She says that her mother was a proud woman and “it was bred into us I’d say.” She didn’t want people to know that she was getting the vouchers, even though everyone else was in the same situation. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.27.43 - 0.30.53 </td> <td> Visiting the Doctor. Siblings with Diphtheria. Relatives with Measles Phil says “you’d have to be nearly dying” you’d have to have the measles or diphtheria to go to the doctor. You wouldn’t go for a cough or a cold. You’d go if there was something wrong with your ear or your eyes. Otherwise you’d get “Tanora and an aspro” and then you got better. Went into the Dispensary for her ear- doesn’t remember going to the hospital. 3 of her siblings got diphtheria. Her brother Paddy had to be hospitalised. Dr Cagney was their doctor for that. Diphtheria and whooping cough were prevalent at the time. Then injections were made available. Remembers other people in her family getting the measles, light was kept away from their eyes to prevent them going blind although Phil says she doesn’t believe that that is what would cause the blindness. But they kept sufferers in a dark room. It was a 9 day disease- 3 days coming, you had it for 3 days and then 3 days recovering from it. Measles and diphtheria were contagious but she doesn’t know about whooping cough. There was a three-in-one vaccine for those three diseases. Phil’s mother made sure that they got it from the dispensary. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.30.53 - 0.32.44 </td> <td> Worklife: O’Gorman’s Hat Making and Dunlop’s Worked in Dunlop’s “in the packing” and worked in O’Gorman’s making the berets the hat factory in Shandon maybe in the old butter market. Phil thinks it was a shopping centre or souvenir shop after it was O’Gorman’s Hat Factory. They started up the “berett” (beret) part of the business. Phil describes the hat as a being similar to a “Tammy-Shanto” (Tam O’Shanter) a hat worn by Scottish men, except that it did not have the tassel on it. She worked there for three years and then went to Dunlop’s because there was more money there. In the hat factory they made/knitted berets and shrunk them to the different sizes: 8 and a half, 9 and a half and 10 and half. They were knitted on a machine and put into something to shrink the wool which tightened up. Phil was involved in the setting up of that process and ended up being a supervisor. She then went to Dunlops to do the packing. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.32.44 - 0.38.06 </td> <td> Working in Dunlop’s, Wellington Boots, Timekeeping Discipline, Stopping Work once Married, Reflections on Staying Home to raise Children. Phil was an “inspectress” (inspector) in the packing section in Dunlop’s. She inspected the wellington boots to see if there was any flaw in them which needed to be repaired. Then they were packed into the boxes and sent out. The men made all the wellingtons and they arrived as a finished product when Phil got to inspect them. There were no women making the wellingtons. The men made them “down the dips”. Phil was inspecting the boots at the top of the heel where there might be a gap which needed to be filled in with some soft rubber. And if it wasn’t done properly she would send the boot back again for repair. She was strict because if there was something wrong with the boot the shop would send it back in any case. And you would be in trouble if it was sent back from the shop as it indicated that you had not been doing your job. “You’d be just called over the rope!”, “and if you were out sick you didn’t get paid while you were out either”. You had to clock in 8am, clock out at lunchtime, clock in after lunch, clock out going home 5pm. If you were five minutes late you were docked pay for quarter of an hour. Phil says that this discipline is good, though it is less common today: “it’s bred into you. You just accept it. You wouldn’t do it today!” That’s where the time keeping her dad had instilled came in useful. Cycled to work down the Centre park Road four times a day because they would go home for lunch- lunch was one hour. She worked for 3 years in Dunlop’s and 3 years in O’Gorman’s. She was in Dunlop’s when she got married, and she had to leave they would not allow her to work now that she was married. She would have liked to have kept working because she was “with a very happy crowd- very nice people.” Phil reflects that it would not happen today, and that men who got married were able to continue working. At the time Phil says they didn’t know any better because it was the same for everyone. Phil thinks they were better off at home with their children. Many people today would want to be at home with their children but they can’t afford it with the cost of the mortgage and other expenses. Phil feels sorry for people today who can’t be with their children- “there’s no money would pay you for that. You fit ‘em out for the world. And hope for the best after that. I know the best of them like might go astray. But at the same time you do your best.” “I thought it was lovely being at home with your children- you saw ‘em grow up” Phil says nowadays people have children before they get married. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.38.06 - 0.39.08 </td> <td> Diseases: TB, Tuberculosis and Recuperation There was TB at the time though none of her family got it. When you were recovering you had to go to the country to Sarsfield’s Court which was the heart of the country that time. There was Heatherside in Doneraile in North Cork which was a place for recuperating from TB you were there for 6 or 9 months until the TB was gone. Phil says thank god none of her family got TB she jokes that they “must have been well looked after with our bread and butter and our eggs.” </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.39.08 - 0.42.55 </td> <td> Houses, landlords, house ownership, shared water pumps, class distinctions, comparative wealth, protestants, graveyard, relations between Catholics and Protestants All McCarthy family lived in the one house in Peter Church Lane though they may not have owned it. Phil says she thought they were very well off but the people who got married were still living in the family home. There was a pump at the top of the lane as they had no taps in their houses, they had to fill their buckets at the top of the lane. Doesn’t think the McCarthys who lived in the first house in the lane had a tap either. Mr Cronin owned Phil’s family’s house. He was a railway man living in Glasheen. He came every week for his rent. You made sure you had your rent. He was a very nice man. You didn’t feel they were above you. People had their rent there was no ifs and buts. He worked in the railway he had a black uniform and the railway badge. He was only an ordinary worker but he owned 44 Grattan Street. Phil has met some of his family since and says they were all ordinary people- you didn’t feel that they were above you or below you even though they might have a little bit more than you- you never felt that. The have and the have nots. Even mixed with the Nolans of the People’s Dairy. Mixed with everyone except the Protestants (‘the Proddy Woddys’). Phil thinks that there was a caretaker for St Peter’s church living down the lane. One of the bars in the railings of St Peter’s (Protestant) graveyard was bent so they were able to get in there as children “you’d be hauled over the ropes” if they were caught. They weren’t allowed in there by the Protestants but also their parents did not wasn’t them in there. “Times were different. Sure we think nothing of Protestants now.” “The Catholics and the Protestants were miles apart long go.” </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.42.55 - 0.44.38 </td> <td> Family of the Pharmacist that lived in the Dispensary Mr Morrissy was the pharmacist that lived in the dispensary he made up the prescriptions. There was a hatch in the wall where people queued to hand in their prescription and wait for the medicine to be handed out. Never called anyone by their Christian name only as Mr, Mrs or Miss. The owners of Leaders shop on the North Main Street were known as Mr & Mrs and their daughters as Miss. Phil has been to visit one of the daughters recently and she still calls her Miss Leader. Went there for communion and confirmation clothes. Everyone got to know each other and grow up together. Miss Leader knows Phil’s family as “the Walls” she doesn’t know them by their married name. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.44.38- 0.48.57 </td> <td> Pawns and Pawn Shops Jones Pawn Shop, Kiely’s on Liberty Street where St Anthony’s Stores is now which is opposite St Francis. There was also a St Francis’ Stores on the corner of Sheares Street near the corner of the Courthouse which is a barber shop now. Jones Pawn shop on the North Gate Bridge, and Kiely’s may have had another shop on the North Main Street. Put in your clothes on a Monday and took them out on the Saturday. That gave you money for the week but you had to pay then on Saturday when you got the clothes out of the pawn. “They were hard times but ‘tis what everyone did.” Imagines her family used the pawn but she wasn’t told about it. You had to be back for a certain time to collect the items pawned and if you weren’t they kept the item. And that is how they had the old gold to sell. You could put something in for a month but you had to return on time to redeem it. The pawn shops “had lovely stuff” they were like antique shops they had such beautiful things in them. Lovely gold watches, rings. “You could admire them in the window but you couldn’t go in and buy them because we didn’t have the money.” They wouldn’t take shoddy stuff from you, they wouldn’t give you money for them. You could put an item in for 6 months. Everyone did it, it was nothing to be ashamed of it. As times got better the pawn shops faded out. The pawns definitely made money, Phil believes they were always very wealthy. Phil jokes that the pawn owners may have lived in Montenotte but she doesn’t know where they lived. People that had money were buying things from the pawns. Thick rings. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.48.57- 0.50.38 </td> <td> A Treat Sweets. On a Sunday her dad would give them a shilling between 6 children so 2 pence each after their dinner. But they didn’t dare ask for it. Once their dinner was finished on a Sunday the children were wondering “would he ever pay us?!”. He chose when it was time to pay them. There was 12 pennies in the shilling. They got a lot for their penny- ten sweets for a penny in a shop. They looked forward to it. Types of sweets: Bulls eyes, clove rock, peggy’s leg, black jacks. You could get a half a penny’s worth of sweets if you liked. There were also farthings- a quarter of a penny. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.50.38 - 0.53.24 </td> <td> What Happened to the Dispensary? The dispensary faded out, as people set up their own medical practices. The Health Board took it over, the doctors faded out and set up own places. Phil’s husband had to go to a doctor and the first visit was €200, though the price was less for subsequent visits. Phil often heard of €100 or €150 for a visit but thought that €200 was too much. Phil said that you didn’t have to pay going to the doctor or to the dispensary, but evens till they didn’t go unless it was necessary. The dispensary was a busy place. Doesn’t know where people who had money went to the doctor because they didn’t know anyone who had money. Lovely looking place inside, it was well done-up. It was “a big hall and you’d have rooms off of it four on that side and four on that side and you had two benches outside each door. You just sat on the bench then and took your turn, and hoped for the best.” LDF trained there certain nights a week and they had to wear uniform. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.53.24 - 0.54.11 </td> <td> Meets old neighbours from Grattan Street to this day, eg Byrnes, Mr Byrne was in the LDF, there were 6 in that family who live in the same house as hers. Only 2 of the Byrne’s left, 3 in Phil’s family. Still meet and socialise to talk about old times and the fun they had. They made their own fun. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.54.11 - 0.56.52 </td> <td> Protestant Graveyard at the back of St Peter’s They went in through the bars. “There were all tombs, like tables: you could have a meal on one of them. They were fabulous!” “There were no small headstones.” “There were headstones, but nothing poor about them” Fr Walsh from St Peter and Paul’s had the Don Bosco troupe/troop there to do plays for the stage like Father Matthew Hall. There was a place where the school was, “the Protestants were kinda fading out” and Fr Walsh set up the Don Bosco troupe and they had instruments. The Lynches were there: Pat Lynch, and Stevie. They had a hall beside the graveyard. They played instruments, sang songs and practiced there. They performed in small places in Cork, and they did Christmas shows down the lane. Fr Lynch used to do the parties for the poor children at Christmas. The parties were in the Mechanic’s Hall (now The Middle Parish Community Centre) upstairs where there was a stage. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.56.52 - 0.58.54 </td> <td> Mass, Religion, Dances, Strict Timekeeping They went to mass in St Francis but they were baptised in St Peter and Paul’s as it was their parish church. All her brothers were altar boys in St Peter and Pauls, and the girls were in the choir in St Francis. Her mother had the children involved in everything they were never left “go wild”. They were also in the Girl Guides or the Boy Scouts. She kept tabs on them. When they went to dances in St Francis Hall they were given five minutes to come home from the céilí on Saturday night from 8-11pm. If you went to the Arc (the Arcadia), facing the railway station it’s now apartments where the dance was 8-11 they were allowed half an hour to walk home. It was safe to walk home at that time, there would be no cars or buses after 11pm. If you weren’t there on time her mother would start walking towards them “I often met her!” says Phil. “What kept you?” her mother asked in case she had “been with the fellas”. That was the discipline that they had which they took with them and tried to instil in their own children “and do the best you can” doesn’t think it is easy to do that today. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.58.54 - 0.59.14 </td> <td> Christmas Party Phil doesn’t think that there was a Christmas party in the dispensary, only one in the Mechanic’s Hall [her sister Mary Mulcahy had mentioned a party in the dispensary, see <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/250">CFP_SR00729_Mulcahy_2019</a>]. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.59.14 - 1.02.08 </td> <td> Swimming: Outdoor Baths- Storage, Separate Days for Men and Women. Kingsley Hotel Flood They went swimming in the outdoor baths, they were not allowed in the Eglinton Baths because it was stagnant water. But they were allowed to cycle or walk up to the outdoor baths. They brought the togs and towel under their arm, and often had a picnic up there were a flask and sandwiches. Phil says she remembers the summers being lovely but that they are probably the same as they are now! Monday, Wednesday and Friday the baths were open for women, Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday was for the men. There were boxes all around the pool where you togged off. Your clothes could be stolen and you’d have to walk home in your togs. That never happened to Phil as they always had someone minding the box, or they swam in front of the box. They built a hotel [the Kinglsey] over those baths, and her husband is mad about that because they could have made a 50 metre pool there. At the time it was 50 metres one way and 50 yards in the other direction. Thinks the only 50 metre pools are in Limerick and the Aquatic Centre in Dublin. There was a flood in the Kingsley Hotel, which didn’t surprise Phil because that was where the swimming pool was with water from the Lee. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.02.08 - 1.05.02 </td> <td> Meeting her Husband. Anniversary. She met her husband in O’Gorman’s hat factory- but she “wasn’t going with him” then. Two or three years later she met him in the dances and “he used to dance me” and then they “became a couple and that was it. The rest is history.” They celebrated their sixtieth wedding anniversary on the previous Sunday. They didn’t do anything for the anniversary as Phil didn’t feel ready for it due to a number of family bereavements. But she had a small celebration at home. Later on she will have a bigger celebration, there will be plenty of time for that she thinks. “60 years with the one man” Phil says “I’m doing a line for 66 years!” [‘doing a line’ is Cork slang for dating someone.] Phil says that she doesn’t remember when there were Quakers there but it was always known as “the Quakers”. “but what kind the Quakers were now I have no idea.” Outro [Interview Ends] </td> </tr> </tbody> </table> Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Philomena Cassidy: Grattan Street, Healthcare, The Marsh Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context CFP_SR00732_Cassidy_2019; Relation A related resource Other Interviews in this Collection <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/240" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00696_O'Regan_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/242" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00704_Collins_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/243" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00706_Higgisson_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/244" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00712_O'Brien_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/245" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00713_Kearney_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/246" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00714_Cunning_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/247" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00717_Ward_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/248" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00727_OhUigin_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/249" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00728_Scanlan_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/250" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00729_Mulcahy_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/252" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00760_Morrissy_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/253" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"> CFP_SR00762_OConnell_2019</a>; Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Cork Folklore Project Audio Archive Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource Cork Folklore Project Language A language of the resource English Type The nature or genre of the resource Sound Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource 1 .wav file Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 4 September 2019 Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Cork Folklore Project Description An account of the resource Phil grew up in a tenement on Grattan Street and worked in O’Gorman’s Hat Factory and Dunlop’s before getting married and starting a family. She gives a very detailed description of the lanes, houses, shops and families on Grattan Street and the surrounding area of the Middle Parish. She discusses a variety of childhood games, a strong sense of community and friendly relationships with neighbours that have lasted a lifetime. Phil recalls the dispensary, subsequently the Grattan Street Health Centre. Inside patients waited on benches for the doctor who tended to their area of the city. She also remembers the dispensary caretaker and pharmacist who lived in the dispensary building. Her family’s daily routine is described including going to school, family meals and shopping. Her father was very strict about timekeeping, especially when Phil and her siblings were attending dances. This timekeeping came in useful at work where lateness resulted in docked pay, and where there was no sick pay. Rationing in the 1940s is described, including the amounts of various foodstuffs allowed per person, and how it was circumvented by a neighbour who travelled to England. Phil speaks of the diseases which we common when she grew up including tuberculosis. She also mentions her relatives who contracted diphtheria and measles and how they were treated. Refers to the vaccines for these diseases too. Phil would have liked to stay working in Dunlop’s after her marriage as she enjoyed working with the people there but it was not an option. Nonetheless she enjoyed being with her own children at home and watching them grow, something she thinks happens less today. Specific pawn shops and their locations are also recalled, how they functioned and their role in helping people make ends meet. Altar Boys Arcadia Bicycles Bikes Catholics and Protestants Céilí Chemist Childcare Children Children’s Games Christmas Churches Churchgoing Class Clothes Community Cycling Dancehalls Dances Dancing Diphtheria Dispensary Doctors Dunlops Employment Family Father Food Formality Forms of Address Grattan Street Grattan Street Medical Centre Graveyard Hat Making Home Home Ownership House Houses Housing Landlords Lanes LDF Living Conditions Local Defence Force Massgoing Meals Measles Mechanic’s Hall Medical Costs Medicine Middle Parish Money Mother Munster Arcade Music Neighbourhood O’Gorman’s Hat Factory Parents Pawn Shops Pawns Pharmacist Pharmacy Plays Prescriptions Pride Protestant Pub Quakers Rationing Rations Religion Rent Respectability Role of Women Sanitation Sarsfield’s Court School Sense of Community Shandon Shop Sick Pay Sickness St Francis Church St Francis Hall St Peter and Paul’s St. Francis Hall Stew Streets Streetscape Sweets Tanora TB Tenement Tenement life The Marsh Time Timekeeping Traffic Transport Treat Tuberculosis Vouchers Water Pump Wellington Boots Work Working Working life https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/files/original/964c5543f34a8b53c7216fc6049ed5d7.jpg e245f89b3e8cbbb2c200a3033ee23a69 https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/files/original/55664d27d1d86acac3291bc0e0bbbb40.mp3 c6f7b639a9c85fe29042f5582739a54b Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Grattan Street Stories: Memory of Place Subject The topic of the resource Occupational Lore; Life History; Built Heritage; Health; Ireland; Cork; Middle Parish Description An account of the resource This collection focuses on a building on Grattan Street which has served as a Quaker Meeting House, a public Dispensary and as the Grattan Street Health Centre. The project was a collaboration between the CFP and the Cork North Community Work Department, Cork Kerry Community Healthcare, Health Services Executive HSE. The interviewees fall into two main groups: those who worked in the building and those who lived in the surrounding area and availed of the services provided in the building. This project follows on from the collaboration with the HSE in the “<a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/collections/show/10" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">HSE Orthopaedic Hospital Oral History Project (d'Orthopaedic)</a>”. There is a further connection between the two projects as many of the staff and services once provided in the Grattan Street Health Centre have now relocated to St. Mary's Health Campus (St Mary’s Primary Care Centre) Gurranabraher, the former site of the Orthopaedic Hospital. This topic of the relocation of services is also covered in some staff interviews. To date (October 2021) 13 interviews have been completed for the project. Interviewees discuss the Grattan Street building itself in terms of its historic significance, its benefits and drawbacks as a workplace. Broader themes related to or inspired by the building are also touched on including: personal relationship with the building, staff camaraderie, the problems with parking, memorable incidents at work, patient experiences and descriptions of the people and services for which the building catered. Healthcare professional interviewees detail their training, career progression and comparisons between Grattan Street and other workplaces. Their testimonies also provide a link with the community of patients they served giving further insight into attitudes to healthcare, diseases, vaccines, description of social conditions and the changes in medicine and technology in their working lives. Non-healthcare professional interviewees describe childhood experiences in or around Grattan Street (The Marsh or The Middle Parish), the social, cultural and economic conditions of the area, tenements, businesses, attitudes to and experiences of healthcare, vaccines, diseases, medicines and medical professionals as well as observed changes in these areas over time. Interviewees also reflect on the possible future uses of the Grattan Street building. Related Reference Sources <ul> <li>Barrington, R. (1987) Health, medicine and politics in Ireland, 1900–1970. Dublin: Institute of Public Administration.</li> <li>Butler D.M. (2004) The Quaker meeting houses of Ireland. Dublin : Irish Friends Historical Committee.</li> <li>Byrne, J. (2004) Byrne's dictionary of Irish local history. Cork: Mercier Press.</li> <li>Cooke, R. T. (1999) My Home by the Lee. Irish Millennium Publications: Cork.</li> <li>Dempsey, P. J. & White, L. W. ‘Childers, Erskine Hamilton’. Dictionary of Irish Biography [Accessed 18 October 2021]</li> <li>Harrison, R.S. (1991) Cork City Quakers 1655-1939: A Brief History. Cork.</li> <li>Houston, M. (2004). ‘Life before the GP’. The Irish Times. Available at : <<a href="https://www.irishtimes.com/news/health/life-before-the-gp-1.1158599">https://www.irishtimes.com/news/health/life-before-the-gp-1.1158599</a> > [Accessed 18 October 2021]</li> <li>Keohane, F. (2020) The Buildings of Ireland Cork City and County. New Haven and London: Yale University Press.</li> </ul> Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2019-2020 Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Interviewees: Edith O’Regan, 'Mary', Sean Higgisson, Aoife O’Brien, Eileen Kearney, Imelda Cunning, Jane Ward, Liam Ó hUigín, Joe Scanlan, Mary Mulcahy, Philomena Cassidy, Don Morrissy, Derek O’Connell Interviewer: <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=2&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=Kieran+Murphy" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Kieran Murphy</a>, (<a href="https://corkfolklore.org/community-oral-history-outreach-officer/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP Community Oral History Outreach Officer</a>) Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant Cork, Ireland 1940s-2020s; Waterford, Ireland; Dublin, Ireland; Limerick, Ireland; Relation A related resource Exhibition Artist Edith O’Regan-Cosgrave (also an interviewee for the project) created a visual artwork based around the Grattan Street Medical Centre building itself, as a workplace and health centre. The artwork incorporated direct quotations from the oral history interviews conducted for the project, and also included brief historical paragraphs about the building researched, written and edited by the <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/community-oral-history-outreach-officer/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP Community Oral History Outreach Officer</a> Kieran Murphy. This exhibition was launched on 6th February 2020 in “St Peter’s” on the North Main Street where a “Listening Event” was also held to mark the occasion. <img src="http://corkfolklore.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/Grattan-Poster-for-Email-286-by-400.jpg" alt="Grattan-Poster-for-Email-286-by-400.jpg" /> Presentation and Listening Event To coincide with the launch of the Grattan Street Stories Exhibtion on 6th February 2020 a listening event and presentation of the history of the Grattan Street Medical Centre building and description of the project was given by <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/community-oral-history-outreach-officer/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP Community Oral History Outreach Officer</a> Kieran Murphy. <img src="http://corkfolklore.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/427A7714-1.jpg" alt="427A7714-1.jpg" /> Presentation In 2019 at the OHNI conference the <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/community-oral-history-outreach-officer/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP Community Oral History Outreach Officer</a> Kieran Murphy discussed social media and oral history which included audio excerpts from the Grattan Street Stories Project along with photographs of the building. <img src="http://corkfolklore.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/Kieran-OHNI-e1634041838937.jpg" alt="Kieran-OHNI-e1634041838937.jpg" /> Audio Visual Presentation An audio-visual slideshow was produced featuring oral testimony from the Grattan Street Stories Project and combined with suitable images of Grattan Street and from Edith O’Regan-Cosgrave’s exhibition. This was created by <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/community-oral-history-outreach-officer/">CFP Community Oral History Outreach Officer</a> Kieran Murphy. <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RnjEtQeOb3I&t=1s&ab_channel=CorkFolklore" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Audio Visual Presentation Available to listen and view here.</a> Health and Vaccines Oral History Research Many of the interviews conducted for the Grattan Street project formed an integral part of the testimonies and research for the innovative <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/health/about" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">'Catching Stories' of infectious disease in Ireland </a>project funded by the Irish Research Council. <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/health/about" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"><img src="http://corkfolklore.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/Catching-Stories-Poster.jpg" alt="Catching-Stories-Poster.jpg" /></a> Social Media Numerous suitable audio excerpts from the oral history interviews have been edited and shared on CFP's social media channels. <a href="https://twitter.com/corkfolklore/status/1139167201582288901" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">https://twitter.com/corkfolklore/status/1139167201582288901</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/corkfolklore/status/1140909542240391168" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">https://twitter.com/corkfolklore/status/1140909542240391168</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/corkfolklore/status/1141264486768238592" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">https://twitter.com/corkfolklore/status/1141264486768238592</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/corkfolklore/status/1189872295923376133" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">https://twitter.com/corkfolklore/status/1189872295923376133</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/corkfolklore/status/1228322700415860736" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">https://twitter.com/corkfolklore/status/1228322700415860736</a> Orthopaedic Hospital Cork Folklore Project in collaboration with the HSE conducted an oral history project focussing on the Orthapaedic Hospital in Gurranabraher. Many of the staff and services once provided at the Grattan Street Health Centre site were moved to St. Mary's Health Campus (St Mary’s Primary Care Centre) Gurranabraher, the former site of the Orthopaedic Hospital. <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/collections/show/10" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">HSE Orthopaedic Hospital Oral History Project (d'Orthopaedic)</a> Swimming Article Kieran Murphy and James Furey co-authored an article about <a href="https://tripeanddrisheen.substack.com/p/swim-city?s=r" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Swimming in Cork</a> which appeared in the online magazine Tripe + Drisheen. This article features a number of interview extracts collected as part of the Grattan Street Stories Project. Related Interviews CFP_SR00756_Quilligan_2019; CFP_SR00758_Broderick_2019; CFP_SR00670_OShea_2018; Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Cork Folklore Project Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Cork Folklore Project Audio Archive Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Cork Folklore Project Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource Cork Folklore Project Language A language of the resource English Type The nature or genre of the resource Audio Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource 16 .wav Files Oral History A resource containing historical information obtained in interviews with persons having firsthand knowledge. Interviewee The person(s) being interviewed Don Morrissy Interviewer The person(s) performing the interview Kieran Murphy Duration Length of time involved (seconds, minutes, hours, days, class periods, etc.) 61 Minutes 10 Seconds Location The location of the interview Cork Folklore Project Hub, North Cathedral Visitor Centre, Roman Street Original Format The type of object, such as painting, sculpture, paper, photo, and additional data .wav Bit Rate/Frequency Rate at which bits are transferred (i.e. 96 kbit/s would be FM quality audio) 24bit / 48kHz Time Summary A summary of an interview given for different time stamps throughout the interview <table> <tbody> <tr> <td> 0.00.00 - 0.00.19 </td> <td> intro </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.00.19 - 0.00.00 </td> <td> Earliest Memory Playing Fermoy In Fermoy about 3 years old playing under a table in a big room. His grand-aunt Julie O’Connor known as Auntie Jess owned the Grand Hotel in Fermoy. She bought the hotel. She was an entrepreneur. She was on good terms with the clergy. She didn’t like his name Donal and called him Don which stuck. She only had one eye, she wore a false eye. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.02.41 - 0.03.24 </td> <td> Where he lived growing up Initially grew up in Grattan Street Moved to Mardyke when mother bought house in 1949 and he stayed there until 22 when he went to Dublin. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.03.24 - 0.07.13 </td> <td> Living in Grattan Street Dispensary & Children’s Games Was told that he played with a girl and a pram. Played gobs with local children. Gobs: throwing stones up and caught them on the back of your hand. Remembers playing with bricks on the stairs in Grattan Street. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.04.40 - 0.06.27 </td> <td> Pharmacist Father House had three bedrooms. Maybe had a kitchen and at least another room downstairs. Assumes there was an indoor bathroom was unusual. Father was a pharmacist, met Don’s mother in Fermoy where he trained and they got married in Mallow. He was from Quilty in County Clare and they moved there after living for a while in Fermoy. He opened his own business in Clare- wasn’t a good businessman- he wasn’t good at getting patients to pay for their medicines and medications. He got a job as the pharmacist in Grattan Street in Cork city. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.06.27 - 0.07.46 </td> <td> Description of Father & Spanish Flu Vague memory of father. Not very tall. Kind man. Good singer and piano player. Father went to Rockwell College where he caught Spanish flu which stunted his growth at around 5 foot 6. His name was John or J.J and also known as Sean. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.07.46 - 0.10.14 </td> <td> Family & School His father stopped working in Grattan Street and there were issues between him and Don’s mother so they split up. Moved to Mardyke when mother bought house in 1949 and he stayed there until 22 when he went to Dublin Went to St Joseph’s school on the Mardyke. He is said to have run home twice from school on first day. Only knew of one person with a car, a teacher called Bob Tanner. “bob” was slang for shilling and “tanner” was slang for sixpence so he was known as “One and Sixpence”. He had an old ‘bockety’ Ford which holes in the floor through which you could see the road. Lots of children from the Marsh area- Sheare Street, Grattan Street etc. would have gone there. Don will be collecting his grandson after the interview and there will be lots of cars and no brothers teaching in the school. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.10.14 - 0.12.20 </td> <td> Violence & kindness of different Presentation Brothers in School Didn’t like the brothers, “they were brutes” except for a few kindly ones. He doesn’t like authority. Went to Presentation Brothers Secondary school where the lay teachers were more humane. The brothers were physically violent. Don expresses surprise that although one hears court cases about brothers sexually assaulting pupils that he hasn’t heard ones relating to physical assault. One very nice, good man was Brother Pascal who was very musical. He ran an accordion ban, a flageolet band (woodwind instrument) and a choir. Pascal ended up teaching deaf pupils in Greenmount. He didn’t like anything about school. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.12.20 - 0.14.40 </td> <td> Childhood Games & Local Area Got up to mischief outside school. Lots of children in the Mardyke at the time who he played with. House he grew up in was beside Fitzgerald’s Park where he could play. They played football, cowboys and Indians, Robin Hood and climbing trees. He grew up surrounded by famous sports people including Noel Cantwell who has an avenue named after him who captained Manchester United. Tommy Kiernan and Barry McGann played rugby for Ireland. He grew up near Sundays Well Tennis Club, Cork Cricket Club, university playing fields, and the public baths. And he can’t play any of those sports. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.14.40 - 0.19.07 </td> <td> Description of Mother & her Guesthouse Mother came from outside Youghal from a farm. Later worked with his grand aunt in Fermoy. Small lady. Ran her house as a guesthouse. She bought the house intending to keep students. Lots of commercial travellers stayed there and tourists in the summer. His 2 sisters sent to boarding school Loreto Convent Fermoy where his mother had gone. She didn’t have a great sense of humour. Her main concern was providing for them. She lived to be 97. Commercial travellers were salesmen who called on retail shops to get goods into the shop. Recalls a commercial traveller called Mackintosh for Dell Comics, and he had stacks of comics in the van and he gave one of each to Don. There was one for keys, fire alarms. Often colourful characters who had their own cars. Guests also included chauffeurs who drove rich Americans around Ireland. The Americans may have stayed in the Metropole Hotel. The cars were big Austin Princesses like a Rolls Royce and they were parked on the Mardyke and were never damaged. He got a spin in them. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.19.07 - 0.24.09 </td> <td> Home Life: Guests, Food & Cooking, Description of the House, Card-playing Felt like the house wasn’t theirs because there were always strangers in the house. Always 4 or 5 students staying with them. When older he got to know the students. Grew up on his own and still describes himself as a recluse. Mother cooked breakfast and tea but not a midday meal. She was a very good cook. Did all her own baking. Basic meals: eggs for breakfast. A fry in the evening. Chips were made on a Friday which were cooked in lard and put in brown paper. Whiting fish which he hated on a Friday as meat wasn’t allowed for practicing Catholics. They ate in kitchen while the guests ate in the dining room. When the guests weren’t eating it became the sitting room. Fire lighting always in the sitting room. It was like a game of whist always moving tables. His mother was a very good card player they played at Christmastime when her friends Elsie and Liam who were teacher came to visit. They used to play the card game 110. Elsie used to pick up cards from the discard pile of cards which was a form of cheating but she was never prevented from doing it. For a small house it was very busy. Don still owns the house. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.24.09 - 0.25.41 </td> <td> Don’s Holidays and his Mother’s Holidays Mother took a few days off around September where she stayed with an unmarried cousin Maureen Hennessey in Sandycove Dun Laoghaire. She also visited Elsie and Liam in Malahide. Describes travelling from north Dublin to South Dublin as a great distance. He was sent to an uncle and aunt during the summer for a holiday. Had cousins around his age living on the farm his mother grew up in where he stayed on holidays. His uncle had a buckrake which had spikes and was attached to the back of the tractor. His uncle put straw on it and put the children on the straw and he drove the tractor so they were swung from side to side. Don doesn’t think this was very safe. Remembers the summers as hot and sunny. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.25.41 - 0.29.21 </td> <td> University and Debating Went to UCC in 1963 for a 3 year Commerce degree. Worked in Cork briefly and then in a Canadian merchant bank for 3 years in Dublin. And then he came back to Cork. UCC was the most important time in his life. Gained confidence and met lots of people. Total freedom compared to school. Met his wife there. Was not a great student he says. Was involved in debating which allowed him contact with other universities. Recalls debating against Michael D. Higgins. Thinks he began university later having started working first possibly in the ESB. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.29.21 - 0.35.55 </td> <td> UCC: The debating Society, Study, Lecturer’s Gowns, Rules and grounds and gardens There was a Commerce Society. The Philosophical Society of “philosoph” was the big one. It had people from every faculty where they “talked rubbish”. Once won the speaker of the year award. The debates were held on Saturday night. The auditor of the philosoph was Oliver Lyons who was a teacher in Carrigtouhil later once said “I am the philosophical Society” in response to a challenge to the rules. Don had about 50 in his class. A son of his did Commerce with 300 in his class. Doesn’t think they had to study as hard back then. First lecture the dean came in late wearing a white linen jacket and panama hat, a famous economist John Busteed. He expected them to do some work but “not as hard as the little girls in Woolworths”. When you registered in UCC you met the registrar and the president. Don was called mister for the first time. The president told him to work hard. All lecturers and professors wore gowns. Recalls the nicely cut grey suit of the president. RAG week was a very tame event compared at the time. In his 2nd year a classmate said that the new first years were too pushy and they should have been more humble. There was a rule that you couldn’t walk on the grass on the Quad and that girls were not allowed to lie on the grass anywhere. The lower grounds were wild and had subtropical plants, where the Glucksman is now and it’s more tamed. He preferred it wild. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.35.55 - 0.38.25 </td> <td> Work, Marriage, Honeymoon Worked in Cork for 9 months then moved to Dublin. Had a flat in Clyde Rd. graduated 1966 and married his wife Deirdre on Monday 14th August 1967, went to Achill for their honeymoon. Stayed a few nights in Butler Arms Hotel in Waterville and stopped in Limerick in the Royal or the George Hotel. They didn’t realise there were any buses in Limerick! When she arrived back in the flat in Dublin there were 4 quasi-empty milk bottles in the sink! They are still married after 53 years. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.38.25 - 0.41.22 </td> <td> Pensions Work in Dublin Worked with Royal Trust Company subsequently Royal Trust Bank. They were money managers. Pioneered the area of privately invested pension funds, until that time insurance companies dominated the market. Spent his life working in pensions because of that experience. They expanded to merchant banker and money market transactions. He learned a lot although only peripherally involved- much more than he learned in UCC. He didn’t like his new boss and left they job because of him- is not sure it was the best decision. Flat in Clyde Rd and also bought a house in Dublin with the aid of a company loan. Mortgage interest rates were at 8% or 9% and his was 4% or so. Paid £5,500 for the house and sold it a year later for £6,500. Ballinclea Heights in Killiney. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.41.22 - 0.43.15 </td> <td> Living Accommodation in Cork & Buying Houses Rented a place behind Oriel Court Hotel in Ballincollig. The big house and outhouses had been converted into flats. They rented what had been the stables. Then bought a house in the city centre of Cork on Western Road which they sold and bought another house further up Western Road which was also sold and they now live in Shanakiel where they are for 34 years. They nearly forgot the baby when they were moving house! </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.43.15 - 0.45.51 </td> <td> Hopes for Cork development Change in development in Cork over the years. He says he doesn’t meet people in Cork city in the way he used to. Is looking forward to the new changes in the city on the quays and docks which over the next decade will be huge he thinks. He would look to see the equivalent of Dublin’s financial centre in Cork. McCarthy from Fexco said he wouldn’t move from Killorglin to Dublin because it doesn’t have scenery. Believes it’s possible for people to work from anywhere now. Would also like to see Cork have an IT hub. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.45.51 - 0.49.10 </td> <td> Grattan Street Dispensary for Weddings Dispensary on Grattan Street he doesn’t know what happened to it. Although he was back in the building for a wedding. Never got to go back and look inside. He was married in Honan chapel which had more appeal to him than a room in the old dispensary. Recalls a cut-stone building facing onto Grattan Street. Never remembers being inside the dispensary. Left the dispensary when he was 3 years old. In St Josephs School he met boys from Sheares Street and Paul Street but doesn’t think they had the opportunity to go to university. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.49.10 - 0.50.36 </td> <td> Outlook and reflection on life Raised as an only child and glad that his own children have been raised differently. Adamant after his own childhood that he would look after his own children as best he could. Believes that his own background gave him a sense of insecurity and hunger which drove him to find security. Retired early and was involved in a number of business deals of varying success. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.50.36 - 0.52.34 </td> <td> Grattan Street: Dairy, medicine and cream Recalls Grattan Street being busy and having tenement houses. There was a dairy on each end of Grattan St. Bradleys dairy at Sheares Street end and another one at the Kyle St end. It was all horse drawn carriages- few cars and lorries. The dairy sold butter. Was sent on his bicycle with an Andrews Kruschen Salts jar. His mother took the Kruschen salts every day as medicine. It was a small brown bottle half size of beer bottle with screw on top, with grease proof paper to prevent leakage. The jar was for cream which cost sixpence. They also sold butter pats but they didn’t buy butter there. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.52.34 - 00.54.44 </td> <td> Tripe and Drisheen His mother never cooked tripe and drisheen. Tried them since and didn’t like. Drisheen “the most gelatinous horrible stuff”. Thinks tripe should be nice with onions and milk. His mother told a story that after giving birth she was confined to bed for weeks in a nursing home in Fermoy and as a special treat the nun in charge gave her tripe and his mother broke down in tears because she couldn’t eat it. Don knows men who were reared on tripe and drisheen. Likes black pudding. Has eaten haggis which he liked the taste of. He asked what Haggis was and was told that he didn’t want to know! </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.54.44 - 0.55.06 </td> <td> Pawn Shops and Lack of Money Didn’t have any dealings with pawn shops that he knew of even though there wasn’t much money around. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.55.06 - 0.57.36 </td> <td> Coal Quay, Shawlies Status and Respectability Recalls the Coal Quay and the shawlies, which he suggests was not a complimentary name. Discusses how he read that there were degrees of respectability or status. At the bottom were shawlies, then women who wore coats and scarves, then women with coats and hat, and above that were women who wore costumes and hats. Says he wasn’t aware of that at the time. He subsequently saw a clip of the Coal Quay on television where a women wearing a hat and coat turned her back to avoid being recorded as being in the Coal Quay Mentions Katty Barry’s pub where crubeens were sold at closing time. Though he was “wild enough” in college he didn’t drink until he left college and began to work. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.57.36 -1.01.02 </td> <td> Cork Dancehalls 1960s Recalls the Main Rest in UCC which transformed into a dancehall one night a week, and everyone went to “The Rest”. Robin Power (who trained as a dentist but became an entrepreneur) started a dance in the Arcadia known as The Dinosaurs, which he thinks was on Thursday or Friday night which everyone wanted to attend if they had enough money. A typical student might have a bicycle but at the time Robin Flower had an Alfa Romeo! Brought big Irish bands there like Sandy Shaw. Arcadia was a designed ballroom with a mirrored disco ball which made it more romantic and exotic. The rest closed at 11pm and the Arcadia at 12 midnight. He met a women from Ballinlough who said she walked home from the Arcadia late at night because it was so safe back then, but she was afraid of seeing a ghost! That’s how innocent things were. The Arcadia still stands it is student accommodation now across from Kent train station. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.01.02 - 1.01.10 </td> <td> Outro </td> </tr> </tbody> </table> Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Don Morrissy: Grattan Street, Healthcare, Working Life Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context CFP_SR00760_Morrissy_2019; Relation A related resource Other Interviews in this Collection <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/240" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00696_O'Regan_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/242" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00704_Collins_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/243" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00706_Higgisson_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/244" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00712_O'Brien_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/245" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00713_Kearney_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/246" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00714_Cunning_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/247" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00717_Ward_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/248" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00727_OhUigin_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/249" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00728_Scanlan_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/250" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00729_Mulcahy_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/251" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00732_Cassidy_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/253" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"> CFP_SR00762_OConnell_2019</a>; Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource Cork Folklore Project Language A language of the resource English Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Cork Folklore Project Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Cork Folklore Project Audio Archive Type The nature or genre of the resource Sound Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource 1 .wav file Subject The topic of the resource Ireland; Cork; Dublin; Middle Parish; The Marsh; Grattan Street; Occupational Lore; University; Description An account of the resource Don recalls his entrepreneurial great-aunt who owned the Grand Hotel in Fermoy. Recounts early years in the Grattan Street Dispensary building where his father was the pharmacist. Describes growing up on the Mardyke close to St Joseph’s School and Presentation Brothers School which he attended. Talks about the violence of corporal punishment. His mother ran a guesthouse in the family home, including preparing all the meals for the customers who were mostly university students and commercial travellers with their own cars which was rare. Remembers summer holidays on a cousin’s farm. Describes his time in University College Cork as the most important in his life. Discusses student societies, debating and the university grounds. Outlines his working life in pensions, career direction, marriage as well as living accommodation. Expresses his hopes for building developments in Cork and the emerging opportunities of remote working there. Reflects on how his background has formed his outlook on life. Describes cycling to collect cream from Bradleys Dairy on Sheare’s Street in an Andrews Kruschen Salts jar. Also mentions his distaste for tripe and drisheen. Talks about a hierarchy of respectability in Cork based on types of clothing, with shawlies being the lowest rank. Discusses Cork dancehalls in the 1960s including UCC, the Arcadia and the people who organised them. Arcadia Bands Business Cars Childhood Childhood Games Children’s Games Clare Coal Quay Commercial Travellers Cooking Corporal Punishment Dancehalls Dances Entrepreneur Fermoy Fitzgerald’s Park Food Gobs Grattan Street Guesthouse Healthcare Honan Chapel Katty Barry Mardyke Marriage Medicine Medicines Middle Parish Music Musical Instruments Parents Playing Presentation Brothers Public Baths Respectability School Schooldays Shawlie Shawlies Shawls Sheares Street Spanish Flu Sport St Joseph's School The Marsh Tripe Tripe and Drisheen UCC UCC Philosoph University University College Cork Weddings Working Working life https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/files/original/258f8a9e64793339a507e3a85bd81702.jpg e245f89b3e8cbbb2c200a3033ee23a69 https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/files/original/3125ce6124ce89fa3fce67b1a9671623.mp3 77a259a8bfc162d7ef72e5ad87d179a5 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Grattan Street Stories: Memory of Place Subject The topic of the resource Occupational Lore; Life History; Built Heritage; Health; Ireland; Cork; Middle Parish Description An account of the resource This collection focuses on a building on Grattan Street which has served as a Quaker Meeting House, a public Dispensary and as the Grattan Street Health Centre. The project was a collaboration between the CFP and the Cork North Community Work Department, Cork Kerry Community Healthcare, Health Services Executive HSE. The interviewees fall into two main groups: those who worked in the building and those who lived in the surrounding area and availed of the services provided in the building. This project follows on from the collaboration with the HSE in the “<a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/collections/show/10" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">HSE Orthopaedic Hospital Oral History Project (d'Orthopaedic)</a>”. There is a further connection between the two projects as many of the staff and services once provided in the Grattan Street Health Centre have now relocated to St. Mary's Health Campus (St Mary’s Primary Care Centre) Gurranabraher, the former site of the Orthopaedic Hospital. This topic of the relocation of services is also covered in some staff interviews. To date (October 2021) 13 interviews have been completed for the project. Interviewees discuss the Grattan Street building itself in terms of its historic significance, its benefits and drawbacks as a workplace. Broader themes related to or inspired by the building are also touched on including: personal relationship with the building, staff camaraderie, the problems with parking, memorable incidents at work, patient experiences and descriptions of the people and services for which the building catered. Healthcare professional interviewees detail their training, career progression and comparisons between Grattan Street and other workplaces. Their testimonies also provide a link with the community of patients they served giving further insight into attitudes to healthcare, diseases, vaccines, description of social conditions and the changes in medicine and technology in their working lives. Non-healthcare professional interviewees describe childhood experiences in or around Grattan Street (The Marsh or The Middle Parish), the social, cultural and economic conditions of the area, tenements, businesses, attitudes to and experiences of healthcare, vaccines, diseases, medicines and medical professionals as well as observed changes in these areas over time. Interviewees also reflect on the possible future uses of the Grattan Street building. Related Reference Sources <ul> <li>Barrington, R. (1987) Health, medicine and politics in Ireland, 1900–1970. Dublin: Institute of Public Administration.</li> <li>Butler D.M. (2004) The Quaker meeting houses of Ireland. Dublin : Irish Friends Historical Committee.</li> <li>Byrne, J. (2004) Byrne's dictionary of Irish local history. Cork: Mercier Press.</li> <li>Cooke, R. T. (1999) My Home by the Lee. Irish Millennium Publications: Cork.</li> <li>Dempsey, P. J. & White, L. W. ‘Childers, Erskine Hamilton’. Dictionary of Irish Biography [Accessed 18 October 2021]</li> <li>Harrison, R.S. (1991) Cork City Quakers 1655-1939: A Brief History. Cork.</li> <li>Houston, M. (2004). ‘Life before the GP’. The Irish Times. Available at : <<a href="https://www.irishtimes.com/news/health/life-before-the-gp-1.1158599">https://www.irishtimes.com/news/health/life-before-the-gp-1.1158599</a> > [Accessed 18 October 2021]</li> <li>Keohane, F. (2020) The Buildings of Ireland Cork City and County. New Haven and London: Yale University Press.</li> </ul> Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2019-2020 Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Interviewees: Edith O’Regan, 'Mary', Sean Higgisson, Aoife O’Brien, Eileen Kearney, Imelda Cunning, Jane Ward, Liam Ó hUigín, Joe Scanlan, Mary Mulcahy, Philomena Cassidy, Don Morrissy, Derek O’Connell Interviewer: <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=2&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=Kieran+Murphy" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Kieran Murphy</a>, (<a href="https://corkfolklore.org/community-oral-history-outreach-officer/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP Community Oral History Outreach Officer</a>) Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant Cork, Ireland 1940s-2020s; Waterford, Ireland; Dublin, Ireland; Limerick, Ireland; Relation A related resource Exhibition Artist Edith O’Regan-Cosgrave (also an interviewee for the project) created a visual artwork based around the Grattan Street Medical Centre building itself, as a workplace and health centre. The artwork incorporated direct quotations from the oral history interviews conducted for the project, and also included brief historical paragraphs about the building researched, written and edited by the <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/community-oral-history-outreach-officer/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP Community Oral History Outreach Officer</a> Kieran Murphy. This exhibition was launched on 6th February 2020 in “St Peter’s” on the North Main Street where a “Listening Event” was also held to mark the occasion. <img src="http://corkfolklore.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/Grattan-Poster-for-Email-286-by-400.jpg" alt="Grattan-Poster-for-Email-286-by-400.jpg" /> Presentation and Listening Event To coincide with the launch of the Grattan Street Stories Exhibtion on 6th February 2020 a listening event and presentation of the history of the Grattan Street Medical Centre building and description of the project was given by <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/community-oral-history-outreach-officer/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP Community Oral History Outreach Officer</a> Kieran Murphy. <img src="http://corkfolklore.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/427A7714-1.jpg" alt="427A7714-1.jpg" /> Presentation In 2019 at the OHNI conference the <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/community-oral-history-outreach-officer/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP Community Oral History Outreach Officer</a> Kieran Murphy discussed social media and oral history which included audio excerpts from the Grattan Street Stories Project along with photographs of the building. <img src="http://corkfolklore.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/Kieran-OHNI-e1634041838937.jpg" alt="Kieran-OHNI-e1634041838937.jpg" /> Audio Visual Presentation An audio-visual slideshow was produced featuring oral testimony from the Grattan Street Stories Project and combined with suitable images of Grattan Street and from Edith O’Regan-Cosgrave’s exhibition. This was created by <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/community-oral-history-outreach-officer/">CFP Community Oral History Outreach Officer</a> Kieran Murphy. <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RnjEtQeOb3I&t=1s&ab_channel=CorkFolklore" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Audio Visual Presentation Available to listen and view here.</a> Health and Vaccines Oral History Research Many of the interviews conducted for the Grattan Street project formed an integral part of the testimonies and research for the innovative <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/health/about" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">'Catching Stories' of infectious disease in Ireland </a>project funded by the Irish Research Council. <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/health/about" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"><img src="http://corkfolklore.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/Catching-Stories-Poster.jpg" alt="Catching-Stories-Poster.jpg" /></a> Social Media Numerous suitable audio excerpts from the oral history interviews have been edited and shared on CFP's social media channels. <a href="https://twitter.com/corkfolklore/status/1139167201582288901" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">https://twitter.com/corkfolklore/status/1139167201582288901</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/corkfolklore/status/1140909542240391168" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">https://twitter.com/corkfolklore/status/1140909542240391168</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/corkfolklore/status/1141264486768238592" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">https://twitter.com/corkfolklore/status/1141264486768238592</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/corkfolklore/status/1189872295923376133" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">https://twitter.com/corkfolklore/status/1189872295923376133</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/corkfolklore/status/1228322700415860736" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">https://twitter.com/corkfolklore/status/1228322700415860736</a> Orthopaedic Hospital Cork Folklore Project in collaboration with the HSE conducted an oral history project focussing on the Orthapaedic Hospital in Gurranabraher. Many of the staff and services once provided at the Grattan Street Health Centre site were moved to St. Mary's Health Campus (St Mary’s Primary Care Centre) Gurranabraher, the former site of the Orthopaedic Hospital. <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/collections/show/10" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">HSE Orthopaedic Hospital Oral History Project (d'Orthopaedic)</a> Swimming Article Kieran Murphy and James Furey co-authored an article about <a href="https://tripeanddrisheen.substack.com/p/swim-city?s=r" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Swimming in Cork</a> which appeared in the online magazine Tripe + Drisheen. This article features a number of interview extracts collected as part of the Grattan Street Stories Project. Related Interviews CFP_SR00756_Quilligan_2019; CFP_SR00758_Broderick_2019; CFP_SR00670_OShea_2018; Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Cork Folklore Project Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Cork Folklore Project Audio Archive Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Cork Folklore Project Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource Cork Folklore Project Language A language of the resource English Type The nature or genre of the resource Audio Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource 16 .wav Files Oral History A resource containing historical information obtained in interviews with persons having firsthand knowledge. Interviewee The person(s) being interviewed Derek O'Connell Interviewer The person(s) performing the interview Kieran Murphy Duration Length of time involved (seconds, minutes, hours, days, class periods, etc.) 84 Minutes 15 Seconds Location The location of the interview Cork Folklore Project Hub, North Cathedral Visitor Centre, Roman Street Original Format The type of object, such as painting, sculpture, paper, photo, and additional data .wav Bit Rate/Frequency Rate at which bits are transferred (i.e. 96 kbit/s would be FM quality audio) 24bit / 48kHz Time Summary A summary of an interview given for different time stamps throughout the interview <table> <tbody> <tr> <td> 0.00.00 - 0.01.58 </td> <td> Family and House Grew up on Winter’s Hill between Blarney Street and Wyses Hill on northside of Cork. The third of 4 children all delivered by caesarean section. His mother was very small and the local GP, one of the first “lady doctors” of which there were only 4 or 5 at the time, and they covered for each other. Father worked in insurance and had a good job as assistant manager of insurance company. Mother worked full-time. Always family member in the house to help out, including a grandmother. An old male relative lived in the 3rd floor of the house. That wasn’t unusual, it wasn’t always one room per person. But it solved childminding issues. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.01.58 - 0.02.20 </td> <td> Grandmother Remembers grandmother’s lap, her dark blue apron with designs on it and knitting needles. She died when he was about 3. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.02.20 - 0.04.33 </td> <td> House and Mother’s GP Surgery 3 storey detached house, a bit unusual. Further back from the road than others, with passage in called “the passage”, hen house in front and back of house, which was normal at the time. Mother did house calls in the morning. In the evening they had to go to the dining room because the front room became the waiting room and she had her surgery upstairs. Learned young how to answer the phone. People might arrive with urine in a Paddy whiskey bottle. In retrospect she was checking pregnancies or urinary infections. He was frightened of her steriliser- an electric pot with instruments in it. Syringe needles were sharpened on an oil stone before being put in steriliser, and no one seemed to get infections. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.04.33 - 0.07.59 </td> <td> Routine/ Typical Day at Home & School Walked down Wyses Hill to school in St Al’s (St Aloysius) which was a girl’s school. Teachers Miss Brett, Miss Curran (Chris Curran’s sister maybe), Sister Aloysius in first class which was more challenging because she didn’t like the boys. There was two thirds girls in the class. At that time this was normal practice. Walked across Vincent’s bridge across by the Mercy Hospital and across by lark’s bridge. Recalls where the labour exchange is now (Intreo Centre Hanover Street) there were beautiful Georgian Houses (tenement houses) in terrible condition with lots of washing out and women out talking to each other and several generations playing, and that was normal. No one thought there was anything right or wrong with it, it was just the way it was. Went home for lunch, and often had soup and a main course especially in the winter time. A lighter meal in the evening. All the family returned home for lunch except his father who might be traveling to Bantry or Skibbereen which was a long way at the time. A lady prepared the meals for the family. People who worked in the house lived locally and were like members of the family. They might work for 2 or 3 years and move on, often when they got married. Someone else would come then, often by word of mouth, perhaps through his mother’s GP practice. Always ate fish on a Friday which he didn’t like. Suspects there was a rota for meals. ‘Meat and two vegetables’ was always the meal. Felt privileged to have that as not everyone could, and there was a good bit of poverty around. Recalls a “soundbite” from Blarney Street: “Johnny come in for your rasher and two eggs!” There was a great respectability, everyone respected everyone else and there wasn’t any talking down to people- it wasn’t acceptable. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.07.59 - 0.09.49 </td> <td> Playing near Home & the Haggard Didn’t get out of the house all that much. Played football outside the door for a while. Area called “the Haggy” across from where they lived, the Haggard* which was a kind of wasteland roughly where fancy apartments at bottom of Wyses hill are now. People used to dump their “ponnies”** in the old days. It wasn’t regarded as a place you’d go, it was just a steep hill. But people went there with their (chamber) pots. But the stigma of it not being a clean place remained even maybe 100 years after running water and sewage came in. So when playing football if the ball went down the haggy no one wanted to fetch it. Was not allowed to go out to play football, mother would have had a “conniption fit” had she known they were out doing that. [*Haggard or Haggart: A farmyard or small enclosed field; a vegetable patch or kitchen garden. Or area adjacent to the farm yard or what once was a farm yard. Traditionally this was an enclosed area on a farm for stacking hay, grain or other fodder. (sources: Wiktionary, meathfieldnames.com] **[ponny or ponnie: earthenware or metal pot or mug (Source: A Dictionary of Hiberno-English: The Irish Use of English ed. Terence Dolan)] </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.09.49 - 0.12.43 </td> <td> Family, Changes and Adversity Mother died when he was 13. Dad had had 1st heart attack previous year and he had retired from work and started an insurance brokerage as a hobby. Sister Catherine did medicine and went to America and didn’t want to return. Different doctors tried to keep mother’s GP practice going. Older brother in insurance now retired. Younger brother Michael born hypothyroid and had severe autism slept in his room and found it normal to share a room with a practically non-verbal brother. Remarks on how people what people can accept as normal even if inconvenient and that people are strong in the face of adversity. Discusses the resentment and rage which is normalised by the internet which has also contributed to the polarisation of politics “it’s as if only extremes are correct”. History suggests consensus is what works. The manipulation of social media has contributed to this phenomenon. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.12.43 - 0.14.47 </td> <td> Mother, her GP work and her car Mother was very bubbly. Black hair with white stripe in the centre very careful about appearance hair was always done properly. Very hard worker with patients and at home. Expected high level of neatness and cleanness. She had a bubble car maybe 200cc with a door in the front. She covered other GPs. She went to Hettyfield and left 10 year old Derek doing his homework in the bubblecar. A 13 year old girl asked what it was and said “ours is a Consul Cortina”. The first time Derek felt his car might not be adequate. Bubble car had two seats at front one at back entered from the front. Recalls 4 children and his mother in the car! That was normal. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.14.47 - 0.16.53 </td> <td> Mother & Father: Backgrounds and relatives Mother and father put great store in education. She was youngest of 11 and one of the first to go to university. Dad was youngest of 17 children many in the family had been engineers. Derek’s grandfather had been married twice. Derek’s paternal grandfather died in 1917 before his father was born. Paternal grandfather was a builder/engineer/contractor had a lot to do with building of Fitzgerald’s Park, he has photographs of the grandfather with his workers dressed in Victorian outfits for the Cork Exhibition (1902 probably). Maternal grandfather was cattle-dealer Cronin. They lived up in Fair Hill which was subject to a compulsory purchase order in the 1960s by Cork corporation. Google maps lists Cronin’s Field at the top of Cathedral Road, assumes that this was the same field. Knew relatives at top of Hollyhill who were farming until Hollyhill as we know it was build. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.16.53 - 0.18.04 </td> <td> Pawnshops and stolen goods Two pawnshops on Lavitt’s Quay and one at bottom of Patrick’s Hill. Doesn’t recall who ran them. The Christening Cups were stolen a few times by the same person from the waiting room in the house and were located by the Gardaí in the local pawn shop. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.18.04 - 0.21.36 </td> <td> Secondary School: transport, teachers, shawlies, baths Went to Christian Brother’s College (CBC) after St Aloysius, his grandfather, father and brother had gone there. One teacher Mr Richard McCarthy known as Dicky Rashers called Derek by his father’s name because he had taught him as well. The story with Dicky Rashers was that he had dietary issues and after Christmas an announced that he had had rashers. He was a nice man. If it was raining they got the number 14 bus down Wyses Hill which came every 20 minutes. They used to hide because Dicky Rashers would offer them a lift which they didn’t want from a teacher. Also cycled to school. Got wheels caught in railway track going to Eglinton Baths. Those railway bridges opened until the 1970s. Goods trains and Guinness trains used to cross over them. Cycled up Patrick’s Hill to get to the Christian’s rugby field (Landsdowne). Cycled down the hill when it was raining, breaks failed and stopped where Brown Thomas is now. Only 4 or 5 cars on Blarney Street at the time. When 15 a shawlie stopped him near the Templeacre Bar (Gurranebraher Road) and she gave him a pint jug and asked him get her Guinness from the snug. She would not be seen going into the pub but wanted her Guinness. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.21.36 - 0.24.09 </td> <td> Secondary school teachers Christians was somewhat elitist which a lot of people were not comfortable with. Many teachers were old and not qualified teachers. Mr Murphy taught him art for leaving cert, but he had been teaching junior infants. He was very small his feet would not touch the ground when sitting on a desk. Mr Townshend music teacher and great musician. All characters. Violence of corporal punishment, queuing around the classroom to answer questions on Geography or Latin. If you weren’t very academic you got a lot of beatings on the hands. Some of those less academic pupils became very successful businessmen. The Christian brother told the boys in the B class to be nice to boys in the C class because they might need to get a job from them later. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.24.09 - 0.26.04 </td> <td> Secondary Schools in general, elitism & ‘One Day a Week School’ The uniform was part of the school’s elitism. There was a school nearby “the Wana” (one day a week) and there was a clear difference between them and CBC. CBC had disciplined and scheduled classes all day. The one day a week school pupils were obeying the law, 12 or 13 years old selling papers to make money. They had to attend school until a certain age. People with dyslexia were beaten and treated with contempt. Scoil Mhuire girls private school was nearby and quite posh. Around the corner was St Angela’s was less posh. Rivalry between Christians and Pres (PBC, Presentation Brothers College). </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.26.04 - 0.27.22 </td> <td> Secondary School: lack of empathy, attitudes towards sports Was in first year of secondary school when mother died. There was no recognition of that in school and he dropped from A class to B class. A little help would have gone a long way. In retrospect there were probably a number of pupils with ongoing issues which were never addressed by the school, while the emphasis was on playing rugby. Rugby in Cork was elitist then too. Derek joined Tramore Athletic soccer club. A cousin played tennis quite well and a Christian brother said “why wouldn’t he take up a boy’s game?” </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.27.22 - 0.28.44 </td> <td> Eglinton Baths, swimming, chipper Eglinton Baths had a boys’ pool and a girls’ pool. Probably 25 yards. White tiles with balcony around each pool. Communal hot showers, but the pool itself was freezing and stinking of chlorine. “It wasn’t unusual to be blue and wet!”. Went home via Maylor Street and went Matt Kiely’s chip shop to warm up a bit. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.28.44 - 0.29.30 </td> <td> Changes after mother’s death, father’s career Younger brother went into full-time care when his mother died. And his dad was involved in local politics and trying to run a business. He was a Fine Gael councillor for over 20 years in the North Central part of Cork which would have been unusual. He was involved in the health board and the building of the regional hospital. He was chairman of the hospital board for years and of the health board. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.29.30 - 0.31.36 </td> <td> Repeating the Leaving Cert with Dr Paye Derek always assumed that he would be a doctor. He was offered a place in dentistry in college which he declined. His dad got him into the Holy Trinity College on Washington Street “Doc Paye’s” which was a military camp for getting your leaving certificate. He is grateful to Dr Paye and Miss Paye. For this school your hair was cut very tight, you wore a humiliating uniform, “you arrived on time or you didn’t arrive at all”. Mixed class, boys wore black, girls wore red with tartan. Every class was structured 45 minutes and took serious notes. They had studied the leaving cert papers and knew what needed to be learned. Still sees Dr Paye around and she must be a good age. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.31.38 - 0.34.15 </td> <td> First experience of University: courses and social and sport life After he resat the leaving cert he went to UCC in a course call First Common Science. This was an experiment when Pre-Med and Pre-Dent courses were done away with. In First Common Science you competed for your course. Had little experience of social mixing, and enjoyed going to the Kampus Kitchen (Campus Kitchen) to smoke cigarettes and drink coffee, and drink beer in the evening if you could afford it. First Common Science was not a problem because of the work done in Dr Paye’s. 60 got into medicine, 20 into dentistry and the rest did other science degrees maybe dairy science and science. Glad he got to mix and get to know more people. Thinks that his son who went to Trinity to do medicine probably missed out on that aspect of social life as he went straight into medicine. Small group of people in his course. There used to be rugby matches in the quarry in UCC where the Boole Library is now. The pitch was very muddy in winter. Dentistry were not able to field a team as there were not enough men doing the course. Playing the quarry you were just as good as everyone else because everyone was terrible. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.34.15 - 0.37.39 </td> <td> University: playing cards, betting, debating society, studying For the first year or two Kampus Kitchen was the place to play cards and a lot of money was won and lost there. He stopped playing cards because he saw people lose their grants. He once lost the money to be spent on a shirt for the Med Ball and had to attend with a pink shirt. As regards clubs and societies looking back he thinks he should have attended the Philosoph (UCC Philosophical Society, college debating society). People who were from Cork probably got less involved in clubs and societies, whereas those living on or near campus would have become more involved. Thinks the Philosoph would have broadened his education, mentions how Theo Dorgan was there during his time in college and thinks that Theo got a broader education compared to the narrower field of medicine. His education was greatly advanced in 2nd Year Medicine while in the library fretting about a physiology exam maybe 2 weeks before the exam. A mature student around 35 years old told him “the information in a book is inversely proportional to its size”. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.37.39 - 0.39.37 </td> <td> What’s needed to become a doctor and to practice No one asks him as a doctor where he came in his class, and it wouldn’t make a difference anyway. Many people who were academically gifted would not have been suited to being doctors. Is concerned that a medical education which requires strong left-sided brain skills to remember and regurgitate material may not produce great communicators and not great doctors. Someone with an average IQ could be a very good doctor. The economics of being a doctor suggest that maybe it should not be so attractive for people and they would be better in IT or science. Once you qualify in medicine that is only the beginning: you have to graft for jobs, get relevant experience and only then try to make a living. It’s just a primary degree unlike dentistry where you are a qualified dentist once you complete the degree </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.39.37 - 0.42.48 </td> <td> Working in North Infirmary: learning, some memorable cases Went to the North Infirmary. Lovely hospital to work in, was very well-treated. Very hard work. 3 medical interns, 3 surgery interns, maybe 2 SHO (Senior House Officer) and 2 Registrars. Recalls first night he was on for surgery when a patient from motorbike accident was to arrive in and the SHO left before the patient arrived. Nurses were excellent. Learned how to do things. Learned how to recognise cases that were too hot to handle. When on call started 9am Friday finished Monday at 5. There were very few GPs out of hours so got big queues in North Infirmary. Went to bed 4am one Sunday morning and he was told there was a young man with chest pain. The young man looked pale and sweaty and was wearing ex-army jacket which was “all the rage” at the time. Discovered that the man had been playing darts, had gotten a dart in the back and had a chest full of blood. Learned to be careful and not take things at face value. Another night a man was brought in by his friends. At the time Match of the Day (football highlights and analysis TV programme on BBC) was at 7pm or 8pm. The man had been in the pub and “his leg was swinging in the breeze”, he had fallen off a bar stool and broken his hip around 7:30pm but had stayed in the pub until Match of the Day was over before coming to hospital. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.42.48 - 0.51.04 </td> <td> Changes in healthcare: preventative medicine, vaccination, alcohol Suggests people may have been tougher in the past. Then reflects on the improvements in medicine and that “the good old days weren’t so good”, people didn’t live as long, not vaccinated, poor nutrition. As nutrition improved children became taller than their parents. Improvements in prognosis. Enthusiastic about preventative medicine. Although the medical card system did not take that into account, doctors were not paid for vaccinations on the medical card but they did it anyway. Gay Byrne encouraged people to get the measles vaccine. And there was a change in the demographics of the measles incidents over two years after that. Didn’t see cases of measles for 15-20 years, and it only reappeared when anti-vaxers (anti vaccination campaigners) appeared. Thinks it’s a scandal. Vaccination for measles is not individual it is based on herd immunity it requires 80-90% of the population to be vaccinated or the vulnerable will get it: people with immunodeficiency, leukaemia, chemotherapy. Discusses the changes in gender demographics in relation to cardio-vascular diseases and risk factors. There had been an economic difficulty with alcohol-you could only afford a small amount of alcohol (or cigarettes). But now alcohol is cheaper and cigarettes are more expensive. Mentions the trend of pre-drinking. Suggests problems of alcohol appear to occur further north of the equator. Discusses the off-licenses in Sweden where you had to order alcohol a bit like the system of ordering products in Argos. If your order for alcohol exceeded accepted level you were not served. This didn’t prevent people drinking as they made their own. Discusses the positive effect of smoking ban and the way people use the “nanny state” argument to oppose basic public health measures. Talks about the improvements in treatments and survival rates particularly for cancers and cardio vascular diseases. Compares this to reactions of indignation. Points out the hidden nature of preventative health care which can be effective but is rarely seen of credited. Preventative care is also less well understood compared with waiting times for doctors or ambulances, number of hospital beds. Thinks the question should be about quality of life and what can be done to improve it. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.51.04 - 0.52.47 </td> <td> North Infirmary working routine, cost of hospitals In north infirmary there was a doctors’ room and dining room where you had your own seat and there was a colour television which was unusual at the time. 6 interns. You worked every day and every third night as well and every third weekend. But if someone was on holidays you had to work every second one. The cost of a bed per night in the hospital was £80 and when it was closed the cost in other hospitals was £200-£300 per night. Discusses the merits of centres of excellence and lower-tech hospitals. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.52.47 - 0.57.07 </td> <td> Further training in St Finbarr’s & CUH, reviving a child, CPR After North Infirmary did obs and gynae (obstetrics and gynaecology) in St Finbarr’s Hospital and CUH (Cork University Hospital). Great training, lovely, practical and kind obstetricians. A small nurse Sister Tutor called him at night for a mother giving birth. The nurse cleverly directed him in delivering the baby with a forceps while making it seem like he was the one doing all the work. “Without the nurses we’d be nowhere”. His daughter is a nurse and sees how knowledgeable and capable they are at the coal face. Unwise for doctors to ignore what nurses say. The importance of everyone being on the same team. Recalls an A and E (accident and emergency) nurse who had all the equipment ready while the doctor was looking up what was to be done. Recalls a child around 7 years old who was dead from cardiac arrest after getting electrocuted on a Saturday afternoon. They used intubation, put up a drip, drugs, cardiac massage, and defibrillation. They didn’t have time to look up dosages they divided them amounts by 4 for a child. They had a good success rate at reviving dead bodies in North Infirmary- community response is key today. “an ambulance on its way doesn’t keep your heart beating.” Believes everyone should learn the basics of CPR. Recalls CPR in his GP practice. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.57.07 - 0.58.50 </td> <td> Further medical training and useful A & E experience After obs and gynae he did paediatrics, psychiatry, and a year in A and E where he learned that a little smile went a long way. Talked about how to politely and carefully deal with cases which were not serious enough to be in A and E. Public who might be waiting all day did not see the very serious cases that were happening out of sight. It was good training for a GP practice. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.58.50 - 1.04.21 </td> <td> Own GP practice, Dr Cagney’s GP practice & Spanish Civil War, Set up own GP practice on northside in their house. Found it lonely because there were so few patients coming in. He then practiced with Dr Michael Cagney until he got a stroke. Dr Michael Cagney was a remarkable man, big burly, chain-smoking man very kind to people. He would tell people to give up cigarettes while he was smoking at the same time. He was doing surgery and he returned to GP practice because he father had been running a practice but became ill. When Dr Michael Cagney sat his leaving cert he was too young to go to college so his dad and General Eoin O’Duffy decided to send him to fight in the Spanish Civil War. He rarely spoke about his time in that war, and must have been traumatised by it. He probably thought he was going out “to help the raped nuns.” Many people from Ireland went to fight in that war. And it was not that long ago. Reflects on children today being used as soldiers in other countries, and being involved in drug gangs in Ireland and on those who leave to fight for Al Qaeda today and crusaders in the past. Dr Michael Cagney was probably born around 1920. The practice was in 51 Grand Parade, 2 floors up. It was a very good practice, he was very ethical and kept very good notes on large A4 file in alphabetical order which was probably unusual for the time. They used the Merck Manual which was an encyclopaedia of therapeutics. You could ring surgeons for advice. There was a great sense of responsibility and great collegiality. Refers to the changing ways of doctors referring patients to hospitals. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.04.21 - 1.06.09 </td> <td> First day in new GP Practice, changes in care, responses to bad cases Remembers first day in Dr Michael Cagney’s practice which was in a back room and patients wanted to see Dr Cagney rather than Derek: “With respect to you doctor I’d like to see the doctor!” After time people came to see him specifically. Did everything, including: antenatal, postnatal and smears- it was perfectly normal for a male doctor to do a smear in those days before there were headline cases of doctors who did the wrong thing. Derek became deskilled in that area because it was too much of a risk. Suggests that new practices are often introduced in response to hard cases. Mentions the response to the Dr Harold Shipman murders in England where GPs had to list the number of patients they had who died in one year to prevent a similar case. One GP made a mistake in their statistics and rang up to clarify them, but was told no one would ever read the statistics so it didn’t matter. Says that lots of information is gathered but never really used. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.06.09 - 1.08.05 </td> <td> Learning on the job, diseases not disappearing Dr Michael Cagney learned surgery but had to learn paediatrics on the job. Thinks most people of average intelligence can learn very quickly when put in a situation. Recalls a patient with a rheumatic heart and the hospital intern found it hard to believe. Derek says “diseases don’t go away they’re just waiting for you to forget that they happen”. Thinks there will be more outbreaks of diseases due to lack of vaccination. Polio outbreak in Amsterdam 20 years ago. “diseases don’t go away because you are sophisticated or rich or white.” </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.08.05- 1.09.51 </td> <td> Attitudes to vaccination, TB Treatments in Cork Discusses the positive attitude towards vaccination in the past. People had seen children with whooping cough and adults who had holes in their lungs because of it. Doctors had patients who had limps from polio epidemic in Cork in 1950s, knows of a patient who died of post-polio syndrome in their 70s. TB was common but few admitted to having it- stigma associated with it comparable to leprosy or HIV. Mentions Mr Hickey in Sarsfield’s Court who was able to collapse lungs and do pioneering surgery to treat TB. Thinks vaccination is question of statistics not opinion. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.09.51 - 1.12.20 </td> <td> Routine as GP: house calls, pager, patients not going to hospital Typical day started around 9am. Might do 10 house calls in a day because people didn’t go to hospital or if they did not for very long. House calls were also more common back then because of the lack of transport options for patients. Discusses the pager service, finding a public pay phone and how getting in contact with a patient an hour after they used the pager was considered fast. Dealt with a lot of pathology at home if patients did not wish to go to hospital. Could visit a patient at home every day for a week or two if they had a serious condition. It was very gratifying when patients recovered. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.12.20 - 1.15.06 </td> <td> Public Health Nurse care Had little contact with the Grattan Street dispensary and health centre. Mentions the dental service there, ophthalmologist Dr O’Sullivan and public health nurses (PHNs). When doing the membership of general practice in London he was not believed when he said there were only 2 PHNs for Cork city centre. PHNs medical care had a physical, psychological and social side. Knows that dispensary doctors had limited treatments: “blue tablets, red tablets and liquids”. They worked before the medical card system, which he thinks came in the 1970s. When Derek became a doctor the system was ‘fee per item’ you were paid a small amount for each thing you did as a GP. Everything had to be written in a duplicate book. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.15.06 - 1.17.52 </td> <td> ‘The Marsh’ memories. Case of anaemic man Dad was in the St Vincent De Paul and many in the Marsh were living with 2 or 3 families (in some case 5 families) living in the same big Georgian Houses. Many of these were knocked down in the 50s and 60s and many moved to Cathedral Road and Fair Hill. Some families had lived for generations in the Marsh. Recalls visiting a man a PHN was concerned about. Man lived with his dog and had a picture of Elvis on one wall and Jesus on the other. He was very anaemic but wouldn’t go to hospital. The remedy was some injections of B12, iron and oral folic acid and Meals on Wheels. Believes the problem was nutritional- living on spam sandwiches. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.17.52 - 1.20.35 </td> <td> People with psychiatric problems lived in the community in the past, now are being hospitalised Some people who lived in the city centre had come from elsewhere where may have been rejected. Some had mild schizophrenia or personality problems. They came to live in the anonymity of town. Many muddled along living in bedsits and had as much company as they wished. Now similar cases are put in hospital maybe in situations that do not suit them. Discusses the idea of putting anyone with psychiatric problems into the same category. Compares how we treat other illnesses- there is no “abdominal ward” which would treat a huge array of different illnesses, these are catered for separately. Similarly he thinks it doesn’t make sense to put people who are depressed or hearing voices in the same place as those with an eating disorder. Does not think the problem will be solved by additional money alone. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.20.35 - 1.21.40 </td> <td> Ability of people to cope. Publican ran bar walking on her knees Highlights the extraordinary ability of people to cope. Recalls an elderly lady (who probably had polio) and ran a bar walking on her knees on a bench behind the counter. Thinks that today there is more a demand for everything to be perfect and this can lead to unhappiness. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.21.40 - 1.24.15 </td> <td> Reflects on career, mistakes and medical training Thinks that when he made mistakes it was because he had ignored the inner voice that suggested something didn’t smell right. One of the things that was instilled in learning to be a doctor was basic guilt. The default was guilt, the sense that if something went wrong it must be your fault. That is the downside of medicine: trained into a guilt-trip. Makes you vigilant all the time which can be tiring. Wouldn’t change anything, felt privileged and happy to meet people and make a connection and friends. It wasn’t possible to be friends with your patients, there had to be a dividing line, though he is friends with them now. You couldn’t do business with or have a relationship or a social life with a patient. Peggy Cronin O’Connell and Vincent O’Connell were his parents’ names. Interview Ends 1.24.15 </td> </tr> </tbody> </table> Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Derek O'Connell: Grattan Street, Healthcare, Working Life Relation A related resource Other Interviews in this Collection <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/240" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00696_O'Regan_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/242" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00704_Collins_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/243" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00706_Higgisson_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/244" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00712_O'Brien_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/245" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00713_Kearney_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/246" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00714_Cunning_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/247" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00717_Ward_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/248" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00727_OhUigin_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/249" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00728_Scanlan_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/250" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00729_Mulcahy_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/251" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00732_Cassidy_2019</a>; <a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/252" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00760_Morrissy_2019</a>; Language A language of the resource English Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 11 December 2019 Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context CFP_SR00762_OConnell_2019; Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Cork Folklore Project Audio Archive Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource Cork Folklore Project Type The nature or genre of the resource Sound Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource 1 .wav file Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Cork Folklore Project Description An account of the resource Originally from Winter’s Hill, Derek describes his home and family: siblings, grandmother, his GP mother and his father who worked in insurance. He outlines his mother’s tasks and equipment as a GP. He describes his routine on school days, attending St Aloysius school and awareness of tenement houses en route. All the family except his father who was traveling returned for a big meal at lunch time prepared by a local woman who worked for them. Always ate fish on Friday. Recalls respectability being very important. He recalls the Haggart or “Haggy Field” at the bottom of Wyses Hill where “ponnies” or chamber pots were emptied. He remembers family adversities: death of his mother, father’s heart attack and his brother’s autism. He outlines more of his family history: paternal grandfather involved in construction of Fitzgerald’s park and the 1902 Cork Exhibition, maternal grandfather Cronin was a cattle dealer, Cronin’s Field at the top of Cathedral Road may be named after him. He mentions pawn shops and how the family christening cups would “go missing” and be located in the local pawn. Also recalls a “shawlie” asking him to fill her a jug of porter from a bar as she did not want to be seen going inside herself. He describes his Christian Brothers secondary school, the violence of corporal punishment, the teachers and cycling to and from school. Discusses the emphasis on rugby at the school, the elitism of this and the uniform. Reflects how in retrospect the school failed to address personal or emotional problems the pupils had. Mentions the one-day-a-week school nearby. Describes the Eglinton Baths. Talks about studying for the Leaving Cert at Holy Trinity College with “Doc Payne” before attending UCC. Recalls studying and socialising at university before outlining his further medical training, specific cases in hospitals (North Infirmary, CUH (Cork University Hospital) and St. Finbarr’s) and ultimate career trajectory towards becoming a GP. Reflects on improvements in medical care including vaccines, nutrition, public health and improving survival rates for many diseases. Remembers delivering his first baby and reviving a child who died from cardiac arrest. Describes ultimately working on Grand Parade as a GP in the surgery of Dr Michael Cagney who had fought in the Spanish Civil War. Discusses making house calls in “The Marsh” area, and the treatment of psychiatric problems. Finally, Derek reflects on his career, the sense of guilt and hypervigilance instilled in his medical training, and how mistakes are made when not following your intuition. Subject The topic of the resource Ireland; Cork; Middle Parish; The Marsh; Occupational Lore; Medicine; Family; University; Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant Cork, Ireland, 1970s-2010s Accident and Emergency Alcohol Autism Baths Being a Man Blarney Street Boys Bubble Car Cards Career Career Path Cathedral Road CBC Characters Child Rearing Childbirth Childhood Games Children’s Games Chipper Christian Brothers Cigarettes Class Cork Cork city Cork Exhibition Cork University Hospital Cycling Disease Doctor dyslexia Eglington Street Baths Eglinton Street Baths Elitism Emigration Fish Fitzgerald’s Park Food Games GP Grandparents Guilt Gurranebraher Road Hettyfield Hollyhill Hospital Houses Hypothyroid Injuries Intuition Knitting Lavitt's Quay Leaving Certificate Maylor Street Measles Medical Training Medical Treatment Medicine Mental Health Mercy Hospital North Infirmary Northside Nursing One Day A Week School Parents Patients Pawn Shops Placenames Playing Polio Ponnies Psychiatric Public Baths Public Health Public Health Nurse Pubs Respectability Role of Women Rugby Sarsfield Court School Schooldays Shawlie Shawlies Shawls Social Media Social Status Spanish Civil War St Aloysius stigma TB Teachers Templeacre Bar Tenements The Marsh Tuberculosis UCC Philosoph Uniforms University University College Cork Vaccines whooping cough Winter's Hill Working Working life Workplace Wyses Hill https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/files/original/f562ece7cc87e70b4c5d0d377c9e2bd6.jpg 1f03cbb120b155d41988136d73b090ae https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/files/original/12489c95b7e4a60fa1b10904d3631197.wav 6977102c507d41b323da1f6221841576 Oral History A resource containing historical information obtained in interviews with persons having firsthand knowledge. Interviewee The person(s) being interviewed Con O’Callaghan Interviewer The person(s) performing the interview Kieran Murphy Duration Length of time involved (seconds, minutes, hours, days, class periods, etc.) 106min 24sec Location The location of the interview Douglas Time Summary A summary of an interview given for different time stamps throughout the interview <table> <tbody> <tr> <td> 0.00.28 - 0.05.01 </td> <td> Con recalls his child hood growing up on fuller’s road in the Lough area of Cork city (shallow limestone lake south west of cork city). And how it was a lovely area to grow up in at the time he then mentions it was over 70 years ago since he was a child growing up in that area. And how his father had the first car in the area and how there house had a side garden and how his father would park the car in the side of the house. Con then mentions how as kids they would play on the road and how it was cul de sac (a street with only one inlet or outlet) and how there was no cars so they had the entire street to play on. Cons then mentions that it is not like 20022 were houses have two or three cars. Con explains were he went to school in Sullivan’s quay and how he started his schooling in saint Marys of the isle as child and then moved over to Sullivan’s quay secondary school. Con then recalls how his father wanted him to go to college but how he had no interest in going and how he always wanted to work with his hands and how he wanted to become a carpenter. Con then explains how at the age of 14 how he got his apprenticeship with a small builder called JJ O Connell and how he went out of business just as Con was finished his apprenticeship. And how he then went working for various builders he then mentions the building firms as been PJ Hegarty and sisks on Building sites and how he worked on housing schemes and big industrial concrete scheme were they would be building reservoir’s. He also remembers moving jobs at this time to the regional Technical college now (CIT Bishoptown) as trainee foreman Then meeting his wife of 49 years. And Con recalls how her mother who had Connections in the (OPW) (office of public works) were he then was Offered job as a carpenter and how he encountered architect who became a friend who had the Same interest as him in sailing and how he was a member of the Royal Cork Yacht club in Crosshaven. Con then recalls been offered a job as inspector with OPW Because people working on building sites had better money and Did not want to join the OPW so the commissioner of (OPW) at the time came up with a scheme to train people within The (OPW) to become inspectors so at 50 Con became an Inspector with (OPW). And he goes into detail on how he returned to do computer classes as he had no knowledge of computers and how he received his ECDL Certifications. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.05.01 - 0.09.03 </td> <td> Con then goes into detail on how he returned to do computer classes as he had no knowledge of computers and how he received his ECDL Certifications. Con then mentions that he is a recovering alcoholic and goes into detail about this part of his life and his wife Been a student at UCC at this time and why he stopped drinking alcohol and Got Help in Tabor lodge ( addiction treatment service) and he is Active member of Alcoholics Anonymous and how his bosses were helpful to him in this period of his life and how he got opportunity for promotions within the OPW. CHECCK THIS WITH KEIRAN AND TOMAS. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.09.03 - 0.19.06 </td> <td> Con then goes on to say how he got into the music scene as Drummer And percussionist as a African drummer with drum Village and when Martin Aherne a community health worker For the (HSE) (health service Executive) advertised in local newspaper looking for musicians for Martins (HAZ)( health action zone). He then joined the group called Shandon HAZ music group and they moved to Kerrigan Tyrell hall at tinkers cross (a suburb in Mayfield in north west of Cork city) Con then recalls that Martin dies and they rename the group to martin’s music. Con then mentions the covid 19 pandemic and how he set up a Zoom meeting (video conference platform) so the group could Still meet through these meetings when people were in lockdown and how it held the group together for the 2 years of the lockdown. Con then explains about playing a gig for women’s group in Farranree and how some members didn’t want women to be part Of the group as they saw themselves as men’s shed so those Members left and they now have women members in the Group. Con also explains how they have another gig for the lifelong learning festival in the local library and also mentions playing a tribute concert to Martin Aherne in the grounds of the orthopaedic hospital. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.19.06 - 0.25.43 </td> <td> Con then recalls been raised on Fuller’s Road. And talks about his childhood fishing on the Lough. He then mentions about his children when they were Born and Buying a mobile home in Garrettstown. And how finding a Stray dog which began 15 year relationship with dog agility Shows. And how he went to classes to learn to train the dogs in Agility Courses he then goes onto say how he began building Courses For the organisation. He then refers to how he travelled all over the country with his family going to dog agility shows and winning trophy’s and how his children learned to handle The dog as well. Con then mentions when he met his wife how he was involved with racing motorbikes and how he had few bad accidents. He then mentions boats and how physically demanding racing Boats was. Con then recalls how he also had no time to give to racing at that period. Because of family commitments and his music although he does Go on to explain how he did go to the Mediterranean France Spain and Portugal. Helping people taking their boats there and bringing Boats back from these locations. He then goes onto describe how he is retired now and people contact him to bring boats back from Spain and they send him His airline ticket and he goes help them sail the boats back to Ireland as they would have no crews. Con them recalls that he now sails with an individual called Pat O Leary and how his boat is a cruiser rather than a thoroughbred Racing boat. And how he invited Con and his wife on a cruise to Bantry taken in the sights of Sherkin Island Schull Baltimore. And how the summer weather was beautiful and how the cruising is Easier than racing as you go in straight line for miles and how The yacht racing is more physical on your body and how cruising is great fun. He goes onto say how he loves where he lives now and how he loves music and sailing. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.25.43 - 0.29.07 </td> <td> Con then returns back to growing up on Fullers road and how it Amazes him now that children in 2022. Are all indoors playing Computer games as to when he grew up he refers to how he Would have a sandwich and go out on the road and spend as Much time away from the home as possible playing football Hurling cricket cowboys and Indians. And how they had no technology at that time he goes onto say that sweets were a luxury and if they got some chocolate on Sunday you Considered it a great privilege. He then tells us were fuller’s road is situated by the Lough Church. And how earlwood estate a (suburb south west of Cork city) was only been constructed and beyond that you had open Country side. And how he and few friends had small terriers And would be out the country chasing rabbits and how healthy the Outdoor activities were. And how this generation only exercise Their two thumbs playing computer games and how they think They are great soccer players and can drive cars fast but they are Doing it all on screen were his generation were enjoying Themselves doing sport. He then describes how they were different times and how he loved living on fullers’ road. Con then give details about lighting bonfires And how the flames were as big as the two story houses and how he was getting small bit older and getting interest in women. He then give details of playing spin the bottle and kiss or torture with the girls and how there was no internet dating. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.29.07 - 0.35.42 </td> <td> Con then goes into detail on how small the house was that he Grew up in with his parents and sisters. He goes onto mention contraception and total abstinence he then goes explains how a TV programme called ‘The Way We Were’ Presented by Mike Murphy from RTE (Raidió Teilifís Éireann) and how it mirrored his own childhood memories and how it was so similar to his own childhood. Con describes how his own father was sleeping in the spare room and how they were cramped conditions. He then mentions a clock that his father owned and how he would Wind it every day and how Con still has the clock to this day And how he now winds it every day. And how his father got the Clock out a house fire in Ballyclough (southwest of Cork city near Mallow). He also recalls how his father was clerk of Works with the council and how his father was raised by his Aunt as both his parents died at young age he then goes onto say How he bought the family home when his Father died and how he renovated the house. He goes onto say he had a very privileged upbringing and how He would go to work with his father as a teenager and been let Go to the rubbish dump with the drivers. As his father went to Meetings with council staff and how other workers did not like Having the boss’s son with them. And he describes how ironic That he went on to do the same work as his father in the OPW Rather than in the council like his father. He then recalls how his Father picked the house on Fullers road And that it had the most land plus how it paid dividends to Con when he went on to sell it in later Years before the boom time in the building industries collapsed And how he got planning for apartments on the land before he Sold it . </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.35.42 - 0.43.17 </td> <td> Con again speaks about his father and how he loved him and his Mother he then explains how his father was also a motorbike Enthusiast. And in 1970 how Con paid six hundred pounds for 750cc Norton commando motor bike and how he was part of the Influx of big bikes into Ireland. And how his friends were also into big bike like Honda 4 and Kawasaki 3. And how the side of Cons house became a garage for them to Fix their bikes and how His father would have only seen bikes like the BSA Norton’s And triumphs. And how His father was amazed to see the Japanese bikes And the latest technology and how his friends thought he had The coolest dad as the other fathers saw them as dangerous Equipment. Con then recalls how some friends died on road accidents and How lucky Con was to never to be in very serious accident. He Then describes how his father died at the age of 73 and his father Smoking 60 cigarettes a day. And how Con was only 20 years old When his father passed away and his father was 54 years old when con was Born and how he had only 20 years with him but packed so Much into those years. In addition to this Con recalls how his father was very enthusiastic Person and how he would have the family up at 8 AM for Sunday mass. And how They would drive to Youghal beach and how they would Spend the day down there swimming and making sand castles He also talks about to how his father got to know the Fisher men that Would take Con up the river black water on their boats to check For illegal fishing nets. And make sure they would not be blocking the salmon going up Stream. And how his father was aware of Cons interest in boats and as Con was only a child at that time and would not have had Access To boats as his father had no interest in boats. He then Goes back talking about his first motor bike at the age of 16. And how his father helped him purchase the Norton bike at price of five hundred and 95 pounds. This was a lot of money 50 years Ago and how you would pay 20 thousand euros for the same bike in 2022. In addition to this Con explains how he went to a finance company at first to get a loan of the money. But He explain how he would be paying 45% back on the loan Con goes onto Explain how his father bought the bike for him and he paid him Back On a weekly bases. Con then mentions how if he was going camping with his Friends to Mondello Park (International Race Circuit). His father wouldn’t take no money That week for his bike but Says when he got within 100 pound Of the final payment his father did not take the final payment From him. He goes onto say how it set him up to save money and how at 71 years of age Con is happy going sailing and playing Music. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.43.17 - 0.56.57 </td> <td> The interviewer then ask Con about market gardens and he Explain how his father grew his own vegetables of potatoes and Cabbage and how they only lived 10 minute walk from Patrick Street (Cork city’s main street) and how his father let their Garden go into hay and using a scythe to cut it and making Haystacks in the middle of their garden and also keeping Chickens and how his father had apple and pear trees. Con then explains about going slogging apples and the fun of Doing it. He then describes about the cold weather and how they Made skating ring on the road and how different it is from kids Playing these days. He then goes into detail on cutting timber with a Cross saw Con then recalls on what his father’s job was straitening corners. He then mentions the road going up to Cork Airport and how it was only a boreen (a narrow country road). He then shows the interviewer a photo of the road been built and mentions a Mr Donovan who was an engineer. Con then mentions how his father Worked on three major road projects including the dual carriage Way in Tivoli and were it starts at silver springs hotel and finishes at Dunkettle Bridge and how it was the first road in Ireland to have a central reservation were traffic was going in two Different directions and compares it as major job at the time Comparing it to the likes of the link road Bypassing Cork city. Con then comments on Inchigaggin bridge and a Grand prix racing Before he was born and how it was an international circuit and How his father was of great personality and how the timber his Father cut was used for heating the house as that was the only Form of heating they had. Con then reverts back to his child hood and been bathed in a galvanised bath in front of open fire and How the heat coming out of the fire was the only heat in the House. And how they would light the fire in the bedroom only if You were sick and he then compared them to houses in 2022 Which would have better heating systems and how his own House now has double glazed and treble glazed windows. And How they would boil kettles of water to take a bath in his youth And he explains how it was like how they bathed in the cowboy films and that’s how he was raised and did not know anything better. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.56.57 - 0.10.104 </td> <td> Con then recalls the food they were eating and were they Would buy this food in the local shop. Before the advent of big Supermarkets and how everything from Bread and meat was Sourced locally and how the food was set dinners for each day Of the week he then mentions fish was always Fridays dinner And that’s how people lived there lives. Con then mentions Covid 19 pandemic and how there was a Polio epidemic in cork And how it was only effecting children who were bound to wheelchairs and he explains what calliper’s were and how he Was sent to live with friends of his fathers in Mallow and how The epidemic was confined to Cork city and how his father’s Friends had no kids and were delighted to take him into their Home. And how he was treated like royalty and how his pocket Money increased from 6 pence a week to 3 pence a day and how He spent the full summer down there and it was magical as he Had Great freedom as they were not as strict as his parents and how He built rafts and go out on the river and would have no life jackets and how there was some kids were in tragic accidents. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.10.0104 - 104.37 </td> <td> Con then returns to his childhood growing up in the lough and Going fishing and model boat racing in the lough and how he Was fascinated on how they sailed against the wind. He then Mentions how there was a gentleman in a Punt (flat bottomed Boat with square cut bow). And how this person thought him How to row and when he Became ill that Con took on the duty Of rowing the Punt to retrieve the model boats that became Entangled in the reeds. And how he was going to secondary School in (sully’s quay) (Sullivan’s quay secondary school) and How he would skip School on Wednesday afternoon to go Sailing on the Lough were he should have been up in Deer park Were the monastery was with the Christian brothers doing Athletes and GAA which He had no interest in. Con then mentions a Mr Corcoran who was in charge of the model boat club and he lived in Hartland’s avenue and how he Had Agreement with him to open the club on Wednesday afternoon In addition to making excuse to the Christian brothers why he did not go to Deerpark. Con goes into detail on what he did in the Rowing boat on the Lough he goes onto say how he fell in love With boats from that experience and from there he discovered Motorbikes women and alcohol and how he stopped the model Boat pastime. He then goes onto say that he then met his wife Clare and how He bought his first small sailing boat and how he Progressed to bigger sailing boats and how his last boat was 6 Berth and how Con bought it as a new boat and how expensive it Was but Himself and his wife travelled exclusively on it and had Great memory’s </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.04.37 - 1.06.12 </td> <td> Con then goes Into detail how he learned how to sail with Eddie English in Cobh (seaport town on the south coast of county Cork) and how he did a training course and was fascinated by The learning ability’s he got but had some idea how to sail Before taking the training course he then says that he took the Training course over 50 years ago, probably around 1972. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.06.12 – 1.07:57 </td> <td> Con then goes onto explain how he loved every aspect of sailing Which included the repairing of boats he then goes onto explain How he had a bridging loan with the bank for an extension on His house and how he spent the money on his first sailing boat In county Limerick and went back to the bank for more money The following week and how it all worked out fine. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.07.57 – 1.13.55 </td> <td> Con then explains what make a great sailor and how you need Passion for it which he still has at 71 years of age and how he loves everything involved with racing. Con then explains how he would Have sailed with people that He would never sail with again he Explains one episode of bringing a boat back from Spain with a very excitable person and his wife and they hit a storm at sea and how he was not Prepared enough with weather forecast and You have to be calm when you have problems at sea. And how a Three day trip took them five and half days because The person had the forecast wrong. And he goes onto explain how he did Another trip were the Person had everything you needed for a Cross channel trip and How Con made a mistake in the first Incident where he didn’t Read the forecast beforehand and how You need trust the people You are sailing with. And how people That would be in Baltimore a ( fishing village in western side of Cork county) for weekend and take a chance In bad weather because they wanted their boat back in its berth Because they would have work on a Monday and if left in west Cork they would need to retrieve it midweek. Con goes onto say that he Stayed in Baltimore for a week with His wife Clare because the Weather was not good for sailing and how his wife loved been On the boat. But she was not a sailor so Con was sailing single handily and His wife did the cooking on board and how above The deck was his concern and below deck was hers. Con explains He is very cautious when sailing because you had To think about others people life’s including the lifeboat people he then goes onto say how he looks at a series on TV called saving life at sea And the stupid things people do putting other Peoples life at risk to rescue them. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.13.55 – 1.21.53 </td> <td> Con then returns to explain in detail about his trip back from Spain with bad weather and the problems they had and when They came out the other side of the storm by the Fastnet light House and how Anne the person wife was a lovely person and How they were 4 to 5 mile outside the old head of Kinsale (a head land near Kinsale county cork). Con then goes onto explain how the boat engine failed them and It would be a situation that he would never put himself in again and how he has done longer trips since on trips down to Greece and how all the crew had their own showers and toilets on board And how it was pure luxury. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.21.53- 1.23.19 </td> <td> Con then goes onto tell when he joined the Yacht club and how He become a cruiser committee member and how he now Organises trips away and in the winter time he would organise To have Functions and talks in the yacht club and goes onto to Describe how one guy in the yacht club went sailing to Russia And documented his trip and then presented a after dinner talk About it In the yacht club and says you didn’t have to be a sailor To enjoy these events. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.23.19 – 1.25.03 </td> <td> Con then goes onto explain the process of a laying up supper And how they happened at the end of the sailing season and There is different classes within the yachting club and how Prizes are given to different types of boats for example Dinghy’s Cruiser and Racers he then goes to say that he sailed For 20 years on a boat which they called a “1720” which is a Very High speed machine. And they would do up 20 to 22 knots and Con says it would be The same as doing the speed of 100 miles an hour in a car plus Con explains that all these boats are the Same size and shape And it’s all about the sailors on board because they are Physically demanding and says he’s gone a bit Too old for that type of sailing these days. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.25.03 – 1.29.32 </td> <td> Con then explains the tradition of Stag night and how he would Go but he does not drink alcohol and how it’s different then a Stag that you would have before your Wedding. And how in the Yacht club it is very conducted event and how They would have A master of ceremonies and how he and Others would sing a Song or tell a story and recite poetry and There would be a Piano Player at this event and how it is done in a traditional way. Con then explains the traditional food they would eat for Instance Crubeens (from Irish crúibín, meaning pig's trotter) And how Messy they were to eat and how people in 2020 do not eat them. He also mentions Black pudding which (Is a blend of meat, oatmeal or barley herbs and spices and the Quintessential fresh Blood). And Tripe and Drisheen which Con Says he would not eat he Then explains what tripe and drisheen is and how popular it was To eat and how his father would have Eaten it he then goes onto Say how time have changed in the Yacht club especially the dress code of its members. And how it was because of people like Con joining the yacht club and Since he would not class himself as one of the doyens of Cork city. And how the Yacht club is open for everyone to join in 2022 And that it Would have been very difficult to join the yacht club Few years Previous and how they have changed practices and Put Initiatives in for new member to go sailing. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.29.32-1.31.05 </td> <td> Con then describes how it was when he joined the yacht club And how he knew people in his situation that would not go into The yacht club because they felt intimidated by the high Powered business men who owned luxury yachts. And how Con Didn’t care what they thought of him as he just wanted to go Sailing and could not afford his own boat and how He broke Rules to just go sailing. Moreover he explains how eventually he got to own his own Boat. Con explains how the yacht club was good for him and others During the covid 19 pandemic as they had an open marquee With heaters so he could go with his wife for meals in the yacht Club and how he felt safe there as they were outdoors. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.31.05 – 1.32.17 </td> <td> Con then goes into detail of the rules he broke in the yacht club He describes that he don’t like wearing long pants as he always wears shorts even in winter time and how other members would Have a more conservative dress code. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.32.17 – 1.37.40 </td> <td> Con then goes into detail on how he got into music and how he Always had a passion for African drums and how his wife’s Aunt Sheila. was involved in African drumming and how she Gave him a Phone number for Eamonn Cagney who is one of The best percussionist in the country and was playing music With Niwel Tsumbu and they were giving classes in Cork and how Con bought his own drum after a week of playing with them. And has been playing for 20 years he also mentions a guy called Fergal O’Connor who Would have Indian heritage and he was Giving a workshop in Cork For beginners and how he asked Con to help him with the Classes. And how a lady arrived with a pair of Conga drums and Con Then bought his own set the following week he also says how he is very impulsive person and how he was coming close To retirement so he decided to start his own band. And how he Put notices up in the local library for members to Play in nursing Homes he then explains about the African drums And how he was involved in several gigs and how he played in 2011 for Charity gig for the Tsunami in Japan On Patrick Street in Cork City and raised six thousand euros and how people were very Generous and how they had people from the Red Cross (a global voluntary network, responding to conflicts, natural disasters) and how they got the general public to play on the drums for fun. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.37.40 – 1.41.42 </td> <td> Con then explains how Martin’s Music works and how he Guides The group and details how they did the gig in farranree For Majela and how Con structured the group and how he would write up a list of tunes that they would play so that everybody in The group knows what they are playing he then Goes onto say That when the group gets back to normal after the Pandemic They can learn new songs and how they are planning a gig on the 7th (of April). And how they only play cover version of songs as a group the likes of Bob Dillon or Dickie Rock or Van Morrison. Con Explains what they get for these gigs is the feel good factor and How it is good to play to an audience he also say that they play For old folks home like St Luke’s and Ballyphehane which are Closed at the moments but is hoping to get back there shortly. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.41.42 -1.43.16 </td> <td> Con then explains how the group has performed better every Time they play as practice is good for bringing a group together He then explains that they don’t play music the whole time they meet as they also have chats whit each other as social Interaction and putting a little bit back into the community and They giving people some bit of happiness he then describes Martins Music as very good. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 143.16 – 1.46.24 </td> <td> Con then is ask by the interviewer what his party piece in the laying up super in the yacht club is and he explains that he sings The song the voyage about saint Brendan finding America and How He first heard the song Con also sings the rocky road to Dublin And ride on. Con then sings a verse of the voyage. INTERVIEW ENDS AT 16.10 PM </td> </tr> </tbody> </table> Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Con O’Callaghan Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 14 March 22 Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Cork Folklore Project Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context CFP_SR00797_O'Callaghan_2022 Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Cork Folklore Project Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Cork Folklore Project Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Cork Folklore Project Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource Cork Folklore Project Language A language of the resource English Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource .wav Building Cars Cork Injury Music OPW Polio Roads Sailing Slogging Apples The Lough https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/files/original/9dde99dfb8c30959c16d206fed725dfe.jpg 09c3c32785cd04f3d17139aa5e447bed https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/files/original/4df00acc9dfcbdd0625d945acc0d43a0.jpg 19be12e2e247f702aa60e8ab2b9ea394 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Interviewees’ brother William O’Sullivan right of picture at Heatherside Sanatorium. Left of picture is Irish poet Seán O’ Riordan. Photo courtesy of Michael O’Sullivan. https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/files/original/e11e4f2f0d6ecb76ce3d53a53746c38a.mp3 cf4b28ad079abeeedd26074d0a8dcb3a Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Catching Stories (of Infectious Disease In Ireland) <img src="https://catchingstories.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/Catching-Stories-w-logos-3.png" style="width:350px;height:100px;" alt="Catching-Stories-w-logos-3.png" /> Subject The topic of the resource Life History; Ireland; Health; Communicable diseases; Epidemics; Poliomyelitis; Polio; Postpoliomyelitis syndrome; Tuberculosis; TB; Measles; Diphtheria; COVID-19; Vaccines; Description An account of the resource Catching Stories is a folklore-STEM collaboration project funded through the <a style="color:#4a6ee0;background:transparent;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt;" target="_blank" href="https://www.sfi.ie/" class="editor-rtfLink" rel="noreferrer noopener">Science Foundation Ireland</a> (SFI) Discover Programme. The project was concerned with those who had first had experiences of being stricken with the disease, their family members and the public health practitioners who served on the frontline of past epidemics. The diseases the project focused on were: polio, tuberculosis, diphtheria and measles, Spanish flu and COVID-19. The project grew from seed funding through the Irish Research Council and University College Cork's(UCC) College of Arts, Celtic Studies & Social Sciences. This funding enabled the team to collate material in the Cork Folklore Project's archive and create a pilot online resource. In 2022 the project was awarded an SFI Discover grant that allowed the team to undertake new bespoke interviews and grow the online dissemination platform. To date (February 2023), Catching Stories consists of XX interviews. 'Catching Stories' has also been drawn from the Cork Folklore Project Sound Archive for other related material. The project's main output is an online resource (<a style="color:#4a6ee0;background:transparent;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt;" target="_blank" href="http://www.catchingstories.org" class="editor-rtfLink" rel="noreferrer noopener">www.catchingstories.org</a>). This website places personal oral testimonies adjacent to scientific information about the diseases. There was also a series of talks and presentations for <a style="color:#4a6ee0;background:transparent;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt;" target="_blank" href="https://catchingstories.org/events/" class="editor-rtfLink" rel="noreferrer noopener">Heritage Week 2022, Culture Night 2022 and Science Week 2022</a>. With support from <a style="color:#4a6ee0;background:transparent;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt;" target="_blank" href="https://www.ucc.ie/en/apc/" class="editor-rtfLink" rel="noreferrer noopener">APC Microbiome</a>, SFI and UCC's <a style="color:#4a6ee0;background:transparent;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt;" target="_blank" href="https://libguides.ucc.ie/library" class="editor-rtfLink" rel="noreferrer noopener">Boole Library,</a> the Catching Stories team curated the interactive multimedia exhibition, Catching Stories of Infectious Disease in Ireland (16 February - 25 June 2023), in UCC's Boole Library. The Exhibition was subsequently taken by the Heatlh Service Executive and displayed in their campuses and buildings throughout Cork and Kerry. Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2019-2023 Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Interviewees: Lesley Cox; Evelyn Wainwright; Emma Conway Clarke; Michael Hussey; Paul O'Brien, James Hoare Nagle; Edward Tanner; Michael and Theresa O'Sullivan, Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant Ireland; 1920s-2020s Relation A related resource Website <a href="https://catchingstories.org/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">www.catchingstories.org</a> <img src="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/files/original/e9fc50934d016888e8a29de8e14d25d4.JPG" style="width:500px;height:250px;" alt="e9fc50934d016888e8a29de8e14d25d4.JPG" /> Here you can engage with the collected material side by side with biomedical commentary from immunologist Dr Elizebeth Brint. Presentation and Listening Events Heritage Week 2022 <img src="https://catchingstories.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/Heritage-Week-2022-Library-talk-300x169.jpg" alt="Heritage-Week-2022-Library-talk-300x169.jpg" /> For Heritage Week project coordinator James Furey gave a presentation of the project at Cork City Library Grand Parade. Culture Night 2022 <img class="size-medium wp-image-407 alignnone" src="https://catchingstories.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/Culture-Night-2020-30-300x224.jpg" alt="Culture-Night-2020-30-300x224.jpg" /><img src="https://catchingstories.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/Culture-Night-2020-6-300x224.jpg" alt="Culture-Night-2020-6-300x224.jpg" /> For Culture night the team went to the streets to set up a ‘time travelling’ vaccination clinic outside the old medical centre on Grattan St Cork City. Willing participants sat on a bench and heard Joe Scanlon’s story of receiving the ‘Branding Iron’, Joe’s term for the vaccine apparatus used in the 1950s. Joe’s story and the event elicited a great response from those who took part. Science Week 2022 <img src="https://corkfolklore.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/Science-Week-2022-2-724x1024.png" style="width:200px;height:300px;" alt="Science-Week-2022-2-724x1024.png" /> Celebrate Science Family Day on 13th November 2022 <img src="https://catchingstories.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/IMG_5840-300x200.jpg" alt="IMG_5840-300x200.jpg" /> Our first outing for Cork Science Festival was at the ‘Celebrate Science’ Family Day at University College Cork’s Western Gateway Building. For this event, we fired up the ‘Time-machine’ to bring participants on a trip to 1958, the day Joe Scanlon received a vaccine, or as Joe calls it, <a href="https://catchingstories.org/getting-the-vaccine/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">‘The Branding Iron’</a>. <img src="https://catchingstories.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/IMG_5844-300x200.jpg" alt="IMG_5844-300x200.jpg" /> The Catching Stories team held four sessions. We played Joe’s story and quizzed our audience on their knowledge of infectious diseases and their memory of receiving vaccines. There was excellent engagement with both young and old. The younger participants left with a greater understanding of diseases like polio and tuberculosis. And the older members relayed their stories of getting vaccinated and how infectious diseases had encroached on their lives. Science Week Talk UCC Student Hub Those who braved the horrendous rain on November 15th were delighted to shelter in The Shtepps to hear the presentation from James Furey and Beth Brint on how folklore and STEM can work together to bring new perspectives on health education and understanding. Exhibition <img src="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/files/original/d3170f22a998193439e53217786f14ea.jpg" style="width:200px;height:300px;" alt="d3170f22a998193439e53217786f14ea.jpg" /> The exhibition in UCC's Boole Library (16 February - 25 June 2023), was an innovative exploration of how to engage people with a topic that does not lend itself too easily to public dissemination. The exhibition foregrounded the human voice through audio installations (Made by Dr Jeffery Weeter), links to interviews, and interaction with physical objects. It invited visitors to join interviewees in the experience of manually ventilating a child with polio throughout the night in 1956 and to move along a waiting-room bench when facing vaccination by the dreaded ‘Branding Iron’ or to imagine the loss of a childhood classmate from measles. Artworks by <a href="https://lesleycoxart.com/earlier-works-3-polio-series/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Lesley Cox</a> also explore the impact of polio on families and communities. <img src="https://catchingstories.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/1676973595601-scaled.jpg" style="width:350px;height:650px;" alt="1676973595601-scaled.jpg" /><img src="https://catchingstories.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/1676973595744-scaled.jpg" style="width:300px;height:650px;" alt="1676973595744-scaled.jpg" /> <img src="https://catchingstories.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/1676973595665-scaled.jpg" style="width:650px;height:350px;" alt="1676973595665-scaled.jpg" /> <img src="https://lesleycoxart.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/image29.jpg" style="width:350px;height:650px;" alt="image29.jpg" />(©Lesley Cox) Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource James Furey Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Cork Folklore Project Audio Archive Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Cork Folklore Project Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource Cork Folklore Project Language A language of the resource English Type The nature or genre of the resource Audio Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource .wav Files Oral History A resource containing historical information obtained in interviews with persons having firsthand knowledge. Interviewee The person(s) being interviewed Michael O'Sullivan and Theresa O’Sullivan Interviewer The person(s) performing the interview Susan O’Sullivan Duration Length of time involved (seconds, minutes, hours, days, class periods, etc.) 53m35s Location The location of the interview Fair Hill, Cork City Time Summary A summary of an interview given for different time stamps throughout the interview <table> <tbody> <tr> <td> Start Time </td> <td> Question/General Theme </td> <td> Topics in Summary </td> </tr> <tr> <td> *1:15 </td> <td> Intro to family history </td> <td> Brother and sisters in sanatoriums for TB. Brother for 7 years, sisters for circa 2-4 years. Michael was told about 2 years ago after a chest x-ray that he probably had TB, but he was not aware of it. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 3:00 </td> <td> Cont. </td> <td> Visiting sister in sanatorium on interviewees wedding day </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 4:50 </td> <td> What ages were brother and sisters when they had TB </td> <td> Brother 17, sisters in 20s, 30s. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 5:47 </td> <td> What symptoms? </td> <td> Coughing up blood, constant cough </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 6:20 </td> <td> How was TB diagnosed? </td> <td> Doctor and x-ray </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 6:45 </td> <td> What hospital? </td> <td> North Infirmary </td> </tr> <tr> <td> *6:50 </td> <td> What Medications? </td> <td> Bottle with pink/purple liquid, used for everything. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 7:45 </td> <td> How were they transferred to sanatorium </td> <td> Ambulance </td> </tr> <tr> <td> *8:40 </td> <td> Did you know how TB was transmitted? </td> <td> No, was told it wasn’t contagious. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> *8:50 </td> <td> Did family talk about TB? </td> <td> No too embarrassed, shame, linked to poverty </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 11:00 </td> <td> Were you aware of others in community with TB? </td> <td> No there was a stigma surrounding it. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 12:09 </td> <td> Did you wear masks, or clean the house? </td> <td> No masks, but lots of scrubbing with ‘Jeyes Fluid’ </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 13:10 </td> <td> What sounds would be heard in the house? </td> <td> Coughing, wheezing. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 13:30 </td> <td> Did people with TB look different? </td> <td> Ghastly, Lethargic </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 14:10 </td> <td> </td> <td> Brother would go hunting ferrets, get cold and wet, maybe made him susceptible to TB. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 14:50 </td> <td> Did doctors visit house? </td> <td> Yes, didn’t wear masks </td> </tr> <tr> <td> *15:00 </td> <td> Would people have gathered in groups outside, inside? </td> <td> Yes churches, cinemas and sporting events would be packed. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 16:10 </td> <td> Did priests talk about TB at mass? </td> <td> No never mentioned it, maybe out of fear. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 16:30 </td> <td> What about the radio? </td> <td> Yes, Noel Browne TD minister for health. Brother had great respect for him and all that he did. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 17:40 </td> <td> Was visiting allowed at sanatorium? </td> <td> Yes, but only outside. Interviewees remember visiting sister on their wedding day </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 18:20 </td> <td> Did your parents visit? </td> <td> Yes, regularly, by taxi. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> *18:44 </td> <td> Cont. </td> <td> When interviewees visited on their wedding day, the car broke down on the way. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 18:55 </td> <td> Cont. </td> <td> They had photographs taken on their wedding say at the sanatorium. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 19:12 </td> <td> Did you visit your brother? </td> <td> No too far away (Doneraile). </td> </tr> <tr> <td> *19:30 </td> <td> What did you see at the sanatoriums? </td> <td> People sitting about talking, in their night gowns, dressing gowns, seemed happy, some played Pitch and Putt </td> </tr> <tr> <td> * </td> <td> Cont. </td> <td> The patients were involved in craft making, dolls, leather objects. Interviewee still has leather wallet that his brother made him at Heatherside Sanatorium </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 20:00 </td> <td> Did someone teach them these crafts? </td> <td> Not sure, but think someone came to sanatoriums to teach them. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 21:27 </td> <td> Cont. </td> <td> All the windows were open, lots of fresh air </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 22:00 </td> <td> Do you have an idea of how many patients were at sanatorium? </td> <td> No but both genders, no children. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 22:38 </td> <td> Was there a special diet? </td> <td> No but they were well fed </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 23:11 </td> <td> It must have been difficult for parents with children at sanatorium? </td> <td> Yes </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 23:35 </td> <td> Did parents ever talk about it? </td> <td> No, they never talked, we were not told anything. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> *25:47 </td> <td> Do you remember the day your brother came home? </td> <td> Yes remember him coming through the door, he had put on a lot of weight, didn’t recognise him, everyone was nervous. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 27:40 </td> <td> Was he different? </td> <td> yes </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 28:05 </td> <td> Did your brother go back to work? </td> <td> Yes as chef in Savoy Cinema Cork, and also worked in a confectioners in Gerald Griffin Street Cork </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 30:00 </td> <td> Are there similarities with Covid 19? </td> <td> Yes, people are scared and avoiding each other </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 31:24 </td> <td> </td> <td> Reminded of Polio in 1950s </td> </tr> <tr> <td> *31:50 </td> <td> Theresa what are your experiences of TB? </td> <td> Cousin Elsie was in Mount Desert Sanatorium. Theresa’s father would take her to visit Elsie, talks about country girls dying of TB at sanatorium. Elsie worked in mortuary, she was then transferred to St. Finbarr’s hospital </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 34:45 </td> <td> Cont. </td> <td> Theresa’s friend brother John was in Sarsfield’s Court sanatorium for 2 years. He never worked again after he came home, was weak and had bad chest. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 35:59 </td> <td> What ages were they? </td> <td> Elsie was 18, John in his 30s. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 36:11 </td> <td> What do you mean by country girls? </td> <td> Farmers daughters, usually from Cork and Kerry </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 36:40 </td> <td> Do you remember how the buildings looked? </td> <td> There were wards and the main hospital, lots of fresh air, open windows, people sitting around talking. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 37:35 </td> <td> Did they ever talk about the food? </td> <td> No they never discussed food. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 38:05 </td> <td> How long were they there? </td> <td> About 2 years </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 38:16 </td> <td> Did Elsie lay out/prepare the dead of her own accord? </td> <td> Yes of her own accord. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 38:50 </td> <td> Do you remember anything about the wards, rooms? </td> <td> Some patients were in rooms of 2 beds, some in ward with 4-6 beds. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 39:20 </td> <td> Did your parents ever talk about TB? </td> <td> No never </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 39:45 </td> <td> Do you see a comparison with Covid 19? (Theresa). </td> <td> There were no masks, but you did avoid people if they coughed, you got out of the way fast, but we were told it wasn’t contagious. Sensitisation was never mentioned. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 40:33 </td> <td> Did people cover their mouths when they coughed? </td> <td> No </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 40:50 </td> <td> Were patients allowed to leave the sanatorium? </td> <td> No, they were confined to the grounds, a lot of the time they were dressed, in suits and ties etc. Reading books </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 41:30 </td> <td> What about exercise? </td> <td> There was no talk of exercise. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 42:50 </td> <td> Cont. </td> <td> Interviewees mention a pink ointment that was often used for various illnesses, but can’t recall its name. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 43:00 </td> <td> Were there any visible markings caused by TB? </td> <td> Could be hunched up from coughing. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> *44:30 </td> <td> Did you see nurses at the sanatoriums? </td> <td> Yes, dressed in white, no masks, gloves or aprons. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 45:00 </td> <td> Was music played? </td> <td> Yes people came in to play music, but can’t remember who. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 45:56 </td> <td> Any advice for younger people today and Covid 19? </td> <td> Not to smoke. Everybody smoked in 1940’s and 50s, no warnings of danger. Woodbines cigarettes. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 47:00 </td> <td> Did they smoke in the sanatoriums? </td> <td> Outside </td> </tr> <tr> <td> *47:30 </td> <td> Cont. </td> <td> People got relief from smoking. There were very few that didn’t smoke, Theresa’s father smoked to get relief from dust inhaled in his job as a shoemaker. Michael’s father worked in a flour mill and he would get relief from the inhaled flour by smoking. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 49:00 </td> <td> Did the sisters that had TB smoke? </td> <td> No another sister did and she never contracted TB </td> </tr> <tr> <td> *49:30 </td> <td> When did you find out that you might have had TB as a child? (Michael). </td> <td> 2 years ago. I was spitting up blood, had x-ray and doctor said lungs were scarred from TB. But I didn’t know I had TB. I had Pleurisy in the 1950s with the same symptoms. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> *50:20 </td> <td> Do you think people had TB and didn’t know it? </td> <td> Yes, some were afraid to go to the doctor, others didn’t wasn’t to go to doctor because they could end up in a sanatorium </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 51:00 </td> <td> Cont. </td> <td> I wonder what bloated my brother in the sanatorium. He was very heavy when he came out. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 51:30 </td> <td> Maybe because he wasn’t very active there? </td> <td> </td> </tr> <tr> <td> *52:00 </td> <td> Is there anything that comes to mind before we finish the interview? </td> <td> We are lucky to have survived this long, I haven’t been sick a day in my life (Michael jokingly). We are after our Covid vaccine now and we are not doing too badly. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 53: 34 </td> <td> Thank you for doing this interview </td> <td> Thank You, we didn’t get your name (Michael jokingly). </td> </tr> </tbody> </table> Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Michael O'Sullivan and Theresa O’Sullivan Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 22.03.2021 Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Cork Folklore Project Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context CFP_SR00795_Osullivan_2021 Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Cork Folklore Project Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Cork Folklore Project Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Cork Folklore Project Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource Cork Folklore Project Language A language of the resource English Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource wav Description An account of the resource Michael and Theresa are husband and wife and live on Fairhill on the north side of Cork city. Michael is 87 years old and Theresa is 85 years old. In this interview they both talk about their experiences of TB in Cork during the 1940s and the 1950s. In particular Michael talks about 3 siblings that contracted TB and spent time in sanatoriums. His brother spent 4 years at Heatherside Sanatorium in north Cork before being transferred to St. Finbarr’s hospital for a further 3 years. Two of Michael’s sisters spent between 2-4 years at Sarsfield Court sanatorium. Michael talks about visiting his sisters but not his brother because of distance and lack of transport. To this end he did not see his brother for 7 years. Michael talks about the emotions experienced when his brother came home. Michael talks about visiting his sister at Sarsfield sanatorium on his wedding day with his wife and talks about the car breaking down en route. Michael also talks about learning that he had TB when a chest x-ray in circa 2018 revealed scarring on his lungs reminiscent of TB. Theresa talks about her cousin Elsie who spent time in Mount Desert Sanatorium. Theresa talks about how Elsie would help to lay out the dead in the mortuary. Theresa also talks about the many young girls that died of TB at the sanatorium. During the interview the girls are referred to as country girls which Theresa explains was a term used to describe the daughters of farmers. Theresa talks about the girls catching TB from cattle on the farm. Theresa also talks about a friend called John who spent time at Sarsfields Court sanatorium with TB. When John was released home he was never able to work again due to a weak chest as a result of recurring chest infections. Michael and Theresa discuss family, community and societal attitudes towards TB. They talk about what people were told about TB and how they believed TB was transmitted. They talk about visiting the sanatoriums and the lack of social restrictions that they observed there. They talk about how fresh air was considered a treatment for TB and how the patients spent a lot of time outdoors. Michael and Theresa talk about the popularity of smoking and describe how some would find relief from breathing difficulties through smoking. Michael and Theresa conclude their interview with a discussion on the current Covid 19 pandemic and discuss the differences and similarities with the TB pandemic of the 1940s and the 1950s. Subject The topic of the resource Tuberculosis blood Cattle Cigarettes Cork city Coughing Covid 19 Doctor Fairhill Handcrafts Heatherside Sanatrium Leather Michael O’ Sullivan Mortuary Mount Desert Sanatorium Noel Browne North Infirmary Hospital Pleurisy Polio preparing the dead Priest Sanatorium Sarsfield Court Sanatorium smoking St. Finbarr’s Hospital Theresa O’ Sullivan Tuberculosis (TB) Woodbines https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/files/original/cf155f1117d108de1420e76d6313264c.mp3 bda2cac14952c68ba8b65eedc05a966a Oral History A resource containing historical information obtained in interviews with persons having firsthand knowledge. Interviewee The person(s) being interviewed Donal Ring Interviewer The person(s) performing the interview Tim McCarthy Duration Length of time involved (seconds, minutes, hours, days, class periods, etc.) 109m05s Location The location of the interview City Lights Killeens, Commons Road, Cork Time Summary A summary of an interview given for different time stamps throughout the interview <table> <tbody> <tr> <td> 0.00.03 - 0.07.53 </td> <td> Interviewer Tim McCarthy begins by giving a brief biographical rundown of Donal Rings career saying that Donal started playing the accordion at the age of thirteen and he was influenced by his father who was a melodeon player and he was playing professionally from the age of fifteen thus winning the acclaim of his peers. He speaks of how Donal garnered a large fanbase locally and internationally. Tim states that much of Donals story has been documented by local media and he states that Brian Lawlor of the Irish Traditional Music Archive, which is housed in Merrion Square Dublin, did two extensive interviews with Donal in 2009 so he states that today they will seek to focus on more local topics and general topics that Brian and other interviewees may not have covered. Tim makes a statement to the effect that Brian’s interviews are available online and the Cork Folklore Project will request his permission to refer to them in relation to whatever they discuss today so it will all be unified. Donal says his musical influence started with his father who he says would play morning noon and night and liked playing. That was for the first couple of years and then Donal became friendly with the late Donal Coleman and they got together playing. Donal Coleman was from Grenagh Parish and they joined a little band in Mallow called the Celtic Ceili Band and they were there for two years with a man called Joe Boyle who was from Clonmel Co Tipperary and married in Mallow. After two years they (the two Donals) left and formed the Blarney Ceili Band and joined up with the Murphy’s of Blackstone Bridge who Donal says were very good fiddlers and bass players etc. Donal Ring was there for three years and then decided to go out on his own. He became friendly with a man called Noel Crowley from Dillon’s Cross in Cork City whom Donal says was a great accordion player and who has passed away in the last year. Himself and Donal started a band and the way it started was they tossed a penny, Donal says at the time he was saying the Rosary in Commons Road and each was saying to other to put their name on the band so in the end they tossed a penny and Donal’s name came up so that was how the band started (the Donal Ring Ceili Band). Noel was with him in the band for five or six years and then they organised a tour of London and Noel didn’t want to go as he didn’t like travelling. He says Frank Fitzpatrick went instead and Donal says they got on reasonably well adding you can’t expect miracles starting out. They went to London and had thirteen dates supposed to be booked and when they arrived it was seven. He says they were green and walked into it, he says you learn fast. They enjoyed it and it was a challenge he adds. He adds they went again the following year and it was a great success. It was a great tour he says. He says after this they were trying to get on television, (on RTE) There were two programmes called Beirt Eile and Club Céilí and they were writing in to RTE to get on the programmes and RTE got back to say they were on the casting file and they would get in contact when they (the band) were required. He says it went on like this and Donal says he was very friendly with Tony Hegarty who was managing the band at the time. Tony asked Donal if he knew Jack Lynch to which Donal said he did. Tony advised Donal to go to Jack Lynch’s office on the Grand Parade on a Saturday morning so Donal went down to him. When he called there Jack Lynch asked him if they had ever done broadcasting to which Donal said they had done live broadcasting from Union Quay for RTE. Donal showed Jack Lynch the letters he had got from RTE and Jack said to leave it with him and he would have a word with Mr McCourt (Note: Kevin McCourt, Director General of RTE from 1962 to 1968). Tim asks Donal if he was a judge in Midleton to which Donal says he doesn’t know but that he was the “bossman” in RTE. Three weeks later RTE got in touch to say they were on. He says that was a lucky break and it was thanks to RTE that they got it. From there on the whole thing blossomed he says. Donal adds that Jack Lynch was quite cautious too as he wanted to know whether they had done Live broadcasts and it was the makings of them and they got a lot of work off it. Tim asks Donal if Tony Hegarty is the well known Cork comedian. Donal says he was and he was a great friend. When Donal had no money Tony often gave him 50 pounds and Donal will never forget that. He says he was a great friend and a good manager but he pulled out because they got too busy and there was no need of a manager. He says it was not like today, today he says you have to ring somebody to look for work and he says back then it was the opposite. They (venues) would ring you and book dates with you and confirm them in writing. He says they did the rest themselves. He says Tony Hegarty was their only ever manager and after that he did it himself. He says there isin’t that much to it. He says doing it himself you get to know people better. He says sometimes you could go to a place and you could be told that you weren’t booked at all. He say it happened a few times, he says going back fifty seven years ago they went to Kiskeam (in North Cork) one night to be told they weren’t booked at all and Donal says they were. Another night one New Years Eve they drove up to Kildare as they were booked into a venue only to be told that there must be some mistake and he told them they had been there twelve months previously and the venue had rebooked them but they repeated that there was a mistake. He said all they could do was to get something to eat for the band and drive them home and he jokes, take some abuse because they haven’t some sort of contract with them. He says you wouldn’t get a lot of abuse. He says the contract wasn’t in writing but he would always honour it whether it was or not. He says at that time contracts were mostly in writing but it was starting to go out. He says regarding dances everything would be conformed about the dance only the fee. (Note: from 7.51 to 7.53 Donal says a saying which sounds like “there was no quarrel with the price you bring them” though it is not 100% clear on the recording) </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.07.59 - 0.11.13 </td> <td> Tim asks Donal if all of the band travelled together to which he says they did. He says they always had a Volkswagen minibus and he says he had eleven of them in total down the years all of which he wore out. He says the Volkswagen are a great machine. Donal then mentions the name of the local motor supplier of the time, (Note: at 8.20 Donal mentions the name of his local car supplier of the time who would supply him with the minibuses, it may be Thomas Transport but it is unclear on the recording). Donal says the manager of the motor supplier whom he would buy the minibuses from was Michael McCarthy who was always very good to him and whenever an exceptional Volkswagen came in Michael would have Donal in line for it. When asked how the band members spent the time in the van on the road he says they would play chess. Jer (or Jerry) Casey and Gary Cronin would be playing chess, Jer was a genius he says. Gary had a miniature board and he would be half an hour making a move Donal says. Jerry would be in the front beside Donal and he straight away make his move and then hand the board back over the seat to Gary who would then take another half an hour to make the next move. He says you would have arguments over very small things when people would get tired and cranky, he says they would tend to pick on the weak points to get the next fellow going. He says they were all great lads even though he had at least fifty band members travelling in the van down the years. Tim asks Donal if he has done a “family tree” meaning a history of the band members. Donal replies to say that his niece in San Francisco is doing a family history of the Ring family which he says is fairly big. Tim says he has seen a fair few bands do a history on their members showing who was connected with whom. Donal says their connection in that respect would be the McCarthy’s and starting with the Cork songwriter Jimmy McCarthy. Donal says he might not have his facts exactly right but he says his own grandmother was a McCarthy and he thinks she was a grandaunt of Jimmy McCarthy. He also mentions a Margaret McCarthy who plays the fiddle in blarney and she played for President Barack Obama in the White House on St Patricks Day. He says she played the fiddle and danced the hornpipe at the same time. He says she is fantastic. Donal says he saw his grandmother dancing the hornpipe and playing the melodeon so it is in the blood. He says the grandchildren from his fathers side the music came from. He says his mother’s side of the family isn’t musical at all. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.11.14 - 0.14.56 </td> <td> Tim asks Donal if they wore uniforms in the band to which he says they did. He says it was important to be dressed neatly. He says they got Irish plaid suits one time which were made by the late Tom Aherne who had a tailors shop on the North Main St in Cork. He says this was in the early 1960’s. He says they also had lovely coats from John Culhane (note: He probably means John Mannix of Mannix & Culhane on Washington St) and they got coats and jackets from a man called Nick Buttery. They had jackets of different colours. When asked did someone design them Donal says they were just made to measure and jokes that they weren’t that important. Donal says band members helped with the driving and loading of gear. He says when he started first he had two brothers in the band. Jerh Ring was the bass player, Donal says he was killed outside Blarney. He was a good driver he adds. Another brother Michael was also in the band but he didn’t drive. He had another man in the band the late Liam Kelleher who was a good driver. He says it is grand to sit in and not worry about the driver but there are many that you would worry about them driving and you’d get no peace that way. Donal says it was mostly himself driving and he says he started driving trucks which he says he drove for years. He says you’d have to be handy at it or you’d kill half of Cork. He talks for a bit about the truck driving and he says he was glad to get away from it. He says he finished up driving trucks for John O Hoolihan for whom he was driving multi wheeled Atkinson trucks which had no power steering and he would be hauling twenty five tons into Cork and he describes trying to take a turning by the Capitol Cinema on Washington St. He says it was tough work but he enjoyed it. Tim says he used to do this himself and asks what sites he was working from. Donal says the big job he was involved in was the building of the oil refinery in Whitegate. He was working for a firm called Ellis and was hauling material to the site in Whitegate and he was doing this for two years. After that he went to work on the building of Cork Airport for a couple of years. He says this was the biggest project of the time. He says he was hauling blocks for building sites. He worked for a man called Willy Desmond drawing sugar beet to Mallow and picking up the grain in the fields. He says there would be one man on the ground handing in a twenty stone bag. He jokes that you wouldn’t be breaking wind on Patrick St that night. Tim says there wouldn’t have been health and safety to which Donal agrees, he says that has gone too far these days and you’d see fellows working on the roads and there’d be cones on the road for half a mile and then nothing happening at the end. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.14.58 - 0.21.10 </td> <td> Tim asks if any of Donal’s band members achieved success in other areas. Donal says Ger Casey is a professor of archaeology in Dublin now and he was in Donal’s band for eleven years. The first ever violin player he had was Declan Townsend and he is a bachelor of music now. He says several great players never progressed to anything bigger like Tony O Sullivan and Frank Fitzpatrick who he says are still great players. He mentions his own brother Michael who became a panel beater, he says he plays accordion and he is still in the band. He left and he came back a few times he says. Tim asks how the set up of having two accordion players work. Donal says they spent years at it and when there are two playing they have to be bang on and they won’t get away with any discrepancies. They have to keep rehearsing and practising melodies and harmonies. He says when you are playing out in the country at ceilis you are playing jigs and reels and a second box is a great help. Things will go wrong one night and then other nights will go perfectly. Tim mentions that in the case of the Everly Brothers that it was said there was an affinity that produced a natural harmony and would Donal agree with that? Donal says there is no doubt about this. He adds that when Noel Crowley started out the band he was very meticulous as to getting the arrangements right, all the bass parts and piano parts had to be written out. That continued on with Gerry Casey who taught Donals daughter Mary and now she and Donal’s son write the arrangements for the band. Donal says they are not going to record anymore as the age of the cd is gone which he says is hard to believe. He says he has cds recorded and can’t sell them as everyone is downloading now from the internet. Tim asks Donal what he thinks of this, in reply he says his son was in Scotland this year and he played in a place called Dufftown. He was there playing on a Friday night and by example Donal says he was in Pa Johnsons pub on Devonshire St Cork on the following Monday night. He adds that there is an accordion night there on the last Wednesday of every month. On this occasion when Donal was there the proprietor Barry Johnson had the internet on (on a computer or device) and Donal says there was Donals son Donie and Terry McCarthy playing in Dufftown, he adds someone had uploaded two hours of it. Donal says you can’t sell cds under those circumstances. There follows a discussion with Tim and Donal as to whether this puts the focus back on live performances. Donal says that with live performances musicians have to be at the top of their game because anyone can film them with a mobile phone. Donal says that today the band consists of his brother Michael, Donal’s daughter Mary and he has a singer from Ballyroe called Con Hegarty and himself. He says they play in Blarney every Sunday night from 9 to 11. He says he himself will be 80 at the end of the week so playing two nights a week would be too much. He says his grandchildren are all playing, his grandson Aidan plays and another grandson Der plays with Robert Mizzell who is a big Country N Western act and plays the North a lot, Robert Mizzell is American he adds and his grandson is drumming with him. He compares musical ability to hurling and says it is in the blood. He says his grandchildren often play with him. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.21.12 - 0.25.36 </td> <td> Donal says the five row accordion is quite complex to play and he calls it ultimate accordion. He says he didn’t play it as it wasn’t there in his time. He was he was the “push and draw man” and he says he went as far as he could on that. He bought a Shand Morino accordion which is what Jimmy Shand, the famous Scottish accordionist played which is a very advanced push and pull keyboard. He adds that the five row is the most advanced and he says it is a superb keyboard. He says there is the two and three row which are push and pull. He goes on to speak more about the five row. He talks about the Shand Marino and talks about Jimmy Shand who he says was a marvellous man and the king in his book of playing terms. He says he was 100 years ahead of his time. He speaks about the Gallowglass Ceili Band and their influence. He says there were some great bands from up the country played the City Hall in Cork. He lists these acts such as Jackie Hearst from Newry, Sean Donoghue and his five sisters from Galway and Astor Row (?) from Donegal. He said they had some great nights there especially with Na Piarsaigh hurling club who he says held great Ceilis. He says Ceilis in the City would draw crowds of a couple of thousand. He says the golden era was from when Jimmy Shand came and as Donal says got the whole thing going. Donal thinks he came first to Cork around 1956 and came again in the early 60’s. Then the Gallowglass Ceili Band came and he says it took off. He says there was nearly thirty years where it was at its peak. He goes on to say that Tony Hegarty was running a ceili in the City Hall and Donal’s band were booked for it and also the Gallowglass were booked and also Jim Cameron from Scotland. Donal was up in the Hall with Tony on Saturday and Tony said he would have to have two thousand for the audience and it ended up having two and a half thousand. Donal recalls on the night that there was a queue on the footpath all the way up Angelsea Street and he adds there was no drink served, just a mineral bar. He says there was never a bar at the ceilis. He says in time the regular bars started building lounge extensions and running “bits of dances” then the normal dance halls, not all of them he adds, had to add a bar to compete. Donal adds any big dance they run now has a bar, they are doing one in Glenville on the week of the interview he says. He says those people drinking would just be having a couple of drinks and maybe a short. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.25.37 - 0.33.16 </td> <td> Tim asks Donal if there were two scenes going on then, the Showband scene in tandem with the music scene Donal was involved with. Donal says the Showband scene was very big. He mentions Brendan Bowyer. He speaks about the “wagons” the Showbands had, ie their tour buses. He says the wagons would be specially designed and very large. He goes on to say that nearly every parish ran a festival and Donal and the band would have one Irish night during the week. Donal and the band would get the date and they would be going non stop. The Irish night was always a great success because you would get an older crowd coming in for it. He says they often subsidised the Showbands with the crowd they would bring. He says they did the Rose Of Tralee for twenty one years, Upton Steam Rally for fourteen years, Cobh Festival for eighteen years and all these festivals would keep them busy. He says they had a slot on St Francis Hall as well for fourteen years every Tuesday night. Tim says he recalls St Francis Hall as being a popular spot and he asks what else went on there to which Donal says they used to have karate classes and card drives. He says it was owned by St Francis Church (on Liberty St, Cork). He says he thinks now it is a nightclub, they had some great nights there he adds. Tim asks Donal if they came across a lot of Cork Showbands and Donal mentions the Dixies. Tim asks about the connection between Donal’s band and the Dixies and Donal says the connection was with Terry McCarthy sings with Donals son Donie and they play a wide variety of material. (Note: Terry McCarthy has been part of the Dixies lineup). Donal says he knows Joe Mac of the Dixies well. He says they’re the same age. Donal says he never played with Joe Mac. He says Terry McCarthy played with Donal and his band in Scotland twice and he says his main ambition is to make the night a success. Tim asks about the Cork band the Arrivals and Donal says he knew them all, he mentions Declan Ryan. Donal says there were some bands in Cork from that time who didn’t receive due recognition, he says one was a group called the Modernaires who used to play in the Palm Court Ballroom on Oliver Plunkett St, he says it used to be the ESB office. Alderman John W Reidy bought it and converted it into the Palm Court Ballroom and it was a lovely place but it has since been sold and it is now known as the Oliver Plunkett. Tim mentions that it used to be the Black Bush and Scotts at various points. Donal goes on to mention the Regal from Bantry who he says were a great band. Tommy Power from Douglas also had a band. He also mentions Chris Mahon, he mentions them as being both passed away. He remembers when he was young seeing a band led by a man called Pat Navin or Navan. He doesn’t know where he was from. He says there would be fourteen band members of Pat Navin’s loaded onto a mini bus. He says it must have been a great wagon to take that load. Tim asks Donal if they ever had members from pipe bands or brass bands from the City. Donal mentions one man from the Blarney Brass & Reed Band. He says he was a good saxophone player but didn’t stay with them. He was the only one he thinks. He mentions another man called Jerry Casey who didn’t play with them but all of his sons did he says, he played with a brass and reed band in town. Tim asks if the saxophone was common with ceili bands at this time to which Donal says the Gallowglass Ceili Band was the first to use it. He says they picked it up from listening to Jim Cameron who had a cornet which he says was like a trumpet. The Gallowglass went to the sax, he says if you have a good man playing it can be lovely. Donal had the late Paddy Carey on the sax for thirty one years. He could play every note of it he says which is unusual for a sax player, he could play the C melody which would be part of old saxophones. The Sax player for the Gallowglass Mick Dempsey was a great player and a nice man he says. Donal says they would have recorded with the sax, he says they did about eight LP’s with the sax. Mick Dempsey tutored Paddy Carey on the sax, he says the weakest sax reed you can get is a number three and Mick used to shave it down to one and a half and he would be doing things like burning the top between two pennies. Donal speaks about the trumpet and how Jim Cameron would always play to the side and not directly out to the audience to dampen the sound. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.33.18 - 0.38.42 </td> <td> Tim asks what were the best years for the music and for the best for the money. Donal says the best years money and work wise were the mid 70’s to late 80’s. Donal says there was a belief that with ceili bands they didn’t need to be paid at all whereas with Showbands they would get a “thousand smackers” and they might have to be fighting for 350 pounds which was their fee in their heydays. He says they came from nothing and had nothing to start with and when they got the work you took it. He says the music didn’t suffer because of the money, they would play their best at all times. He speaks about the problems of having to make sure everyone in the band were paid. He says he had a seven piece band and then it would go down to six and then down to four because of the issues involved with paying everyone. He says nowadays you are down to about fifty or sixty people per gig because he says just the old people are dancing now. On asked did the recession affect things he says it did and he also speaks about drink driving regulations effecting gigs. On asked how did he get the contacts for gigs Donal says the promoters got to know them rather than vice versa and he adds that TV made them. He mentions a singer they had called Pat Daly. He says they never had any breakdowns going to the gigs except for one occasion where they ran out of petrol going from Dublin and they ran out of petrol by Glanmire. He mentions again the reliability of the Volkswagen. He says you would have to fight your corner with some promoters to get your money. He gives an example of a time they played one time they were playing for the GAA in Kilcormac County Offaly and they were booked to play from 10 to 1. He says at quarter to 12 there was no one there and they were practising and then two people came in, by the next half hour it was full, they had all been in the bars he said. Next thing they were told they had to play till half past 1. He says afterwards five members of the committee came up to him to pay him and they said to Donal that they must give him a cut. They said to him that they hadn’t started playing till quarter to 12 to which Donal said they had no one to play to and they had them booked from ten to one. One of the men then said to Donal, “do you know who I am?” “I’m JJ Spain and I’m the referee in the All-Ireland Semi Final tomorrow”. Donal told him he didn’t give a damn who he was and to this JJ Spain “fired” the money at him. Donal says you get an odd one like that here and there but the majority were great. He mentions Sonny Maybury of Dunmanway and Pat McCarthy of Cappamore in Co Limerick as grand people to play for. He says that with Pat McCarthy he booked him for ten nights and they never discussed money because they had an understanding and he says it would be the same with Sonny Maybury. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.38.42 - 0.49.06 </td> <td> Tim asks Donal if they did a lot of work for charity to which Donal says they did a pile of it. He says one thing the band would do every Christmas Morning would they would play the hospitals. They would play St Finbars and the Mercy Hospital which were the two they play the more often. They would also play St Patricks Hospital (Marymount). They did for about twenty five years. He says he did about twelve albums, when asked were any of them recorded in Cork he says one was done in Ballyvourney, another in Fermoy and the last one they did was in was in Youghal. The rest were done in Dublin and he adds it was expensive, he says it cost 100 pounds an hour and it was no place to be rehearsing as you’d want that done. He says they held a record for the fastest LP recorded and mixed at nineteen hours. He says you’d be talking about a couple of thousand pounds. He talks about one place that rigged the breakdown of the cost of recording. He says the studio suffered a power cut and that Donal walked outside and up the street, he says every house along the street had power so this proved that the studio had rigged the power cut to drag out the recording time and get paid more. They hid it rigged in the studio to cut the power off. Donal says there were two more numbers to record and they had to go back again. He speaks more about the recording process and getting the takes right, the pressures of getting it right etc. He advises always do an extra track. The entire band would play together in the studio. He mentions Bill Somerville- Large of Windmill Lane Studios in Dublin as a great engineer; he adds that he was a jazz pianist. He also worked for RTE he says. He speaks of his work with them on recording and how he helped them out with a piano piece. He says they recorded in Tadhg Kelleher’s studio in Ballyvourney which he says was top class. He speaks about recording in Brian O Reilly’s (of the band Loudest Whisper) studio in Fermoy. He says one thing he found there was you would want to be playing very tight and there would be no looseness at all. He mentions the Youghal recording as having been done in Clay Castle Studio. The differences in styles and age gaps are discussed. Bill Somerville-Large was the main producer in Dublin he says. He mentions Trend Studio and the engineers Paul Waldron and John Dallat. He mentions Fred Meyer as a good engineer; if you were in the studio mixing you’d come out nearly stone deaf as he’s have big speakers on. A discussion on mixing in the studio follows. The instruments of the band are discussed. Donal says he bought his accordion from Jimmy Shand. His brother Michael also bought his instrument from him. He says Jimmy Shand was over in Cork and Donal showed him his own accordion to which Jimmy said the keyboard was buckled, Donal adds that at this time he was driving the lorry and had “fingers like crowbars”. He tells a story about another accordion he was having tuned and how Jimmy Shand advised him to never sell it. He tells how Jimmy sold him a fiddle on the same occasion. Tim asks Donal if Jimmy Shand would have seen him as a protégé to which Donal says he thought a lot of the band and he would give credit where it was due. He tells how Jimmy wrote the Bridie Ring Polka for Donals wife to play and he wrote one for Donal and ones for the band, he was a gifted man he says. Further discussion of Jimmy Shand’s life and career follow. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 0.49.09 - 1.00.23 </td> <td> Tim asks Donal if he ever featured on a radio show called the Galtee Programme to which Donal says he doesn’t but he would listen to it a lot. It used to go out on a Monday at quarter past one. (Note: possibly a reference to Galtee Radio, an independent radio station that ceased transmitting in 2001) Crowleys music shop in Cork is discussed. Donal says he often dealt with Michael and his father Mick Crowley. Donal mentions a man known as Sham or Shan who worked in Crowleys shop when it was on Merchants Quay. He mentions another man whose surname was Welsh who worked for Crowleys. He says it is sad to see Crowley’s gone today. Tim says that Sheena Crowley, the daughter of Michael Crowley is running Crowley’s music shop from above the Palm Court (now the Oliver Plunkett). Tim asks Donal if he ever pass on his skills or teach anyone outside the family to which he says he has a bad patience that way, he says he might give them a hint but he never took up teaching. A discussion on the conditions in the venues follows, Donal says there was no such thing as dressing rooms, there was no heating or fan onstage. He says it improved in time and they got lighting and dressing rooms etc. He says how the cold would effect the instruments such as frost. He says you would have to be hardy. He says sometimes they had problems with band members drinking and disappearing off. He recalls one night when they were playing in Upton and three of the band were drinking. There were spot prizes such as bottles of whiskey. Donal says what he didn’t know was that the three band members had stolen the bottle of whiskey and they didn’t want him to see it so he says they went outside and he describes where the back wheel of the Volkswagen had a panel hiding half the wheel and they put the bottle into this and on top of the tyre where it couldn’t be seen. He says when he was unloading the wagon the bottle fell down with a bang and broke. He jokes that the lads were nearly in tears. He says drink is an awful scourge in a band. Donal says he doesn’t drink other than the off half pint. He says fellas would be falling off the stage or falling off a chair. He describes one time how Paddy Carey who didn’t drink was “fool acting” on stage when they were playing in Cahir Co Tipperary. Next thing before he knew where he was he had fallen into the pit. He describes another occasion when they were playing in Portarlington Co Laois and there big lampshades made from aluminium and hanging over the stage. Next thing he heard a crack and the rope holding up the lampshades broke and it fell down missing drummer Pat Riordan’s head by six inches, he says it would have killed him stone dead if it had hit him. Tim suggests that the Stardust fire in Dublin 1981 changed all that to which Donal agrees. He says fire chiefs came into St Francis Hall in Cork at this time when Donal’s band were playing there and pointed out that all the timber in the venue would have to be removed or else treated with fire proof paint. The fire proof paint option was chosen and Donal says they put no dryers in the paint and it took several months to dry by which time their audience from that venue was scattered and they never got them back. Tim asks about punters to the gigs going out all dressed up to which Donal says all the women would be for an hour before the men would come and they’d be on one side of the hall and then the men would arrive in from the bar. He says the style would be fierce. He talks about the dancing. He talks about how bars bringing in lounges affected dancehalls. He speaks about how dancehalls closed around the country and what a shame it is as he says it was a great outlet and people were happy dancing. He says the dancing was great exercise, they would start out the night with waltzes then two steps. He says in his time the foxtrot was considered a sin as it was too modern. He goes into detail about different dances such as the Siege Of Ennis, two hand reel, the Kipe, the stack o barley, the sweets of may, the Slosh which he says is very popular as its non streneous. He speaks about a man from the Northside of Cork City who was called “The MP” Foley. Donal says he did a lot for dancing and the dancers we have today we can give credit to the MP for. Donal says he was a very strict dance teacher. He says he wouldn’t allow close dancing and you wouldn’t be allowed in the door if you didn’t have a tie. Donal says he used to operate in Inniscarra, in Mourneabbey and then would run dances in Macroom, Glanworth. He was all over the place and taught the whole County Donal says. He made money from it but he earned it Donal adds. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.00.24 - 1.04.55 </td> <td> Tim asks Donal about Ladies Choices and if it was popular Donal says it was popular, and they don’t have that anymore. He says there would be “murder” if a girl refused a dance with a fellow. He says their MC would come up to him and complain that such a lady had refused such a fellow a dance. Donal says he took no notice but that it considered an offense. He says he often saw a fellow getting two or three refusals. He says he never saw any trouble over a refusal. Though he says there would be bitterness. He mentions his memory of the smell of paraffin oil and candle grease which was the treatment of the floor for dancing. When you went into the dancehall run by the MP in Inniscarra there would be a smell of paraffin oil and candle grease and the floor would be like glass. He says then crystals but they can’t be used today because of health and safety. Tim asks him about the competition from set dancing and the contrast with ceilis where the emphasis was more on fun and craic. Donal replies by saying that he thinks set dancing killed the whole thing, (the dancehalls). He says when the set dancing started to come in you had the ceili crowd sitting down watching polka set after polka and unable to contribute and then leaving. He says the set dancing crowd would have towels wiping the sweat off themselves. He says its very competitive and not every couple would dance with the next couple, they would have their own sets. Tim mentions that Donals son Donal Jnr that said before the interview that he had played for Irish dancers, Donal says that is competitive Irish dancing. He says the children are under too much pressure and the parents would be pushing them into it. He speaks about one night when there was a waltzing competition in Timoleague, there was a couple from Blackpool who were good dancers but didn’t win. He says they” lost it completely” and Donal said to the man whose name was Joe that tomorrow night there’ll be another competition and that he would win it but there was no getting through to him, he lost all sense of direction. He say competitions are fine if people are prepared to take their beating if it comes. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.04.56 - 1.09.45 </td> <td> Tim asks if there were any sayings or colloquialisms or phrases that were used to describe events in the venues that you wouldn’t hear anywhere else. To this Donal mentions the late Fr Roberts a Franciscan who used to be in St Francis Hall where there used to be a social for the Total Abstinence Association (the Pioneers). He would come in and he would always say to the Carrignavar boys “Where ever you go don’t go far, and keep away from Carrignavar”. He says he heard him saying that numerous times. He was a character Donal says. Donal tells a story about one night when they were starting off and they were playing in Fermoy. It was a two band session and they were on first. Donal and Paddy Carey went to the toilet and he says and while they were in there the MC announced over the speaker “for the last hour and a half you were listening to the Donal Ring Ceili Band” and a fellow in the toilet said “we were then”, Donal jokes that he wasn’t too impressed. He was the smoking in the halls was fierce, he adds that he was a smoker himself for forty three years. He says he had an operation, a quadruple bypass. He says he wasn’t long stopping after that, he says it is all psychological and he had been smoking forty a day. He goes on to talk about the efforts to give up smoking. He says Paddy used to smoke a pipe and there was a lot of smoke from it. He talks about a place in Middlesbrough, England where they played and the smoke was so thick your eyes would be sore. He says it was like thick fog. He speaks about another place in Crosshaven called Johnny’s Return where the smoke was unbelievable. They were playing there when the smoking ban was coming in and Donal said to himself it wouldn’t stop this crowd smoking and he came back three weeks later and there was a case of someone in Donegal who had been fined a thousand Euro for smoking and he says he couldn’t believe, there were no smokers in the venue. He says at the end of the day it was no harm to get rid of the smoking. He speaks about the smell of cigarette smoke on the instruments. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.09.46 - 1.17.46 </td> <td> Tim asks were there any accidents as a result of dancing. Donal says he saw a lot of bad falls but they always got up, except in one case where a man didn’t get up. He says he died dancing the Siege Of Ennis. He learned after that the man had heart problems and was warned to take it easy but he ignored the advice and he was dead before he hit the floor. He can’t think of anyone breaking a leg or arm. When asked would you see fights break out he says you would the time of the drink but not anymore. When people drinking you might se a skirmish. He recalls one time when they were playing and Ger Daly was the bossman. He says in the mineral bar a bit of an argument started and Ger Daly said “lads, lads, lads, and straight away that stopped it. When asked did they have bouncers in the halls he says they did, you wouldn’t want to get on the wrong side of them he adds. He mentions the Galtymore dancehall in Cricklewood North London as a great place to play. He says the bouncers would have anyone misbehaving by the scruff of the neck. He says you would conduct yourself there. He says the Irish people who would go to the Galtymore as great. He says it was a great place for the grub. He talks about when they had finished playing there and were about to head for the ferry they got beef sandwiches given to them by the venue. He says they were very honourable and mentions the Byrne family who ran it. He speaks about another venue in Cricklewood they played in called the Spotted Terrier which is not far from the Galtymore. They played for a family called the Caseys who also had the Elephant And Castle. Donal says that they played all over London till they went and played Scotland in 1988. He says once they started playing Scotland they never really went back to England. He says it’s a different country and different scene. He says with them you’d have to play right and play so many bars for each dance and he jokes they’d be standing on the floor looking at you if you did it wrong. Tim asks Donal if they ever came across a tough element in London such as gangsters. Donal says they never encountered that. He says the only trouble they encountered was that most times they played London a bomb might go off. He says they were playing in Dublin the night Nelsons Pillar was blown up. In answer to Tim’ question of did they play the North Of Ireland he says he never played there. There follows a discussion about the Miami Showband Massacre of 1975. Tim says he saw them play the Seaview in Salthill Galway the night before it happened. Donal says they weren’t asked to play in the North during the troubles, after the Troubles when they played Scotland they got a slot in a place north of Belfast (he remembers later it was Ballymena). Donal says he was worried and said it to his friend in Scotland Brooke Lindsey in Scotland who said it to two friends in Belfast who were two brothers, Rea who play accordian. They in turn said that Donal needn’t be worried coming to the North. He says there was no problem but there was a split in the camp, (with the band) which he says is very common. He says they didn’t have a bad night or a great night. He says it was unsettling and you’d prefer to be somewhere else. Tim asks Donal if he ever composed any tunes himself. Donal says just one which is named Donal Rings Jig. He talks about the process of how he composed and recorded it. He says it has been recorded in Scotland since as a man rang and asked could he record it to which Donal agreed. When asked did he get any royalties from it he says not at all and he says people think that if they hear you on the radio you are making money. He says he is registered with IMRO or The Irish Music Rights Organisation.[Restricted Access section here 1.15.43 to 1.16.46 ] </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.17.47 - 1.25.55 </td> <td> He speaks about playing in the Opera House with a tenor called John MacNally for a fortnight one time. Tim says that’s a name he hasn’t heard in a while and that he was very prolific at one stage, Donal says he was a lovely singer and thinks he went to Australia after. Tim asks Donal if he ever played the old Opera House, Donal says he didn’t but he did see it burning down. He goes on to speak about this, he says he was over the other side of the river watching it. He watched the tail end of the fire early in the morning as the Opera House smouldered. There were a lot of people looking on. He was young at the time and it was a shame to see it burning. He says his parents never went into the old Opera House, they were tough times he says. He says maybe a small bit of snobbery attached to the Opera House and a certain clique if you wanted to get work there you couldn’t get work if you attached to them. He doesn’t know if that still applies to the modern Opera House but he has heard they are tough. Tim asks does he play music by local composers. Donal mentions Jerry Casey as one, also Noel Crowley who wrote a few melodies for them. There were a few tunes written for their band here and there by various people. Tim asks were there a lot of people writing at the time, Donal says a man did several of what on the recording sounds like “poetry” on the band (Note: cannot quite make out this word) written by a man from Whitegate whose name he can’t recall. He says he has some at home and must root them out. He says they did a lot of rehearsing before they did recordings, as he said before the recording was expensive so they couldn’t rehearse during it. He says they would rehearse without amplification out in the hall. He says in relation to the amps and equipment that they started out with rubbish. He says they would be buying stuff that they thought was great and then it would turn out to be not that good. It would be a long time before you buy the right stuff. He says he bought a Thule speakers and amplifier in America in 1974 that he still uses. The amp is only 100 watt and he says today everyone is using 2000 watt amps. He says he can put it up against any of them. He never had to open them bar one speaker when the wire fell off of it. He speaks about using the PB501 microphone for the accordians and how he came about using it. He says you can’t get them anymore. He has two of them and several members of the band of them. He says a “bomb came down” on a factory that manufactures components for it and you can’t get it anymore. Tim mentions Peavey to which Donal says they wouldn’t be as good as Thule. He always used mikes he says. It didn’t restrict them onstage he says. He says Paddy O Connor of RTE gave him advice on microphones and sound and said don’t forget to play nice and easy. He never used sound engineers in the band. He did the sound himself he says. He says in certain halls you would have feedback problems. He remembers one hall in Portarlington Co Laois and a man said if you can get sound in here I life my hat. Donal says when he put the speakers up on stage the sound was desperate. Eventually he put them on the floor off stage and the sound was perfect. The man who was talking about the sound couldn’t get over it. He says how when he went into a hall for the first time he would whistle and if you heard it echoing back you knew you were in trouble. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.25.56 - 1.35.23 </td> <td> Tim asks Donal if he ever played up the Glen, the Glen Hall in Blackpool. Donal says that’s where they started, they didn’t play the new one. He says the place was “black” with people, packed out completely. He say Jimmy O Rourke was running it and Donal says he was the man with the scoreboard afterwards at GAA matches at Pairc Ui Caoimh. Tim mentions that Donal had a song “the Bold Christy Ring” and asks did he know him. Donal says he did and that he was a great man. He says he didn’t talk a lot but he was very sincere. He says he met him after a County Final on a very wet day when the Glen were playing Youghal, Donal and Christy walked out together and they were talking about hurling. Christy said to him “look, if you’re a good player you’re a marked man, and you’ll know after a second ball whether they’re out to get you or not, and if you can’t take care of yourself you’ll be in big trouble”. He doesn’t know who wrote it. (Note: online sources indicate it is set to the tune of the Bold Thady Quill and the author of the lyrics remains unknbown) He never spoke about the song to Donal, it was very popular especially in Tipperary he says. He speaks about Paddy Carey singing it at shows and putting in mentions the Barrs, Jack Lynch and Glen Rovers, The Redmonds, Sean Og O Halpin and Julie Coughlan. He speaks of banter between Paddy and people from other counties at shows when he would sing it. Donal says he never met Sean O Riada, he says he did a lot for music. He says he was playing in Cashel County Tipperary recently and a lady came up speaking to him. She said she went to Coolea Irish College and she knew Sean O Riada and her father was a Clareman. She said she had read it the previous week that Sean O Riada was born in Cork and she couldn’t conceive that. Donal says he was a great man and his influence was enormous. He heard that he also played in Ceili bands. Donal speaks about the Cork singer Sean O Se. He sang with Donal often and they backed him. He is a fine artist he says. Donal says he knew Rory Gallagher, he says Rory used to go into Crowley’s. He says Rory played the Shand Marino accordion for a while with a band in West Cork and Donal says he has a photo somewhere of it. He thinks the name of the band was the Hawthorn or something like that. Tim mentions that Rory played with a band called the Fontana. Donal mentions a now deceased man called Joe Hayes who said to Donal did he remember when Donal said to Rory Gallagher that he should cut his hair. Donal said that he didn’t remember this. Joe said that it was as Rory was going into Crowley’s Music Shop and Donal who was walking outside on the footpath said to him “hello Rory, you should cut the hair, its getting very long”. Donal says he was a great man. Donal mentions a Cork tenor called Paul O Leary whom he says was the best tenor in the city. Tim returns to the subject of Rory Gallagher and asks Donal what he thought of his success. Donal says it was unbelieveable. He says he never played with him. Tim speaks about how Rory was experimenting with trad before his death and had worked with Ronny Drew. Donal speaks again about Rory starting on off the accordion. Tim asks did they work to a set list. Donal says they did within reason. It would happen in Scotland all right, they would get a setlist sheet he says. He remembers once they were playing in Dufftown in Scotland and at quarter to two there were three dancers left and he was convinced they would finish up but they kept going to get value for money. He doesn’t think anyone wrote a song about him, he jokes that a fellow has to die before they will talk about him. Tim says when he was young he would hear of a man who was nicknamed “Take the floor” Dinjo. (Note: Denis Fitzgibbon who hosted a popular Irish music dancing radio show called Take The Floor) Donal says he had a great influence on the scene. His father was mad for listening to him on the radio. Donal says he worked with him once when they did a tour with the Blarney Ceili band. They did a tour of Kerry and parts of Cork with Dinjo. He agrees that the Irish dancing came across well on the radio because you could hear the tapping. Donal thought it was a great idea. He says he knew the folklorist and broadcaster Ciarán Mac Mathúna as well, he did great work for Irish music he says. He says Paddy O Connor was talking about doing the recordings with him on the radio recently. He lived for Irish music he says. Tim mentions a number of names of traditional Irish musicians, Jackie Daly, Matt Cranitch and Seamus Creagh. Donal says he went to school with Matt Cranitch’s father and knows Matt well. Donal says he has a saying which he has often told. If you got a line long enough and start in Kinsale and divide Ireland in two up to the North every musician on the East Coast is superior to those on the West which he admits is a controversial opinion. He says all the best musicians were on the Eastern side of the line, he lists some. The Gallowglass Ceili Band, Jackie Ahern, Dermot O Brien, Blarney Ceili Band, Jackie Hearst.. He admits that the Kilfenora Céilí Band were very good and his own father was a great Kilfenora man but he says he never liked the pure trad style, he likes a cleaner style but he says they were a dance band. He says he has a cousin in Ballingeary who is a great player and he jokes he will kill him for saying it but he says when musicians from the West and East coasts play together they’re not together. There’s different interpretations of the tune by different players. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.35.25 - 1.42.05 </td> <td> Tim mentions the renowned Clare fiddle player Martin Hayes and asks if he was a member of the Kilfenora Céilí Band to which Donal says he thinks he was. He say the Kilfenora have come along in a big way and he’s delighted for them. Tim mentions Dermot O'Brien the musician from Co Louth who was also a GAA footballer. Donal says the best the three best accordion players in the country were from Louth, he lists them as Dermot O Brien, Fintan Stanley and Paddy Neary. When Tim asks Donal where he would put himself Donal says he was alright to which Tim says he heard he was one of the best. Tim asks him if he knew other well known Cork characters such as Bernie Murphy and Bishop Con Lucey. Donal says he knew Bernie Murphy well and he mentions another Cork character from Fairhill who would do a trick where he would flip a penny up in the air then kick it up again with the heel of his shoe and then catch it in his coat pocket. He can’t think of his name but thinks his first name was Donie. Donal says he would do this trick for fun. He was famous for this trick and would do it on the street. (Note: this mans name was Donie Murphy and his nickname was Mad Donie. This information was found on the Facebook group Old Photographs Of Cork City And County). Donal mentions another Cork character who was known as the Bowler. He would bowl the bowls down Patrick Street. Donal says he came from Shandon. He would wear a white raincoat and a cap and Donal was selling confectionary at the time and he would meet him and the Bowler would say to him “I bate Mick Barry boy!” (Mick Barry the famous bowler). Donal would be ribbing him and said he didn’t to which the Bowler would say “watch this” and he threw the bowl down Patrick Street. Donal says there wasn’t as much traffic on the street then but it was still dangerous as it was an iron ball. Donal says he met Mick Barry the Cork bowler once when he was sick out in Ballincollig, Donal says his wife Bridies uncle beat him at bowling once, Jamsey Sullivan (James O Sullivan) from Killeens and he had the cup to show for it. He says that Jamsey threw a bowl up on top of the viaduct (on the Cork to Bandon road) but Mick Barry threw the bowl over it which was a sixteen ounce ball. He says the O Sullivan’s were all great bowlers and he mentions another Paul O Sullivan another from Blackpool Benny. He mentions they were also great tug o war men. There was a tug o war team in Killeens one time and in connection with this he mentions a Dan Twohig, he says the Twohigs were great men. He says you could hurt yourself easily at tug o war. Tim asks what did Donal think of Riverdance and he said it was unreal. He says it didn’t do themselves in the band any harm audience wise. He says Michael Flatley is a great dancer and Donal went to see the live show, he says everything about it is spot on. He can see it continuing on, he agrees that it fed the competitive side of dancing. Tim asks Donal if he thinks RTE were good to Cork music in general to which Donal says he doesn’t think so. He says they had to fight to get on it. He says that they were lucky that Donncha O Dulaing liked the band and put them on a lot of shows. He says Gina Dale Haze And The Champions who he says were a great band never got a shot on RTE, he says it was the same with the Gallowglass Ceili Band. He can’t understand it, he says they got on radio all right and the Blarney band but he says “if you’re not in Dublin you’re only in Ireland”. Tim asks about the BBC if they ever contacted them to which Donal says they did a few shows with BBC Scotland. Tim asks if the clergy ever got involved in the dancing (in an authoritarian way) to which Donal says they never interfered with them. He mentions a Fr Jim Donovan in Blackpool who was then moved to Dunmanway and he would book them for Dunmanway, he got them a lot of work there. He is now in Ballinlough he says. Tim ask if he has seen any young up and coming Cork acts that appeal to him and how he sees the ceili business going. He mentions that his son Donie started an accordion night in Pa Johnsons, the pub and people come from all round for it. </td> </tr> <tr> <td> 1.42.07 - 0.00.00 </td> <td> Donal speaks about his hopes for the future of ceili. He would like to see it continue but the thinks when his generation are gone we will have to wait a good few years for it to come Back and he believes it will come back in a cycle, he says everything gets a cycle but he can’t see it coming back for a long time. Tim asks him does he go see live acts these days to which Donal says now and again. He says a lot of them are one or two man bands, he says they are earning their money as it is tough with just one or two in terms of setting up equipment etc. Tim asks Donal if he used to read Spotlight Magazine and if he ever made the cover. (Note: Spotlight was an Irish music magazine mainly focusing on Showbands, it was later re- named New Spotlight). Donal says he heard of it. He mentions that Top Of The Pops was in that and a song he recorded called “Beautiful City” in Top Of Pops for six weeks. (Note: The reference to Top Of The Pops appears to be a reference to a music charts related section of Spotlight rather than the BBC music programme). Donal says he got a call from John Woods of Polydor Records, Donal mentions that he was a brother of Michael Woods the Fianna Fáil TD. John said to Donal that there was big demand for a song called Beautiful City and he asked would Donal and his band record it. Donal says the tenor Paul O Leary whom he mentioned earlier was singing it. They left and Donal was in his car and Paul was after buying a Renault. Donal says he passed Paul, then Paul passed him and vice versa. They arrived in Portlaoise and they were booked in there for lunch. Donal says a Mrs Grey came out and said they were in big trouble and one of the band were after going into the bog in Urlingford. Paul O Leary, and Donal’s brother Michael and Paul O Leary were in the car. She said no one was hurt but they were shaken. Paul had lost control coming into Urlingford and the car swung around and went into the bog. He mentions that Beautiful City was six weeks at number two in the Irish charts; they were just behind the Dixie’s. He says they didn’t come close with anything after. A discussion of Donal’s collection of photographs follows, talk of looking through them on another day is discussed. Tim mentions that Donal was winner of Cork Person Of The Month. A reception in City Hall for him is discussed and Donal says the president of the time Mary Macalise was there. Donal says that the man who set up the Cork to Swansea ferry won it (Cork Person Of The Year), Conor Buckley. He mentions that the service is now gone again. He says of his own night in the City Hall it was a bit nerve wracking. The City Council were very good to him he says and it was a great night. He got Cork Person Of The Month for March he says. He says that Sean McCarthy, the Cork sculptor did a bust of Donal which is out in the hall of his home for the bands 50’th anniversary. He mentions that he’ll be 80 soon and will be having a big night in Glenville at the end of the week. He says he might do simple stuff like Waltzes as jigs and reels are too strenuous at 80. Tim thanks Donal for speaking to him and wraps up the interview. Interview ends 1.49.05 </td> </tr> </tbody> </table> Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Donal Ring Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 06.10.2015 Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Cork Folklore Project Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context CFP_SR00564_ring_2015 Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Cork Folklore Project Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Cork Folklore Project Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Cork Folklore Project Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource Cork Folklore Project Language A language of the resource English Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource Audio/Wav Description An account of the resource Donal speaks about his career in music with the Donal Ring Ceili Band. How his interest in music stemmed from his father, a melodeon player. His first band with Donal Coleman from Grenagh. The Celtic Ceili Band from Mallow. Accordian player Noel Crowley from Dillon’s Cross. Donal’s early manager the comedian Tony Hegarty. Trying to get onto RTE television, the RTE shows Beirt Eile and Club Céilí. The story of how Jack Lynch helped to get Donal’s band their first television slot on RTE. Kevin McCourt, Director General of RTE. Denis Fitzgibbon. Take The Floor Dinjo. Stories of touring around Ireland to concerts in Donals Volkswagen mini bus. Dancehalls. Showbands. The Dixies. Joe Mac. Gina Dale Haze And The Champions. The Miami Showband Massacre. Playing in Northern Ireland. How the Troubles effected touring to the North. Donal’s job truck driving and involvement in the construction of Whitegate oil refinery and Cork Airport. Involvement in transporting sugar beet. Health and safety. Different makes of accordion. The Shand Morino accordion. Scottish accordion player Jimmy Shand. Louth accordian players Paddy Neary ,Dermot O Brien, Fintan Stanley. Scottish musician Jim Cameron. Anecdotes about Rory Gallagher and Crowley’s Music Shop. How Rory Gallagher played accordion in a ceili band in his youth. Singer Sean O Se. Sean O Riada. Country N Western star Robert Mizzell. Windmill Lane recording Studio. Bill Somerville- Large. Clay Castle Recording Studio Youghal. Jackie Daly, Matt Cranitch and Seamus Creagh. The Gallowglass Ceili Band, the Celtic Ceili Band, the Blarney Ceili Band. Blarney Brass & Reed Band. The Regal Showband. Cork band the Arrivals. Concerts in Cork City Hall. The Palm Court Ballroom. (the Oliver Plunket) . St Francis Hall. Fr Roberts a Franciscan priest of St Francis Hall. The effect on Dancehalls of the building of lounges in pubs. Types of dances, the Foxtrot, jigs and reels, Siege Of Ennis, Riverdance, Michael Flatley, the Kipe, the stack o barley, the sweets of may, the Slosh. Dance teacher The MP” Foley. Fiddler Margaret McCarthy. Waltzing competitions. Set dancing. Road bowling. Bowler Mick Barry. Jamsey Sullivan bowler from Killeens. Tug o war. Dan Twohig. Donal’s memories of Cork hurler Christy Ring. Christy speaking to him about the techniques of hurling. Na Piarsaigh hurling club. An eccentric character from Shandon nicknamed “The Bowler” who would claim to have beaten Mick Barry and who bowled a ball down Patrick Street. Fairhill character Donie Murphy “Mad Donie” and his famous coin trick. How downloading has effected the sale in cds. GAA. Hurling. The Barrs. Pairc Ui Caoimh. Songwriter Jimmy McCarthy, Donal’s family connection with him. Cork sculptor Sean McCarthy. Spotlight Magazine. The song Beautiful City and how Donal and his band had a hit with it in the Irish charts. Donal being awarded Cork Person Of The Month. The Kilfenora Céilí Band. Clare fiddle player Martin Hayes. The Stardust fire and its effect on fire safety regulations. Dress attire at dances. Men asking women to dance at dances. Ladies Choices. Recording sessions and how recording studios charged by the hour, how some orchestrated power cuts deliberately to draw out the recording process. Comical stories of life on the road touring. Playing chess on the tour bus. How a lampshade nearly fell on a bandmember. Traditional Irish music folklorist Ciarán Mac Mathúna. accordion band Brendan Bowyer Career Cars Céilí Ceili Band Clothes Dancehalls Dillon’s Cros RTE media Music Sean O Riada Sean O Se Showbands https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/files/original/7904388105684297d317579b754f3afa.mp3 32a7335d2ff57b1659453a3455391fc6 Event A non-persistent, time-based occurrence. Metadata for an event provides descriptive information that is the basis for discovery of the purpose, location, duration, and responsible agents associated with an event. Examples include an exhibition, webcast, conference, workshop, open day, performance, battle, trial, wedding, tea party, conflagration. Duration Length of time involved (seconds, minutes, hours, days, class periods, etc.) 7 min 6 sec Event Type The Rory Gallagher Memorial in Murphy’s Brewery, Ladyswell, Cork. 2 Short spee.ches Participants Names of individuals or groups participating in the event Marcus Connaughton & Scott Duncan Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource The Rory Gallagher Memorial Description An account of the resource This recording consists of an introductory remarks and a brief speech on the occasion of the presentation of a posthumous award to Rory Gallagher from UK-based Blue Print magazine. The event took place in Murphy’s Brewery, Ladyswell, Cork. The speakers are Marcus Connaughton & Scott Duncan. It was recorded by Conor Kennelly. Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 21st November 1996 Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context CFP_SR00014_RoryGallagherMemorial_1996 Relation A related resource CFP_SR00013_Gillan_1996 CFP_SR00015_Cronin_1996 CFP_SR00016_Dineen_1996 Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Cork Folklore Project Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Cork Folklore Project Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Cork Folklore Project Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource Cork Folklore Project Language A language of the resource English blueprint magazine blues Monica Gallagher Music Rory Gallagher Ross Daly RTC/CIT/MTU Scott Duncan Stories Sue Duncan