Stefan Wulff: Germany, Cycling, Currachs, Change,
Life History; Cork; Ireland; Germany;
A detailed interview with German born Stefan Wulff. He gives a really rich account of building currachs, of trips down the Lee and his impressions of Cork from the river side.
Stefan was born in Dortmund, in the Ruhr Valley, Germany. He has one brother and one sister. He came to study in UCC in 1994.
The agricultural area where Stefan grew up was very spacious with plenty of fields to play in. He played the usual childhood games: cycling, football and a favourite which was shooting darts from an air rifle in their cellar. He had a passion for kite flying and bought hundreds over the years.
His earliest memory is of not wanting to go to pre-school and nun like figures who wanted to give him (calcium) tablets. He remembers his grandmother telling him stories particularly about his father growing up in Prussia and how during the war and they had to flee for their own safety and moved to northern Germany. His grandmother helped in the process of settling the large numbers of refugees. He was told his grandfather was shot, but Stefan later learned he had ended his own life.
Stefan first came with a cycling group in 1983. He came back in 1994 on a student exchange programme to UCC where he met his future wife.
Stefan mentions the differences in the social dimensions between Ireland and Germany. It took him years to settle in Ireland because of these differences.
He uses the words Lee, chaos and change to describe Cork. The river Lee holds a strong attraction for Stefan, and he speaks of it bringing a certain flair to Cork. The chaos comes from observing the lunacy of cork driving and parking habits. He talks about the change in Cork’s architecture and how dilapidated some buildings were when he first arrived.
Stefan highlights his discomfort with the drinking culture and how much more consumer orientated people are and how it has brought greed to some.
Naomhoige Chorcai and Meitheal Mara are rowing clubs that build and row currachs. Stefan describes the boats, getting them into the water and rowing them down the Lee. He gives a detailed description of viewing Cork from the river side and a long journey he took on the open sea, in an Aran currach, from Lettermullen in Connemara to Inishman with Padraig O’Dineen, one of the founders of Meitheal Mara, and Brian Hennessy.
Note; This interview was conducted as part of the Cork 2005 Project
Cork Folklore Project
Cork Folklore Project Audio Archive
Cork Folklore Project
19 November 2004
Interviewee: Stefan Wullf
Interviewer: Mary O'Driscoll
<strong>Cork 2005 Collection Catalogue Numbers:<br /></strong> <br /><a href="http://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/5">CFP_SR00329_mccarthy_2004</a>;<br /><a href="http://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/18">CFP_SR00330_odriscoll_2004</a>;<br /><a href="http://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/19">CFP_SR00331_claffey_2004</a>;<br /><a href="http://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/20">CFP_SR00332_hanover_2004</a>;<br /><a href="http://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/21">CFP_SR00333_desplanques_2004</a>;<br /><a href="http://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/22">CFP_SR00334_bale_2004</a>;<br /><a href="http://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/23">CFP_SR00335_sheridan_1996</a>;<br /><a href="http://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/24">CFP_SR00336_steiner-scott_2004</a>;<br /><a href="http://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/25">CFP_SR00337_rot_2004</a>;<br /><a href="http://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/26">CFP_SR00338_stafford_2004</a>;<br /><a href="http://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/27">CFP_SR00339_odonoghue_2004</a>;<br /><a href="http://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/28">CFP_SR00340_hawkins_2004</a>;<br /><a href="http://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/29">CFP_SR00341_ocarroll_2004</a>;<br /><a href="http://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/30">CFP_SR00342_ikebuasi_2004</a>;<br /><a href="http://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/54">CFP_SR00343_ogeallabhain_2004</a>;<br /><a href="http://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/31">CFP_SR00344_geaney_2004</a>;<br /><a href="http://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/33">CFP_SR00346_abdoulbaneeva_2004</a>;<br />CFP_SR00347_gunes_2004;<br /><a href="http://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/35">CFP_SR00348_fourie_2004</a>;<br /><a href="http://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/36">CFP_SR00349_henderson_2004</a>;<br /><a href="http://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/37">CFP_SR00350_valdman_2004</a>;<br /><a href="http://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/38">CFP_SR00351_carmody_2004</a>;<br /><a href="http://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/39">CFP_SR00352_osullivan_2004</a>;<br /><a href="http://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/40">CFP_SR00353_mahknanov_2004</a>;<br /><a href="http://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/41">CFP_SR00354_oflynn_2004</a>;<br /><a href="http://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/42">CFP_SR00355_akhter_2004</a>;<br /><a href="http://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/43">CFP_SR00356_walker_2004</a>;<br /><a href="http://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/44">CFP_SR00357_kelleher_2004</a>;<br /><a href="http://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/45">CFP_SR00358_manresa_2004</a>;<br /><a href="http://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/46">CFP_SR00359_wimpenny_2005</a>;<br /><a href="http://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/47">CFP_SR00360_skotarczak_2005</a>;<br /><a href="http://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/48">CFP_SR00361_vermeulen_2005</a>;<br /><a href="http://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/49">CFP_SR00362_owen_2005</a>;<br /><a href="http://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/50">CFP_SR00363_dsouza_2005</a>;<br /><a href="http://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/51">CFP_SR00364_setter_2005</a>;<br /><a href="http://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/52">CFP_SR00365_obrien_2005</a>;<br /><a href="http://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/53">CFP_SR00366_botan_2005</a>:
<br /><strong>Published Material:</strong><br />‘How’s it Goin’, Boy? radio series <a href="http://corkfolklore.org/radio-series/">(six thirty-minute episodes, broadcast 2005 and available on the Cork Folklore Project website)</a>
O'Carroll, Clíona for the Cork Northside Folklore Project (2006) How's it goin', boy? Dublin: Nonsuch Publishing.
1 .wav File
English
Sound
CFP_SR00345_wulff_2004
Cork; Ireland; Germany: 1990s - 2000s;
Philomena Cassidy: Grattan Street, Healthcare, The Marsh
<p>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.</p>
<p>She discusses a variety of childhood games, a strong sense of community and friendly relationships with neighbours that have lasted a lifetime. </p>
<p><span>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. </span></p>
<p><span>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.</span></p>
<p><span>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.</span></p>
<p><span>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.</span></p>
<p><span>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.</span></p>
<p><span>Specific pawn shops and their locations are also recalled, how they functioned and their role in helping people make ends meet. </span></p>
Cork Folklore Project
Cork Folklore Project Audio Archive
4 September 2019
Cork Folklore Project
<strong>Other Interviews in this Collection </strong><br /><br /><a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/240" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00696_O'Regan_2019</a>; <br /><a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/242" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00704_Collins_2019</a>; <br /><a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/243" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00706_Higgisson_2019</a>; <br /><a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/244" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00712_O'Brien_2019</a>; <br /><a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/245" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00713_Kearney_2019</a>; <br /><a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/246" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00714_Cunning_2019</a>; <br /><a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/247" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00717_Ward_2019</a>; <br /><a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/248" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00727_OhUigin_2019</a>; <br /><a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/249" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00728_Scanlan_2019</a>; <br /><a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/250" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00729_Mulcahy_2019</a>;<br /><a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/252" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00760_Morrissy_2019</a>; <br /><a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/253" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"> CFP_SR00762_OConnell_2019</a>;
1 .wav file
English
Sound
CFP_SR00732_Cassidy_2019;
Mary Mulcahy: Grattan Street, Healthcare, The Marsh
<p><span>Mary grew up on in a tenement on Grattan Street where there was a toilet in the yard strong sense of community.</span></p>
<p><span>She attended school in St. Maries of the Isle as most children from The Middle Parish did and Came home for lunch.</span></p>
<p><span>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</span></p>
<p><span>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.</span></p>
<p><span>Recalls joy as a child when they got money for sweets as a treat.</span></p>
<p><span>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</span></p>
<p><span>Discusses the differences in social class at the time</span></p>
<p><span>Speaks about the positive change in men’s role in housework today</span></p>
<p><span>Describes an annual family day trip to Youghal for swimming and a picnic.</span></p>
<p><span>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. </span></p>
<p><span>Mentions some Christmas traditions in her family.</span></p>
<p><span>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. </span></p>
<p><span>Remarks on parents’ strict time keeping in her childhood which was a useful skill as an adult. </span></p>
<p><span>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.</span></p>
<p><span>Outlines common diseases in her childhood, including diphtheria which she contracted. Describes symptoms of diphtheria spending time in hospital isolation to cure diphtheria. </span></p>
<p><span>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. </span></p>
<p><span>Talks about religious devotion, mass going, the rosary, fasting prior to holy communion and confraternity meetings in St. Francis church.</span></p>
<p><span>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.</span></p>
<p><span>Describes candy apples made and sold on Gerald Griffin Street.</span></p>
Cork Folklore Project
Cork Folklore Project Audio Archive
1 August 2019
Cork Folklore Project
<strong>Other Interviews in this Collection </strong><br /><br /><a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/240" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00696_O'Regan_2019</a>; <br /><a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/242" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00704_Collins_2019</a>; <br /><a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/243" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00706_Higgisson_2019</a>; <br /><a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/244" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00712_O'Brien_2019</a>; <br /><a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/245" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00713_Kearney_2019</a>; <br /><a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/246" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00714_Cunning_2019</a>; <br /><a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/247" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00717_Ward_2019</a>; <br /><a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/248" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00727_OhUigin_2019</a>; <br /><a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/249" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00728_Scanlan_2019</a>;<br /><a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/251" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00732_Cassidy_2019</a>; <br /><a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/252" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00760_Morrissy_2019</a>; <br /><a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/253" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"> CFP_SR00762_OConnell_2019</a>;
Audio
English
Sound
CFP_SR00729_Mulcahy_2019;
Cork Folklore Project
<p>Liam Ó hUigín: Grattan Street, Healthcare, The Marsh</p>
<p><span>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.</span></p>
<p><span>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.</span></p>
<p><span>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.</span></p>
<p><span>Says that boys and girls played different games separately when he was growing up. Mentions some of these games in more detail.</span></p>
<p><span>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.</span></p>
<p><span>Returns to the topic of corner shops and shopping and the types of food available there, further comparing this to supermarkets today.</span></p>
<p><span>Speaks of the death of his mother and the change in living circumstances that this entailed.</span></p>
<p><span>Describes getting a vaccination in the dispensary, what it was like inside and who worked there.</span></p>
<p><span>Mentions fights outside bars at night time.</span></p>
<p><span>Talks about air raid shelters built in Cork city during the Second World War, what they looked like and where they were located.</span></p>
Cork Folklore Project
Cork Folklore Project Audio Archive
24 July 2019
Cork Folklore Project
<strong>Other Interviews in this Collection</strong><br /><br /><a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/240" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00696_O'Regan_2019</a>; <br /><a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/242" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00704_Collins_2019</a>; <br /><a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/243" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00706_Higgisson_2019</a>; <br /><a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/244" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00712_O'Brien_2019</a>; <br /><a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/245" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00713_Kearney_2019</a>; <br /><a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/246" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00714_Cunning_2019</a>; <br /><a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/247" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00717_Ward_2019</a>;<br /><a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/249" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00728_Scanlan_2019</a>; <br /><a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/250" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00729_Mulcahy_2019</a>; <br /><a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/251" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00732_Cassidy_2019</a>; <br /><a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/252" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00760_Morrissy_2019</a>; <br /><a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/253" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"> CFP_SR00762_OConnell_2019</a>;
<br /><strong>Other Interviews with Liam in the CFP Archive<br /></strong><br /><a href="http://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/134" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00422_OhUigin_2012</a>; <br /><a href="http://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/document/2" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00439_OhUigin_2011</a>; <br /><a href="https://corkfolklore.org/archivecatalolgue/items/show/67" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CFP_SR00539_OhUigin_2015</a>;
Audio
English
Sound
CFP_SR00727_OhUigin_2019;