Wonderful memories from Co. Tipperary included in new National Museum of Ireland book
‘Happy Days and Hard Times’, a supberb collection of visitor memories at the National Museum of Ireland – Country Life has just been reissued for print due to its initial success. The book is a series of stories contributed by the general public during their visit to the museum and draws on their experiences and memories of country life. Included in the collection are memories from a County Tipperary visitor who remembers the sheep being sheared with a hand shearer. The book is a thought provoking response to the extensive Folklife collection held at the museum.

Persons: Meitheal at threshing on the farm of Mr. Michael Coffey, Keel, Kilgobnet, Beaufort, Killarney, Co. Kerry
This beautifully sentimental book, which evokes strong memories such as collecting hay in the summer or fetching water from the well, was compiled by the Museums documentation officer, Joanne Hamilton. The project was initiated in 2013 to encourage Museum visitors to engage in the process of reminiscence during their visit.
Using specially designed memory sheets, visitors were invited to record their memories and stories of country life. These individual memories were then added to a growing archive of personalised accounts which was organised by Hamilton for publication and complemented by an array of archival images from the Irish Folklife Collection.
Talking about the project, Ms. Hamilton says:
“As a Museum, the National Museum of Ireland – Country Life is in a unique position in that many of the themes and objects that it exhibits are still in living memory for many visitors either directly or indirectly, through accounts from parents and grandparents. Having overheard visitors regularly engaging in reminiscence whilst talking together in the galleries, I saw the potential to harness this by enabling visitors to record these stories and memories in a simple way. In doing this, the personal stories and memories recorded can to contribute to the broader narrative that the Museum represents.
What we’ve found is that visitors buy a book for themselves, older relatives or those living abroad. The thought provoking stories resonate with so many; those visits to the bog with the flask of tea or cycling the countryside. It brings people into a simpler past, a past filled with colour and conversation, a past where children ran through fields till dusk and neighbours sat for hours whiling away time.
Of course, as the book title suggests, not all of the rich memories of country living are surrounded with that wistful glow; the undercurrent of hard times comes to the fore as people recount their stories. Poverty, overcrowding and hunger all quietly resonate in these simplistic tales of old.”
Amongst in the many memories revisited in the book, are stories by people from all corners of the country as well as one contributed by well-known Irish singer/songwriter, Christy Moore, who recalls listening to Michael O’Hehir on the wireless or hearing the day old chicks chirp underneath the settle bed.
Members of the public can still contribute memories and stories of country life to the memory book project either via the memory sheets which are available at the memory corner at the National Museum of Ireland – Country Life or by downloading a memory sheet from the museum website www.museum.ie and returning it with your written memory to Joanne Hamilton, The National Museum of Ireland – Country Life, Turlough Park, Castlebar, Co. Mayo.
Copies of the book are available at any of the book shops at the 3 National Museum of Ireland sites in Dublin: Collins Barracks, Natural History and Archaeology and at the National Museum of Ireland – Country Life, Turlough Park, Co. Mayo.
“Happy Days, Hard Times”
Tá cuimhní cinn den scoth ó dhaoine ar fud na tíre sna scéalta agus sna pictiúir a gheofar i bhfoilseachán ó Ard-Mhúsaem na hÉireann
Bailiúchán iontach de chuimhní cinn ó chuairteoirí ar Ard-Mhúsaem na hÉireann – Saol na Tuaithe atá sa leabhar ‘Happy Days and Hard Times’, agus tá sé ar fáil i gcló arís de bharr na tóra a bhí air a chéaduair. Sraith scéalta atá sa leabhar, scéalta a roinn an pobal le linn cuairteanna ar an músaem, ar a dtaithí agus a gcuimhní cinn ar shaol na tuaithe. Ba é an lear mór míreanna atá i mbailiúchán Shaol na Tuaithe an mhúsaeim a spreag na cuimhní cinn agus na scéalta seo.
Is leabhar álainn é a chuirfidh daoine ag smaoineamh ar ócáidí tuaithe ar nós móin a chnuchairt ar an bportach, féar a bhaint sa samhradh agus uisce a fháil ón tobar. Ba í Joanne Hamilton, oifigeach doiciméadaithe an Mhúsaeim, a thiomsaigh an bailiúchán. In 2013 a cuireadh tús leis an tionscadal chun cuairteoirí ar an Músaem a spreagadh le smaoineamh siar le linn cuairteanna.
Iarradh orthu a gcuimhní cinn agus a gcuid scéalta de shaol na tuaithe a bhreacadh síos ar leathanaigh chuimhne speisialta. Cuireadh na cuimhní cinn aonair le cartlann de chuntais phearsanta, cartlann a d’fhás go mear, agus a d’eagraigh Hamilton lena bhfoilsiú, le pictiúir ó chartlann Bhailiúchán Shaol na Tuaithe.
Agus í ag caint faoin tionscadal, dúirt Ms Hamilton:
“Mar mhúsaem, tá sé de bhuntáiste ag Ard-Mhúsaem na hÉireann – Saol na Tuaithe go bhfuil mórchuid de na téamaí agus de na déantáin atá ar taispeáint ann fós i gcuimhne cuairteoirí áirithe, óna dtaithí phearsanta nó go hindíreach ó chuntais a chuala siad óna dtuismitheoirí nó óna seantuismitheoirí. Tar éis cuairteoirí a chloisteáil go minic ag smaoineamh siar fad a bhí siad ag féachaint ar na taispeántais, chonaic mé go bhféadfaí leas a bhaint as sin trí iarraidh ar na cuairteoirí na scéalta agus na cuimhní cinn a bhí acu a bhreacadh síos. Ba shlí é sin leis na scéalta agus na cuimhní cinn pearsanta sin a thaifead ionas go mbeidh siad mar chuid den scéal iomlán atá á insint ag an músaem.
Is minic a cheannaíonn cuairteoirí leabhar dóibh féin, do ghaolta níos sine nó do ghaolta atá ina gcónaí thar lear. Bíonn cuimhne ag an oiread sin daoine ar na scéalta éagsúla: na cuairteanna ar an bportach le fleasc tae nó an rothaíocht a rinneadh ar fud na tuaithe. Tugann sé daoine ar ais go saol níos simplí, saol lán datha agus comhrá, nuair a d’imíodh na páistí ag rith trí na páirceanna go deireadh an lae agus nuair a mheileadh na comharsana an t-am le caint agus tae.
Ar ndóigh, mar a thugtar le fios i dteideal an leabhair, ní dea-chuimhní amháin atá ag daoine ar shaol na tuaithe; bhí an saol crua ar go leor daoine, mar is léir nuair a thosaíonn daoine ag aithris a gcuid scéalta. Bhí an bhochtaineacht, an plódú agus an t-ocras coitianta sna scéalta seo den saol fadó.”
Tá scéalta ó gach cearn den tír i measc na gcuimhní cinn sa leabhar, ina measc ceann ón amhránaí agus scríbhneoir amhrán iomráiteach, Christy Moore, a smaoiníonn siar ar éisteacht le Mícheál O’Hehir ar an raidió agus ar shicíní lá amháin d’aois a chloisteáil ag gíogadh faoin leaba shuíocháin.
Níl sé ródhéanach duit cuimhní cinn agus scéalta a chur ar fáil do thionscadal leabhar na gcuimhní cinn, ar na leathanaigh chuimhne atá ar fáil i gcúinne na cuimhne in Ard-Mhúsaem na hÉireann – Saol na Tuaithe nó trí leathanach cuimhne a íoslódáil ó shuíomh gréasáin an mhúsaeim ag www.museum.ie agus do chuimhne scríofa a chur ar ais chuig Joanne Hamilton, Ard-Mhúsaem na hÉireann – Saol na Tuaithe, Páirc Thurlaigh, Caisleán an Bharraigh, Co. Mhaigh Eo.
Gheofar cóipeanna den leabhar in aon cheann de na siopaí leabhair ar thrí láthair an mhúsaeim, i mBaile Átha Cliath: Dún Uí Choileáin, Músaem Stair an Dúlra agus Músaem na Seandálaíochta, agus in Ard-Mhúsaem na hÉireann – Saol na Tuaithe, Páirc Thurlaigh, Caisleán an Bharraigh, Co. Mhaigh Eo.