It's been ages since I have posted a pic thread outside the Willie Clancy week, so there you go.
It was Horsefair in Ennistymon, Co Clare today. Nothing on the scale of Spancil Hill or Ballinasloe but good fun nevertheless. Spent the morning walking the street taking pictures of the animals and the people, donkey, horses and geese, farmers dressed up for the day out, travelling people up for the craic and to buy or sell a few horses, wild mountainy men and women, traveller kids tearing up and down the street riding bareback, locals and blow ins. Great day, great atmosphere.
That burro shot outside Monument Hair is GREAT!
The beer light in the window was a little distressing however. I hope those horses don't think that is an appropriate beverage for man or beast.
Certainly must give townsfolk a taste of road conditions which prevailed in the pre-auto days. Road apple conditions, that is. I noticed quite a few human shanks clad appropriately in rubber boots.
djm wrote:Do they still have real horse fairs like this, or was this just a spectacle put on to attract the tourists? Your intro suggests the latter.
It's a 'real' horsefair, nothing particularly touristy and I don't think I suggested any different. These things just happen, they have them regularly in Kilrush as well. Ballinasloe and Spancil Hill are huge and attract a lot of visitors and have a more touristy element but they're still primary horse fairs
Before they had the Mart built Ennistymon had regular cattle fairs in the street, some great photographs of that were done by Dorothea Lange during the fifties.
Thanks for the pics Peter. They're a great mental escape from being cooped up in an office all day in front of a computer. (Producing absolutely nothing of real value)
Peter Laban wrote:It's a 'real' horsefair, nothing particularly touristy and I don't think I suggested any different. These things just happen, they have them regularly in Kilrush as well. Ballinasloe and Spancil Hill are huge and attract a lot of visitors and have a more touristy element but they're still primary horse fairs
Okay, thx, but that's what got me to wondering. A lot of the photos I see are from fifty years ago, so I'm never certain of what is still current and what is passé.
djm
I'd rather be atop the foothills than beneath them.
Yes travellers are, well, Travellers. Both Ennistymon and Kilrush have quite a few settled travellers in their population. There are a number of halting sites around Ennistymon as well (as well as regular illegal roadside encampments) . Sometimes there are ad hoc horseraces in the main street.
Travellers have always been associated with horse trading, the Dorans were trading horses for example.
There aren't a lot of working horses left but farmers keep a few horses or donkeys as a hobby and sell them off every now and again.
