For Charlestown native, Jack Foley, his labour of love has finally come to fruition. Mr Foley, originally from Corthoon but now residing in Cavan, will launch his new book ‘Swinford Spalpeens’ in The Gateway Hotel, Swinford on Saturday, 4th March at 4pm.
Mr Foley witnessed mass emigration from his home area in the 1940s and 1950s. Mr Foley’s interest in migration studies emanated from witnessing the exodus of vast numbers of young people that had taken place from rural Ireland throughout the decades.
The now retired school teacher embarked on extensive research studies into the area of mass emigration. The result of this personal aspiration – a book entitled Swinford Spalpeens. In this book, Jack tells the story of emigration from the east Mayo region in the period 1815-1970. He approaches the topic from the historical perspective which reveals that migratory workers from the east Mayo area were a common sight on English harvest fields as far back as the 1830s.
Part I of the book traces the movement of those migrant workers from their smallholdings in east Mayo to their destinations on English farms from the early 1800s to the 1950s. Most of the emigrants would disperse to farming areas such as Lincolnshire, Norfolk , Peterborough and Suffolk. At the time, farming was highly labour intensive – every aspect was done by hand. The emigrants would sow and harvest crops from March onwards whilst saving hay in June. Crops ranged from beet and potatoes to barley, wheat and oats.
Research undertaken for Part I of this book suggests that the socio-economic conditions present in the west and, in particular, the east Mayo area, were disproportionally egregious when compared to the rest of the country. As a result of the privation suffered, emigration from this area during the late 1800s and beyond were proportionally greater than that of other regions. Parallel with this exodus was the movement of thousands of Spalpeens (migratory agricultural labourers) who went form east Mayo to the harvest in England each year, from the pre-famine era up to the mid-1900s. Their stories intersect with that of the more permanent emigrants, whose narratives are also outlined in part II.
In Part II, a fascinating glimpse into the lives of emigrants who left this region in the 1940s, 1950s and 1960s is given. The author documented those life stories from recorded interviews taken between 2001 and 2015. It is notable that, while common threads run through these accounts, the primacy individual choice is evident throughout the narratives. Though it is clear that most made the decision to leave for economic reasons, many subsequently returned because of their solitude for ageing or sick parents.
In Summary; This book traces the movement of migratory agricultural workers from the region in the early 1800s to the 1950s together with the documented life stories of a number of emigrants and migrants who left the area in the 1940s, 1950s and 1960s.
All are welcome to attend the official launch of Swinford Spalpeens where the author, Jack Foley, will be present on the day.
Refreshments will be served.