Rock and Roll in the 40s!

 

Caravan provided accommodation

Courtesy: Tom Keane

 

Roller used to improve roads

Courtesy: Tom Keane

Rock and Roll in the 40s

In Ireland, we are reminded almost daily, of the shortage or scarcity of adequate housing and accommodation for resident and migrant. I cannot imagine or make reference to the quality or availability of the housing in Ireland, when we had eight million people but I do remember the arrival in Abbey of two workers who brought their own accommodation with them.  I refer to Bernard who had his caravan parked near Hynes’s house and to Tom who had his caravan at Our Lady’s Well.

Both men spearheaded a transformation in the appearance and quality of two Abbey roadways.  While the caravan had adequate sleeping furnishings and cooking facilities it was, probably, the forerunner of the larger mobile homes, that we now see at our seaside.

At a time when most rural work had to be done in daylight, Bernard spent part of his night, most nights, heating barrels of tar required each day for tarring the main road through Abbey.  It was a notable highlight to see his fellow worker, while wearing a leather apron, spraying this liquid tar on the main road.  Two men shovelled chips on this and a roller, later firmed the lot.

Tom, was a supervisor or ganger and led about eight men in the reconstruction of the road in Lower Abbey.  Five farmers had lands on this road and besides its fame for a neighbouring ‘never-run-dry’ well, it gave access to the best hurling field in the parish.  Tom’s caravan was crowded nightly, for games of draughts, played in relaxation from the daily labours.  Men, working on that road, received ten shillings a day and a pound a day if they also had a horse and cart.  The cart was required for ferrying stones and sand from a neighbouring sandpit.  Large rocks were often exploded there with gelignite and only for the protection of a thatched, cattle-shed, that doubled as a dressing room for visiting hurling teams, there could have been injuries from flying stones.

The newly tarred road gave a distinct look, like Dublin’s O Connell Street and cyclists would be less likely to have a puncture; we still carried our attached saddle bag with appropriate wrenches, patches and solution should such emergency arise.  Minor adjustments had to be made for hurling on the road as the ball hopped higher and travelled faster; something that benefitted future wearers of the green and white.

Pitch and toss enthusiasts, now, found it easier to dislodge a coin nearer the ‘spud’ but a return of two out of three heads was still possible on the new surface, even when tossing from the index finger.  On really good days, a circle would be made on the new road and anyone with an accurate pitch of a penny could get a return of eight or ten to one.  When the snows thawed in 1947, Abbey looked better, its residents were on a safer footing and nearer, in time, to every destination.