This video popped up to day,the tinkers they were called back then, they would come to a small road near where I lived, my mother would give them the pots to fix,she would give them tea, sugar, in a news paper, half the cake of bread, we weren't much better off, we had a rain down old house, the odd rat. I would go to their camp, made on the ground, they slept in it, I'd play there with the children, when they would leave I would be so lonely, to this day I cherish those memories, and i want a holiday in a horse drawn caravan. Tinkers was from the work they did tinkering.
At least they had a nice caravan and were independent, now middle class/working class irish are literally sleeping on the streets with nothing. Bring back the caravans and horses❤
I never met my grandfather , he was a traveller, he died just before i was born. He used to go round sharpening knives, repair umbrella’s , make pots and buckets out of tin,copper. From some of the stories ive been told he was a bit of a boy, he had to keep changing his name as the county sheriff was often after him for pinching sheep, horses , he’d have my father and his brother fight the fair boys for money as many fairs in the day had boxing rings. Also he’d disappear for weeks and all of a sudden he’d roll in wearing a cowboy hat saying he’d been to america where in fact he’d been on the piss with his other gypsy friends. With me being the first born my father taught me alot of things that were passed down from his father, i could skin a rabbit when i was 7 yrs old, as living in the country side you’d never starve as there were farms all round, free spuds, free cabbages,carrots,parsnip and turnips,take what you need and no more. I could catch trout using just my hands ,sadly hes gone now but still have some great memories of things i did with him and no other child would have memories like that.
When I was a child, the field opposite the church was the winter camp for a large group of Gypsies. My grandma befriended them and helped whenever and however she could. As a result, we got to know them well. One thing that has always stayed in my memory is the hatred that the Gypsies had for the tinkers. They believed that many of the problems that they had were because most people could not, or would not distinguish between the two groups. I notice quite a few "woke" comments on here, but I have little sympathy, though perhaps my relationship with the Gypsies gives me a biased point of view. The Gypsies were a proud people, honourable in their own way, which was, of course very different to that of the settled people. The tinkers that also visited the village, though never when the Gypsies were present, were so different. No pride, untrustworthy, and generally a nuisance. Whenever they arrived, problems followed. I remember a comment that was quite common in the village that the Gypsies would take anything that was not nailed down (not strictly true, but also not completely untrue), but the tinkers would take it even if it were nailed down, and they'd take the holes as well.
This is supposed to be a first world country and they treat people like rubbish that farmer is an idiot - if there was glass on the floor their own horses and kids would get glass in them. They would want them them at hay making though for cheap labour. And why break down a wall what an absolute snobby Irish society as bad as the British elite that they wanted rid of. Well let's face it most of them colluded with them - this is Christine Power. Masters of science
The old tinkers were a different bunch than the modern pikeys. They always abused their horses under the name of love. They always beat up their wives under the name of love. but the wives accepted that as the norm. The wives could hold their own with the most foul mouthed sailor man,.when the opportunity arose. The Hiace van was the great dawn for the tinker, and later on as they became richer from finding stuff that fell off the back of lorries they needed a Mercedes Sprinter.
What the presenter fails to understand is they have no interest in living in houses working in jobs or being dependent upon anyone else It's a different culture end of
They used to knock on my grandmothers door during the 30's - 40's in Galway begging for food, then she got abuse when she would tell them they had nothing themselves. Gypsies they called them at the time. My family barely had a slice of bread to eat themselves between 8 kids, they were lucky enough to have a roof over their head. Tough times.
Pikey is not anything to do with traveller's or gypsy's it is a person who lives a similar life style but has no traveller or gypsy blood! So know you no! Hence one off my nicknames pikey boy!
It was a hard life, a cruel life, those people were not wanted by many of the locals, How could we treat those people so badly, I know many people did not trust them. If I was one of those people I would have stolen just to survive, No they were not all saints, they did some damage, but some of us did not do our bit to give a helping hand, we did not give them respect, a days work now and then, a few bob, a word of advice and encouragement. If we have walked a few days in their shoes for a few days during the cold, wet and hungry times we would have better understood of our fellow man/women and children
@Donnell Okafor I know that some of the traveling people do wrong and they turn people away from them, but we can not say that about every single person, plenty of the settle people do wrong. I was referring to bad times years ago, if the traveling people were treated better most would not feel like outsiders, not cared for, not worth much, they lost their faith in us.
They're not down on their luck, people like that don't have children. These people made a living out of begging, stealing and selling. They could try to either integrate into the rest of society or stop procreating.
It was a hard life, a cruel life, those people were not wanted by many of the locals, How could we treat those people so badly, I know many people did not trust them. If I was one of those people I would have stolen just to survive, Now they were not all saints, they did some damage, but we did not do our bit to give a helping hand, we did not give them respect, a days work now and then, a few bob, a word of advice and encouragement. If we have walked a few days in their shoes for a few days during the cold, wet and hungry times we would have better understood our fellow man/women and children
@james bradshaw Was there ever a plan by Irish local councils or government to allocate some land for the travellers? So they could pull up and build a more permanent home. Or would the local villagers have always disputed that suggestion?
@@comealongcomealong4480 thank you for this information, we should feel shame for not treating others with respect and a little kindness, We should also stand up when others do wrong no matter where they come from be settled or traveling people, we all have a responsibility
With them being inbred generation after generation it was hard from them to move forward on an intellectual level.Worst again is that now they have been made an ethnic minority
I'm looking at the caravans they have and the rudimentary tents - hard to believe it was 1965 , could have been 1865 . Irish travellers are fascinating people .
its scandalous a publican refuse to serve travellers i think the minster for education should keep the traveller's 1st year to 6th year the system is working these people go to college to get proper training the princepal's should talk around them to finish the 5 years cause time fly's once ya pass 3rd year ya only got 2 years left
Respectable Travelers back then, unlike the vermin today. These people were poor. Today’s Travellers are cowboys making a fortune. Vans, 4 by 4s etc. God bless the old Travellers
You have a point however unfortunately its the same for so many communities including my own Irish community. 60 years on look at a large section of the Muslim community?? The black and Caribbean?? The Jewish?? The white working class British?? We could go on and on looking back we have let our parents and grandparents down they done the hard work and set high standards unfortunately not all could keep up .
My Grandfather was a traveller, and became a head gardener at some big house in Manchester, a respectable position at the time. Different times, different people, and different standards.
@Donnell Okafor travelers of today are filthy, and I totally understand the reputation they have now. My grandfather would turn in his grave if he saw the way it has gone. He used to travel with the seasons, sheering sheep, sharpening knives to collecting scrap metal.
