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Appleby-in-Westmorland in Cumbria (England)
Appleby Fair is held one mile out of the town centre on a field which used to be called Gallows Hill, because that is where the public hangings used to take place long ago, but now the field is called Fair Hill.
Appleby Horse Fair held in June every year is one of the largest horse fairs in Europe. The second Wednesday in June used to be the main horse dealing day but now that Wednesday is the last day of the fair. It runs for a week. We swim our horses in the river each morning to wash their legs. We dry them with saw dust. The saw dust makes the hair stand out on their legs and this is important. We are allowed onto the Fair Hill from midday on the Thursday and there is usually a queue to get onto the Hill as some travellers will have been staying in the surrounding area in order to get a good pitch for the week. There are fortune tellers and palm readers there too. Usually there are hundreds and hundreds of caravans there. Everything for a horse is on sale like saddles and bridles.
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We usually sail from North Wall to Hollyhead when we go to either sell or to buy horses. People go there to take part in the trotting competitions. This is a type of race where the horses can only trot.
About a week after the fair in Appleby the horses are then brought to New Ross to be sold. The fair is held on the Green beside the graveyard.
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New Ross Horse Fair
I like horse fairs, especially the one in New Ross. I sold a mare in it last year. It was only less than a year old. There are usually lots of horses there. The day before the fair they would wash the horses up really well. Then they would get sawdust and put it all up on their legs. Before that they would put oil or sulphur on them. If a mare is in foal it is better. If a mare were not in foal she wouldn’t be worth as much. If she had a filly foal she would be worth more and another man might try to buy her or try and swap her. If he bought her for maybe €6000 or something he would make money on her before he would sell her. He would make sure she was in foal because that's the first thing he would be asked. (John Connors 6th Class)
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Ballinasloe Horse Fair You can buy almost any kind of horse in Ballinasloe from a racehorse to a long-eared mule. The fair lasts for 10 days every autumn. You can buy almost anything in Ballinasloe during the fair from pot-bellied stoves and cast iron kettles to gold curtains and carpets. The weather is often wet so the place is always really muddy. The big horses are usually sold on Friday and Saturday is when most of the foals are sold. There is a big carnival in Ballinasloe and you can buy clothes and fire crackers from the many stalls. Smithfield - Dublin This fair is held on the first Sunday in March. It is important to have the horses looking well. We always plait the tails and mane of the horses we are going to sell. Many English people come to Smithfield to buy horses. Men trot the horses on the streets so it is easy to get knocked down. Horses, ponies and asses are sold. Carts and horse tackle are sold. Many dealers come as early as five o'clock in the morning to get a good pitch. You need to go very early as the Gardaí close off the area to traffic as the area is crowded with dealers and lookers. Many people come just for the crack and often spend most of the time in the pubs. Smithfield is a fair for horses, goats, dogs, chickens, etc., but it is mostly for horses. There are Clydesdale’s and Stueballs horses. There are Connamara, Appleby, and Miniature ponies. You can buy them all in Smithfield. Stueballs are red and white. Appleby are the ones with shapes like apples on their sides. There are dear horses. There do be cheap ones as well. Big horses and small ones. There are jeeps and caravans do be for sale in Smithfield. If you want a horse come to Smithfield and get one. And that’s not all in 'Germaines' coming back there is often loads of dealing when they are going home. Nearly all the Co. Wexford men that go to Smithfield stops in 'Germaines' coming back. English men come back from England to buy Irish horses. Now they are not that many good ones left in Ireland. All the good ones are in England. Sometimes Germans come over to buy horses. Irish Travellers buy horses for the Germans and Gabby buys them too. Gabby wont buy them if they are in foal because they have to ship them to Germany. They don’t like the real white horses, they prefer the ones with lots of black in them. (John Connors 6th Class). Borris (Co. Carlow) This is a market day and a horse fair day. It is always held on the 15th August and has been popular for generations. This fair has been held in Borris for many many years. This fair is smaller than Appleby or Ballinasloe so it is safer and more fun.
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