Cahirmee back for another year
HANDS will be shaken, deals stuck and friendships forged today (Thursday) in Buttevant as the town plays host to the annual Cahirmee Horse Fair.
One of Ireland’s oldest horse fairs, with a with a lineage stretching back to the days of Brian Boru, it is steeped in history and attracts thousands of visitors each year – all eager to take in the sights, sounds and smells and, if they are lucky, grab an equine bargain in the process.
While the days of making fortunes at Cahirmee may be well gone and numbers attending the event have dropped in recent years Buttevant Community Council chair John Lee said the fair still generates a great feeling around the town.
“I suppose the fact that it is taking place during the is not great as it may put people off travelling to the fair but we still expect to see the usual crowd of characters and people who come along to enjoy the atmosphere of fair day,” said John.
He said that one of the factors why numbers have been steadily declining in recent years was to down with the fact that much of the serious trading is done on the eve of fair day.
“Many of the top quality horses will have been traded on Wednesday evening, with some traders staying around in the hope of picking up a bargain today,” said John.
“That said there will still be a great buzz around the place today. There is a great local saying that a Buttevant person rarely works on Cahirmee day. Most locals enjoy the day and enjoy taking the chance to catch up with people they have not seen for the past 12-months.”
John said that while some local business such as pubs and restaurants do well out of the fair, it does not really bring a massive boosts to the local economy due to the number of casual traders who descend on the town for the day.
“To be honest its amazing how the whole fair comes together, given that it has no organised structure – it just happens. Its a great social occasion with no trouble,” he said.
“However, it is my view that because of falling numbers Cahirmee could sadly, very well be a thing of the past in 20-years time,” he added.
Meanwhile, Gardaí have warned that traffic restrictions will be in place from 7am this morning around the town.
They have said northbound traffic diverted at Newtwopothouse via Doneraile and returning to the N20 at Lisballyhea and south bound traffic being diverted tin reverse along the same route from Lisballyhea.