What's the story about a Banshee in south Mayo?

by Auld Stock

THE Banshee has been a part of Irish folklore for centuries.

Many years ago I had a neighbour who firmly believed in the Banshee.

She had never see the Banshee but her mother, who was born in the late 1800s and who came from Turlough, claimed she had seen the Banshee on several occasions.

Back in the 1970s a man who lived alone in Cross, a few miles from Cong, said he had heard strange wailing coming from the direction of a nearby river.

The creature wailed for about an hour; the wailing stopped but resumed the following night.

“I will never forget the ghostly sound of the Banshee,” he said.

It was said in the past that the wailing of the Banshee often meant bad news was on the way.

One local woman said the Banshee was a figment of the imagination and she personally did not believe in its existence.

A farmer in the area claimed the Banshee business was a load of bunk. Most likely it was a group of teenagers acting the clown.

However, most people in Cross were nervous of the Banshee.

The loud wailing noise of the so-called Banshee died down after some days and life in the little village returned to normal.

*Cross is the birthplace of Commandant General Tom Maguire, who played a prominent role in the War of Independence. His son, Dr. Seán Maguire, Ballinrobe Road, Castlebar, who died some years ago. Dr. Maguire had his surgery at The Green, Castlebar.