CLOVER BOTTOM BARN

Today is St Patrick's Day and I thought it would be appropriate to put a photo on of the above barn that I found in Jackson, County Kentucky a few weeks ago. The sign stuck above the open doorway says, CLOVER BOTTOM. After all, a clover is a symbol of Ireland as well as one of the symbols of St Patrick's Day.

I, myself am half Irish. I call it my better half. My family came to Canada in the mid 1800s and formed kinship and Irish clans in the area. Many of this clan crossed over the border into Michigan at the beginning of the 1900s. Irish were a close knit group back then, keeping to themselves as they were regarded as second class during those early times. But the good thing is, it kept the Irish strain together as Irish married Irish. That is how I can claim that I am half Irish -- I know the genealogy trail.

Today, in the U. S. many St Patrick traditions have come about. On the "day of" one should wear green or expect a pinch, drink green beer, eat Irish food, or if you live in Chicago expect to see the river turn green. All fun and a day when everyone is looked upon as Irish.

The clover or the shamrock as it is called in Ireland, has a history dating back to the ancient Celts. Its original meaning was that the three leaves represented; gods, goddesses, and time and balance of energies.

And, oh yes, the Clover Bottom barn in the above photo -- it is actually a designated name for a "place" in Jackson County. I had heard of the area of Clover Bottom but when I went searching for the place I had difficulty finding it. The sign on this barn was the only hint that it did indeed exist. Maybe it is a mystical place like many of the old stories told by Irish leprechauns?