Coc Well - a place associated with Uncle Ho's childhood memories

Visiting Sen Village - Uncle Ho's paternal home, on the way to visit the house of Mr. Pho Bang - where Uncle Ho spent his childhood years, looking to the right, there is a basin-shaped well. Surrounded by many types of trees, it looks very ancient. The mouth of the well is not really round, about 8 meters in diameter, about 5 meters deep, about 4 meters in diameter at the bottom, the way down to the well has small steps made of laterite next to the path. The villagers often call it Coc well.

On hot summer days, gently walking down the stairs, touching the cool, clear water as if looking all the way to the bottom, watching the fish swimming around, a few crabs leisurely going up and down, letting your soul follow the fallen yellow leaves that are blown by the wind and fall gently onto the water surface... the feeling is so pleasant, refreshing, like being recharged with energy.

According to research, the reason it is called Coc well is because this well was dug by Mr. Nguyen Danh Coc from Phu Dam village, Chung Cu commune, Lam Thinh canton (now Sen 2 hamlet, Kim Lien commune, Nam Dan district, Nghe An province) around 1708 to get water for his family. After that, it became a common living place for the village, because at that time there were only a few wells in this area, villagers often came here to fetch water, sit and chat, joke, exchange farming experiences, and historical stories.

In 1901, Uncle Ho's father - Mr. Nguyen Sinh Sac passed the Tan Suu royal examination. Uncle Ho's family moved to Sen village to live. They lived in a communal house about 100m from Coc well on the right. At that time, Uncle Ho's sisters often went to Coc well to fetch water for the family's daily activities, especially making soy sauce - a specialty of Nam Dan countryside, and cooking green tea - a familiar drink of Nghe people.

The time he lived here, the moments he stood by to give medicine and green tea to his father's friends, patriotic scholars like the patriotic scholar Phan Boi Chau, the bachelor Vuong Thuc Quy... were opportunities for the young Nguyen Tat Thanh to understand the concerns and frustrations of his fathers and uncles about the issues of the times. From there, his patriotism and will to liberate the nation were kindled.

The period was not long, only 5 years, from 1901 to 1906, but it contained many memories of Uncle Ho's childhood here. The close, friendly conversations with the neighbors, listening to the elders tell fairy tales or the glorious history of the homeland, sometimes playing with friends by Coc well... were always unforgettable memories in Uncle Ho's mind. That's why, on June 16, 1957, for the first time after more than half a century of leaving to find a way to save the country, he returned to his hometown. After visiting the souvenirs in his family's house, chatting intimately with the neighbors, on the way to Lang Sen stadium to meet the people of his commune, remembering the image of Coc well, a familiar space full of memories, Uncle asked the people who came with him: "Is this Coc well still there?"; "The water of Coc well is clear and sweet, used to cook green tea and make delicious soy sauce, famous throughout the region".

Surely, Coc well water is indispensable in the daily life of Uncle Ho's family and the people in the area. Not only that, at this Coc well there is also an event that the people still pass down forever.

When the French colonialists invaded our country, responding to King Ham Nghi's Can Vuong Proclamation, in this land, the scholar Vuong Thuc Mau (father of the bachelor Vuong Thuc Quy - Uncle Ho's childhood teacher) gathered the people in the area to establish the "Chung Nghia Binh" team, raised the "Binh Tay Phuc Quoc" flag in 1885 on Chung mountain. The people of Sen village, Chua village and other villages followed Vuong Thuc Mau to fight the enemy very bravely. The militia had a forge for swords, spears, and made gunpowder in Sen village. Co Ngu from Sen village, while stuffing gunpowder, unfortunately lost his eye to gunpowder. In 1886, the "Chung Nghia Binh" was brutally suppressed by the French colonialists and their henchmen. In Sen village, many people were arrested, killed, brutally suppressed, many houses were burned, but the people were not discouraged. Scholar Vuong Thuc Mau heroically sacrificed his life, the militia hid their weapons in Coc well to avoid falling into the enemy's hands.

Thus, Coc well is not only a place associated with sacred memories of Uncle Ho's childhood but also a place marking important historical events of his hometown Nam Dan. With those historical values, in 1991, Coc well relic was recognized by the Ministry of Culture - Information - Sports and Tourism as one of the relics belonging to Kim Lien relic site - a special national relic, where priceless heritages about the hometown, family and childhood of President Ho Chi Minh are preserved.