It is understood that Sheskin is the location where Potato blight was first identified in Monaghan, the disease that ultimately led to the Irish Famine. Tradition has it that the blight was noticed on the Gunn Family's potatoes by an Anne Murphy in the Autumn of 1845. An Owen Gunn is marked as tenant in 1860, but no Murphy's were known to reside in Sheskin. This event is now commemorated by the "famine stone" located at the bottom of the "Black Hill", in the south east of the townland. In Monaghan alone anywhere from 20-30% of the population would ultimately die during the famine. Although the upland districts of the north were not as badly hit as the south of county Monaghan, the Parish of Tydavent did have a population of 11600 in 1841, and 8,400 in 1851. Corblonog, the townland just to the east of Sheskin, still has a location known as Porridge Hill, where the Williamson family provided gruel to those who needed it during the famine.