Website of Claregalway, Co.Galway, Ireland

Claregalway N.S.

Introduction

In the Second Report of the Irish Education Inquiry of 1826 a Claregalway school is referred to as being “held in the chapel”. It is described as a ‘pay’ school with an attendance of 50 boys and 30 girls. The master, who received an annual income of £12 to £15 per annum (paid by the children), was named as William Loftus. A school is also listed in Carnmore where the master, John Hanly, received from 2s 6d per quarter from each pupil. It is described as ‘a small hut’ with an attendance of 18 boys and 12 girls.
A third school, at Brannamore, is listed in the parish of Claregalway. The mistress, Mrs. Haverty, taught twelve girls. The school is described as ‘a room’ and the income of the mistress is ‘not stated’. We have been unable to establish the existence of a townland called Brannamore in the parish, through local people or through Ordinance Survey maps. Could it possibly be Bawnmore? The Ordinance Survey map of 1840 has a schoolhouse marked just a few yards north of Kynes Central Tavern, directly across from the road leading to Corrandulla.

Part of a letter dated October 1811, from Parishioners complaining about the state of education in the parish

Local folklore (Ciarán Bairéad, Irish Folklore Commission, Notes on the Ecclesiastical History of Claregalway Parish, 1963, Galway Diocesan Archives) refers to two hedge schools in the parish. One, which was said to have been located in Ballinacregg, was run by a man called Grimes who had the reputation of being very harsh. The second school, which was said to have been situated beside the pump in Montiagh, was run by a man called Tomáisín Bacach, who was, as the name suggests, lame. It was said that he was a great penman who wrote books containing Irish songs, etc. one of which is in the Irish Folklore Commission in Dublin (not verified). The books were known as ‘Leabhraí Thomáisín Bacach’ or ‘Leabhraí Thomáisín’. It is possible that this is the school listed at Clash in the 1835 Report of the Commissioners of Public Instruction. Local people say that Clash was the name given to a field behind Mike Hessions but there was also a place in Montiagh called Clash na dTincéirí.
Almost two hundred years on from the earliest written record of education in the parish of Claregalway it can be safely said that the parish is well served with two modern, growing schools. Most of the credit for this goes to Canon Gerard Callanan P.P. who oversaw the building, extending and staffing of the schools during the 1970s, 80s and 90s. He has left a splendid legacy to the people of the parish who must also be credited for their financial support during that period.

Original Claregalway School, built in 1855, was located in the present Church car park

Claregalway School

The 1851 Commissioners Report on National Education records a boys’ school (with an enrolment of 78) and a girls’ school (enrolment of 54) in Claregalway. (There is no local record as to the exact location of these schools). It is worth noting that the average attendance in schools around this time would have been around 30% of enrolment. The boys’ school, which is listed as temporary, received allowances of £2 0s 7d for school requisites, £10 0s 0d for teacher’s salary and £5 10s 0d as a local contribution in aid of teacher’s salary. Allowances for the girls’ school are shown as £8 15s 0d for teacher’s salary and £2 10s 0d as the local contribution to it. An appendix to the report which, gives particulars of the examinations of teachers of National Schools, lists Mr. Michael Carrick as the Principal of the boys’ school. There is no record of the teacher in the girls’ school.
In 1855 a National School was built in the townland of Cregboy in the Barony of Dunkellin (where the Telecom Eireann station and church car park are now situated). There were two schools within the building – boys and girls were separated. A Daily Report Book (1911 – 1919) from the girls’ school, printed for His Majesty’s Stationary Office by John Adams, Belfast, records that the school was non-vested and “built by the people of the parish” with the dimensions of each school room 35ft long, 18 ½ ft wide and 20ft high.
According to notes by Canon P. Moran, P.P., Claregalway (1915-1946) held in the Diocesan Archives, dated 1st July 1920, ‘these schools, together with the plot of ground, were leased on the 10th July 1888 by the owners, Mary Commins and John Commins to the trust of Rev. Dr. MacCormack and the Rev. Martin Commins P.P., for 99 years at the yearly rent of one penny and vested in fee simple in Bishop MacCormack and Rev. Martin Commins by order of the Irish Land Commission of 7th April 1902.’

Claregalway School Girls c1923

Payment by Results

The oldest records available from the girls’ school are a number of Examination Rolls from 1895 to 1899. The rolls contain the names of pupils who had made 100 or more attendances within the previous year and were thereby eligible for promotion if they passed examinations in reading, writing and arithmetic. The rolls were signed by the teacher, Bedelia Daly (probably the Principal). In 1899 they were signed by Margaret Brady and we assume that she married around the turn of the century as the Principal from 1905 to 1931 is recorded as Mrs Margaret Flood.
These Examination Rolls were of extreme importance to the teachers because the period in Irish education from 1872 to 1899 was known as the ‘pay by results’ period when, as the name suggests, teachers were paid on the basis of results of pupils’ examinations in the 3Rs. Precise programmes were set for each subject from Infants to Sixth Class with Reading, Writing, Spelling and Arithmetic as the obligatory subjects up to Second Class and Grammar, Geography, Needlework (girls) and Agriculture (boys) being added from Third Class upwards. Two extra optional subjects could be taken in the senior classes from a long optional list. A scale of fees was devised for each subject in each grade and a pupil at sixth grade, who was successful in all subjects including two extra subjects, could earn 18 shillings for his teacher. Children were examined by the inspector annually and teachers were paid on the basis of the results.
An accompanying inspector’s report from 1898 states that there were 101 girls enrolled in the school, 37 of whom had made the qualifying number of attendances but on examination of school accounts he had found the names of ten other pupils who had made over 99 attendances but whose names had been suppressed from the Roll!
In his 1899 Report to the Board of Commissioners, District Inspector for Galway, Mr. W.H. Welply expresses concern regarding the practice of suppressing eligible names from the examination rolls and gives the obvious reason for same:
“… one or more pupils may be unlikely to pass creditably and so lest their probable bad marks should detract from the appearance of efficiency of the school, such pupils’ names are sometimes omitted, and the risk taken, that, in the hurry of the examination, the accounts may escape the often long and wearisome check that enables an Inspector to detect these omissions.”
He was also worried about the practice of allotting incorrect ages to children when they were enrolled. He gives an example of “a child of six years on admission. As often as not, his age in the register will be put down as four, and he will, in all probability, remain in the Infant classes until he attains the official age of eight. He arrives in the 1st class at the real age of ten and in 4th at 13.”
The ‘pay by results’ system was scrapped in September 1900 when a revised programme was introduced. As well as the 3Rs, kindergarten, manual instruction, drawing, singing, object lessons and elementary science, P.E., cookery and laundry were added as obligatory subjects.

Buachaillí ó Scoil Bhail Chláir na Gaillimhe, 1946

20th Century

A Roll Book from 1927 contains an extract, regarding school attendance, from the Irish Education Act of 1892. The extract states that “the parent of every child not less than six nor more than fourteen years of age shall cause the child to attend school during such number of days in the year and for such time on each day of attendance as are prescribed in the First Schedule of this act.” The First Schedule notes that “…. The number of attendances shall be 75 complete attendances in each half year”. Among the reasons regarded as reasonable for non-attendance were “… sickness, domestic necessity, or by reason of being engaged in necessary operations of husbandry and the in-gathering of crops or giving assistance in the fisheries…”.
Mr. Welply’s Report of 1899 notes that “…the Compulsory Attendance Act has been very recently put into force in Galway but beyond casually learning that the unaccustomed scarcity of ‘caddies’ upon the local golf links is attributable to this cause, I have not had an opportunity of judging its effects.”

Daltaí ó Scoil Bhaile Chláir na Gaillimhe, 1994

He also notes that “…. as a general rule fuel is provided by the pupils, and it is not uncommon to see them of a morning carrying along with their books their daily contribution of peat.”
Records from the old boy’s school are not as plentiful but a Register of teachers shows that Mr. George Carter was Principal from 1878 to 1915. Mary J. Carter, who acted as assistant teacher in the school from 1906 to 1912, was probably his daughter. Mr. Carter was succeeded by Thomas O’ Reilly (1915- 1920) and he in turn was followed by James P. Donnellan (1920-22). In 1922 Tomás Ó’Conchubhair, a native of Kerry, was appointed Principal, a position he held until 1962. His assistant for most of this term (1915-1954) was Mary Cullinan (nee Moran), grandmother of Gerry, Cahergowan. Miss Greally succeeded her.

Inspectors’ reports from that period laud their diligence, teaching ability and commitment to the Irish language. Conditions in the old school left a lot to be desired as we can gauge from the following portions of inspectors’ reports:

• Girls
  • 1909 - The roof is unceilinged. There is not sufficient accommodation for shawls, hats, etc. of the pupils. The room is insufficiently heated by one fireplace.
  • 1910 - The school is inadequately heated and needs many repairs to floor, walls and windows. Eave shoots are also required.
  • 1921 - A map of the British Isles and a scale map of the locality are required.
• Boys
  • 1916 - A fireguard is needed. Desks for small children are not suitable.
  • 1919 - The boundary wall requires repair at the back. Stones should be cleared off the playground. Distempering is required. The school has been seriously affected by closing for epidemics, changes of teachers (through the absence of the Principal at a University course for the Diploma in Education) and an occasional absence owing to illness.

Claregalway School built in 1929, now refurbished and incorporated into the new school building

Work began on the building of a new school in the townland of Lakeview in 1929 (the oldest section of the present school). This was completed in 1930 with the official opening on October 6th . It is reported that the building cost £3,000 - the parish contributed £150 and the remainder came from government funds. Boys and girls were separated once again. In 1931 a new principal was appointed to the girl’s school. Eibhlin Bn Mhic Suibhne (Ní Mhuirghuis) – Helena Mc Sweeney – who had acted as assistant teacher since 1919 was the new principal, a post she held until 1940 when Eibhlin Bn. Uí Dhuibhghiolla (Eibhlin Divilly) succeeded her. Assistants during this period were Bríd Nic An Iomaire (Bríd Ridge) (1932-36) and Polín Ní Lorcáin (Pauline Larkin) (1936–43). Bn. Uí Dhuibhghiolla remained as Principal until 1963 when she was succeeded by Máire Bn.Uí Lochlainn (Maire O’Loughlin).

An Oide Bríd Uí Aodh ag éirí as a post ó Scoil Bhaile Chláir na Gaillimhe (1943-1984) - Mrs Hughes on her retirement from Teaching in Claregalway NS

In 1943 Bríd Bn. Uí Aodh (Bríd Hughes) from Oileáin Árann was appointed as assistant teacher, a position she held until her retirement in 1984 – a remarkable forty one years of service to the parish.
The boys and girls’ schools were amalgamated in 1970 under the principalship of Seán Mac Gloinn (Séan Glynn), Woodquay, who had succeeded Tómas Ó Conchúbhair (Thomas O’Connor) as Principal of the boys’ school in 1962. He retired in 1978 and was succeeded, as Principal, by Máire Bn. Uí Lochlainn, who had acted as Principal of the girls’ school before the amalgamation. She in turn retired in 1991 to be succeeded by the present Principal, Pádraig Ó Comhghain (Pat Coen).
Enrollment figures from the old Claregalway girls’ school show that there were approximately 100 girls enrolled around the turn of the century. This number decreased gradually during the 1920s and 1930s and was in fact halved by the 1940s when the enrolment was 50 girls. By 1955 the number had risen to 74 only to start a downward trend again to an all time low of 43 in 1968. Around the time of the amalgamation of the boys and girls’ schools in 1970, sixty nine boys and fifty four girls were enrolled but the following twenty years were to see an enrolment explosion due to a house building boom and the popularity of Claregalway as a place of residence for young families.

Present Day Claregalway School that was built in 1983

Enrolment

As enrolment almost trebled in twenty years (123 in 1971 to 300 in 1993), extra teachers were appointed and a major extension of five classrooms, staff room, general purpose room, etc. was added in the 1980s. Far from the turf fires, cold rooms, substandard toilet facilities and lack of proper water supply in the old schools the children now had the comfort of central heating, en suite toilets, modern furniture and running water in all classrooms. A further extension of two classrooms and a staff room was added in the mid 1990s. The appointment of a remedial teacher brought the number of teachers to twelve.
The introduction of free school education in the 1960s led to an increase in the number of pupils going on to second level education. School records from the 1920s to the 1960s show that only a small number of pupils went on to second level. In the 1990s we see all children going on to second level with a large percentage continuing on to third level.

Old Carnmore School, built in 1855

Carnmore School

Details of the earlier teachers in Carnmore are very sketchy. Mrs. Kelly was appointed in 1887 and there is a record of a Mrs. Gaffney being appointed in 1917. Mrs. Kelly was still there in 1928 when she was joined by Miss M. Casserly. Mrs. O Kane and Mr. McDonagh, Principal, also taught in the school and the latter was succeeded by the renowned poet and writer, Máirtín Ó Cadhain. Many people commented on the fact that he was a great teacher but a disagreement with Canon Moran P.P. led to his dismissal as Principal. He was succeeded by Seamus Ó Marranáin (in 1937) who suffered from the fall-out of his predecessor’s sacking to such an extent that he required police protection both in coming to and going from school and even in the school yard. He weathered the storm, however, and remained in Carnmore until 1975 when he retired and was replaced by the present Principal, Pilib Ó Cadhain. Carnmore School was renovated and enlarged in 1935.

Present Day Carnmore School, built 1983

Máiréad Nic Dhiarmada was appointed as assistant teacher in 1949 and she was later succeeded by Úna Breathnach who came from Cill Ainnín in 1968. Carnmore remained a two–teacher school until 1977 when Bairbre Ní Iarnáin – later Bairbre Bn. Mhic Dhonncha – joined the staff as second assistant. The old school was now almost 100 years old and conditions were obviously sub-standard. A new school was built and officially opened on December 14th 1983. Shortly afterwards, in January 1984, Bn. Mhic Dhonncha left for An Cheathrú Rua and was replaced by Nóirín Bn. Uí Eidhin. Enrolment figures were rising and Carnmore soon became a four-teacher school with the appointment of Máire Ní Chuilleanáin from Claregalway. Máire took a career break in 1989 and headed for Australia where she married and settled down. Áine Bn. Uí Mhóráin was appointed in her place and shortly afterwards, in September 1990, Seán Ó Raghallaigh was appointed as a fourth assistant. Úna Breathnach retired in 1991 and was replaced by Gina Bn. Uí Mhainnín.

Old Bawnmore School, opened 1863, closed 1961

Bawnmore National School

Though situated in the parish of Lackagh, Bawnmore N.S. has provided primary school education for many people at that end of Claregalway parish. The history of the school has been documented in a beautifully presented booklet, which was produced for a school reunion in summer 1998. The old school was established by Richard Kirwan of Bawnmore House in 1863 to educate the children of his tenants. At first there were two separate schools – one for boys and one for girls – with Mr. Patrick Heavey being the first Principal of the boys’ school and his wife, Bridget, Principal of the girls’ school. In 1875 the two schools amalgamated. Peter Brennan took over as Principal in 1864 and he in turn was succeeded by James O Brennan in 1898. In 1935 Bill Mannion was appointed Principal and he was later succeeded by his wife, Maura.

Present Day Bawnmore School

Plans by the Department of Education to have the old school closed and the children from the area transported to a central school in Lackagh were opposed by parents in the sixties. As a result of this strong local opposition the plans were scrapped and it was decided to build a new three -classroom school instead. The new school was opened on October 1971 and shortly afterwards Mrs. Mannion retired to be replaced by the present Principal, Mr. Pat Duddy. Bríd Glynn who resided in Claregalway taught for most of her teaching career in Bawnmore. She started in Bawnmore in May 1939 and retired 36 years later in July 1975.

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