School: Killavilla

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1. Hedge Schools of Long Ago

   

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   Long ago in Ireland when the 'Penal Laws' were in force the Irish Catholic people were not allowed to have schools or to be properly educated. The parents were not satisfied to send their children to the Protestant schools and many of them could not afford to send their children to the Continent to be educated.
   In many instances learned men gathered all the children together in some districts to give as much information as possible to them. They had what were called 'hedge schools' unknown to the Government. Such a school existed in my father's native district at one time but this is many years ago. This 'Hedge School' was held in an old shed in a field not far from my fathers house in the townland of Ballinalug, near Clonaslee in Co. Laoighis. A man named Daniel McGuckin taught in the school at one time. He was a local man and he was well known by all the people. He was educated in Spain and when he came home he did his best to educate his own neighbours. This man lived about 6 1/2 miles from the place where the school was held. But he could not manage to reach that place every morning so the farmers arranged to keep them in their houses in turn each night. At that time the farmers were not

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   Transcribed by a member of our volunteer transcription project.

   History Edit

   Topics

   1. objects
      1. man-made structures
         1. buildings
            1. schools (~4,094)

   Language

   English

   Collector

   Margaret Molloy

   Gender

   Female

   Address

   Roscrea, Co. Tipperary

   Informant

   Thomas Molloy

   Relation

   Parent

   Gender

   Male

   Address

   Roscrea, Co. Tipperary