Brackloon National School
Frank Burke
According to the records in the National Archives, Dublin, the earliest
mention of education in the Brackloon school catchment area was a Hedge
School in Knockroe in 1826. The name of the teacher was Peter Loughnane
and the total number of pupils was 44. The ‘school’ was a house in very bad
condition, for which a rent of £4 - 11 - 0 (four pounds, eleven schillings) was
paid. The teacher was paid £13 - 5 - 7 per year.
In 1835 there were two schools in Killimordaly. The teachers were Peter
Hatton and Denis Hayes. The average attendance at each school was about
40. At that time the parents of the pupils paid the teacher, as there was no
fund for salaries. They paid from 1 schilling to 2 schllings and 6 pence,
depending on the subjects they taught.
In 1831 the National Schools System was set up. It certainly had its faults,
but for the majority it was their only chance of education. The Hedge School
system had filled a gap, but the Hedge School Master often left for a richer
area. The result was that the children could be weeks, months, or even years
without school.
The new education system was a big step forward for education, but for
every Parish it was dependant on the Parish Priest or Curate to make the
most of it. If they fought with The Commissioners of Education on a
continual basis, then usually a school was established. The local Landlord
was a big help, if he was favourably disposed. Sometimes he provided a site,
gave a grant towards the establishment of the school or paid all or part of the
teacher’s salary.
In rural areas the school was a white washed, thatched building usually with
an earthen floor. Books and furniture were very scarce – this again depended
on the Parish Priest and his influence with the Commissioners of Education.
The teachers generally stayed a short period in a school. The inspectors kept
constant pressure on the teachers. If a teacher was found to be incompetent,
he or she could be fined or lose their salary completely. The keeping of
school records seems to have been far more important than the actual
teaching or teaching standards.
Each school had a principal teacher and contrary to to-days system, he or she
was assisted by a monitor, who was a senior pupil, often aged 18 or 19.
Their pay was the princely sum of £1 per annum.
The attendance of the pupils was erratic and varied greatly depending on the
time of year. At busy times on the farm, the attendance dropped drmatically
and increased again when things were quiet. Sometimes grants towards
schools were refused or withdrawn due to poor attendance.
The first record of Brackloon National School being under the National
School System was in August 1853. The Roll Number was 6892 and the
District Number was 31. The manager of this school was Rev. Thomas
Cahalan. The name of the teacher was Mary Gorman (or Gormany). The
records show that the building was 26 feet long and 8 feet wide and 8 feet
high. There were 63 females on the rolls and the average attendance was 45,
although on the day of inspection there were only 13 girls present. On
September 1 st 1853, Mary Gorman was granted a salary of £10 per annum
from The Commissioners of Education. The class hours were 10 am to 3 pm.
Mrs. Daly of Raford was the patroness and she paid £15 pounds annually to
the teacher. In the year 1855 there were 75 girls on the roll.
A report in the school records states that in October 1856 the school house
was to be thatched, glazed and whitewashed. The teachers name at that time
was Mary Garrigan. On May 25 th 1861 Winifred Mitchell was appointed
senior monitor. Following this, there seems to have been a constant change
of teachers. In 1865 Ellen Cunningham was teacher and from December 18 th
1871 to September 1 st 1872 Kate Hannify was the teacher.
In the beginning, Brackloon was a girls school and on December 21 st 1882
the Manager was advised to remove all boys from the school before the age
of 8 years, as no salary would be paid for their instruction. At that time
Attymon National School was a mixed school, so many of the boys from
Brackloon went to school there.
In March 1883 the Inspector threatened withdrawal of all grants unless
adequate accommodation was provided. Following this, a site was obtained
for the new school in March 1884. Then there was a hold up due to the death
of the Manager. The new manager was Rev. Patrick Cannon, Kiltullagh. The
particulars of the lease were as follows:
Lease to Trustees for 61 years
Rent of £1 per year to William Daly, Dunsandle.
The Trustees were: Dr. Duggan, Bishop of Clonfert.
Dr. Healy, Coadjutor Bishop of Clonfert.
Rev. Fr. Patrick Cannon.
A new name was added to the deed – that of Rev Joseph Cahalan, who
replaced Fr. Cannon as manager. A copy of the Indenture (legal document)
between William Daly and the Trustees gives the dimensions for the site of
the school. They were 92 feet wide in front, 113 feet wide at the rear, 150
feet on the East side and 152 feet on the West side. According to the records,
the cost of the building was £336 and the cost of enclosing the site was £46-
11-8. The school was built according to Plan No. 4 of the Commissioners of
Education and was intended to accommodate 120 pupils. On December 15 th
1887 the old school was struck off the rolls and superceded by the newly
vested school. Fees were granted from this date to the teacher, Ms. Anne
Craughwell. She was later admonished for inadequate instruction of the
senior pupils. On February 7 th 1888, a salary of £34-10-0 per annum was
granted, depending on the results. Mary Kelly was the teacher’s assistant.
A report from The Board of Works, dated February 21 st 1890 stated that the
gate piers were not built, the teacher was living in a cottage inside the
enclosure and the contractor was still in jail. This report was sent to the
Manager, who was told that no salary would be paid until the work was
completed and the old school house removed. Following this, an inspector’s
report recommended that the balance of the grant towards the school should
be paid. In addition, in July1890 the Treasury sanctioned £250 pounds for
the construction of a Teacher’s Residence.
In July 1891 the Principal teacher was Ms. Anne Craughwell, the assistant
was Mary Kelly and the Monitor was Annie Concannon. There were a total
of 52 pupils on the rolls, 27 boys and 25 girls. At this time a problem arose
between the Manager, Rev. Joseph Cahalan and The Commissioners
regarding the use of the old school as a cottage by Ms. Craughwell. The
Board and The Commissioners wanted the school to be demolished. The
Manager was slow with his response as he wanted it to stand until the new
Residence was completed. Ms. Craughwell paid £1 rent to the Manager and
she also sowed potatoes and cabbage in the grounds. She then paid rent to
William Daly. At one stage her salary was not paid because the work was
not completed on the new school.
In 1893, following a complaint from local parents, an investigation was
launched and the following rules were drawn up:
1. Use of the school house as a residence for the teacher was to be
discontinued.
2. The public road was not to be used as a playground.
3. The pupils were not to be sent to play at a distance from the school.
In 1898, Ms. Anne Gaffney was appointed teacher and she was later fined
for not having Maria Ormsby registered.
From about 1909 Rev. J. Harney was the Manager. He was responsible for
getting an additional press for needlework, at a cost of £4 - 5 -0. The
Mistress of the school retired in 1910 and Mr. J. Cunningham was
appointed. Previous to this he had been Principal in Tandaragee, Co. Tyrone.
The average attendance at this time was 50, 24 boys and 26 girls. An
inspector’s report at the time stated that the boys preferred to go to Attymon
Boys School, rather than attend a school taught by two females.
We have now reached the early 1900’s, so this brief history draws to a close.
The school continued in use until 1945, when the existing school was built.
Unfortunately, in about 1965 the ‘New School’ went on fire and all the
school records were lost.
Frank Burke
According to the records in the National Archives, Dublin, the earliest
mention of education in the Brackloon school catchment area was a Hedge
School in Knockroe in 1826. The name of the teacher was Peter Loughnane
and the total number of pupils was 44. The ‘school’ was a house in very bad
condition, for which a rent of £4 - 11 - 0 (four pounds, eleven schillings) was
paid. The teacher was paid £13 - 5 - 7 per year.
In 1835 there were two schools in Killimordaly. The teachers were Peter
Hatton and Denis Hayes. The average attendance at each school was about
40. At that time the parents of the pupils paid the teacher, as there was no
fund for salaries. They paid from 1 schilling to 2 schllings and 6 pence,
depending on the subjects they taught.
In 1831 the National Schools System was set up. It certainly had its faults,
but for the majority it was their only chance of education. The Hedge School
system had filled a gap, but the Hedge School Master often left for a richer
area. The result was that the children could be weeks, months, or even years
without school.
The new education system was a big step forward for education, but for
every Parish it was dependant on the Parish Priest or Curate to make the
most of it. If they fought with The Commissioners of Education on a
continual basis, then usually a school was established. The local Landlord
was a big help, if he was favourably disposed. Sometimes he provided a site,
gave a grant towards the establishment of the school or paid all or part of the
teacher’s salary.
In rural areas the school was a white washed, thatched building usually with
an earthen floor. Books and furniture were very scarce – this again depended
on the Parish Priest and his influence with the Commissioners of Education.
The teachers generally stayed a short period in a school. The inspectors kept
constant pressure on the teachers. If a teacher was found to be incompetent,
he or she could be fined or lose their salary completely. The keeping of
school records seems to have been far more important than the actual
teaching or teaching standards.
Each school had a principal teacher and contrary to to-days system, he or she
was assisted by a monitor, who was a senior pupil, often aged 18 or 19.
Their pay was the princely sum of £1 per annum.
The attendance of the pupils was erratic and varied greatly depending on the
time of year. At busy times on the farm, the attendance dropped drmatically
and increased again when things were quiet. Sometimes grants towards
schools were refused or withdrawn due to poor attendance.
The first record of Brackloon National School being under the National
School System was in August 1853. The Roll Number was 6892 and the
District Number was 31. The manager of this school was Rev. Thomas
Cahalan. The name of the teacher was Mary Gorman (or Gormany). The
records show that the building was 26 feet long and 8 feet wide and 8 feet
high. There were 63 females on the rolls and the average attendance was 45,
although on the day of inspection there were only 13 girls present. On
September 1 st 1853, Mary Gorman was granted a salary of £10 per annum
from The Commissioners of Education. The class hours were 10 am to 3 pm.
Mrs. Daly of Raford was the patroness and she paid £15 pounds annually to
the teacher. In the year 1855 there were 75 girls on the roll.
A report in the school records states that in October 1856 the school house
was to be thatched, glazed and whitewashed. The teachers name at that time
was Mary Garrigan. On May 25 th 1861 Winifred Mitchell was appointed
senior monitor. Following this, there seems to have been a constant change
of teachers. In 1865 Ellen Cunningham was teacher and from December 18 th
1871 to September 1 st 1872 Kate Hannify was the teacher.
In the beginning, Brackloon was a girls school and on December 21 st 1882
the Manager was advised to remove all boys from the school before the age
of 8 years, as no salary would be paid for their instruction. At that time
Attymon National School was a mixed school, so many of the boys from
Brackloon went to school there.
In March 1883 the Inspector threatened withdrawal of all grants unless
adequate accommodation was provided. Following this, a site was obtained
for the new school in March 1884. Then there was a hold up due to the death
of the Manager. The new manager was Rev. Patrick Cannon, Kiltullagh. The
particulars of the lease were as follows:
Lease to Trustees for 61 years
Rent of £1 per year to William Daly, Dunsandle.
The Trustees were: Dr. Duggan, Bishop of Clonfert.
Dr. Healy, Coadjutor Bishop of Clonfert.
Rev. Fr. Patrick Cannon.
A new name was added to the deed – that of Rev Joseph Cahalan, who
replaced Fr. Cannon as manager. A copy of the Indenture (legal document)
between William Daly and the Trustees gives the dimensions for the site of
the school. They were 92 feet wide in front, 113 feet wide at the rear, 150
feet on the East side and 152 feet on the West side. According to the records,
the cost of the building was £336 and the cost of enclosing the site was £46-
11-8. The school was built according to Plan No. 4 of the Commissioners of
Education and was intended to accommodate 120 pupils. On December 15 th
1887 the old school was struck off the rolls and superceded by the newly
vested school. Fees were granted from this date to the teacher, Ms. Anne
Craughwell. She was later admonished for inadequate instruction of the
senior pupils. On February 7 th 1888, a salary of £34-10-0 per annum was
granted, depending on the results. Mary Kelly was the teacher’s assistant.
A report from The Board of Works, dated February 21 st 1890 stated that the
gate piers were not built, the teacher was living in a cottage inside the
enclosure and the contractor was still in jail. This report was sent to the
Manager, who was told that no salary would be paid until the work was
completed and the old school house removed. Following this, an inspector’s
report recommended that the balance of the grant towards the school should
be paid. In addition, in July1890 the Treasury sanctioned £250 pounds for
the construction of a Teacher’s Residence.
In July 1891 the Principal teacher was Ms. Anne Craughwell, the assistant
was Mary Kelly and the Monitor was Annie Concannon. There were a total
of 52 pupils on the rolls, 27 boys and 25 girls. At this time a problem arose
between the Manager, Rev. Joseph Cahalan and The Commissioners
regarding the use of the old school as a cottage by Ms. Craughwell. The
Board and The Commissioners wanted the school to be demolished. The
Manager was slow with his response as he wanted it to stand until the new
Residence was completed. Ms. Craughwell paid £1 rent to the Manager and
she also sowed potatoes and cabbage in the grounds. She then paid rent to
William Daly. At one stage her salary was not paid because the work was
not completed on the new school.
In 1893, following a complaint from local parents, an investigation was
launched and the following rules were drawn up:
1. Use of the school house as a residence for the teacher was to be
discontinued.
2. The public road was not to be used as a playground.
3. The pupils were not to be sent to play at a distance from the school.
In 1898, Ms. Anne Gaffney was appointed teacher and she was later fined
for not having Maria Ormsby registered.
From about 1909 Rev. J. Harney was the Manager. He was responsible for
getting an additional press for needlework, at a cost of £4 - 5 -0. The
Mistress of the school retired in 1910 and Mr. J. Cunningham was
appointed. Previous to this he had been Principal in Tandaragee, Co. Tyrone.
The average attendance at this time was 50, 24 boys and 26 girls. An
inspector’s report at the time stated that the boys preferred to go to Attymon
Boys School, rather than attend a school taught by two females.
We have now reached the early 1900’s, so this brief history draws to a close.
The school continued in use until 1945, when the existing school was built.
Unfortunately, in about 1965 the ‘New School’ went on fire and all the
school records were lost.