School: Loch Measca
- Location:
- Caherrobert, Co. Mayo
- Teacher: Máire, Bean an Bhrúnaigh
Archival Reference
The Schools’ Collection, Volume 0103, Page 376
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- XML School: Loch Measca
- XML Page 376
- XML “Hedge-Schools”
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- The Hedge Schools were generally situated in a field under a hedge.
There were many of them in Ireland long ago.
This was the time when the Penal Laws were in force, and when the teachers were hunted from place to place.
There were many Hedge teachers in Ireland long ago.
There was a price of five pounds for a teacher's head.
They had therefore to go about the country disguised.
There was a Hedge School at Branagan's Crossroads, and another at Killour.
Reading, writing, arithmetic and spelling were taught. The scholars sat on planks and wrote also on planks.
My father has a plank which was used at Branagan's Hedge School. The name of the Hedge School Master at Branagan's was Peter Hession.
In these Hedge Schools, the pupils, on their turn, kept watch on a hill lest any spies should chance to come on the scene. If this should happen the boys, who kept watch, were supposed to inform the teacher, who was continally in danger of losing his life.
Round about this place one often hears that the Hedge Teachers were very poor, and had a hard life. Some of these teachers were very learned men, who taught Latin in addition to the other subjects.
- Collector
- Treasa Burke
- Gender
- Female
- Address
- Ballinchalla, Co. Mayo
- Informant
- James Burke
- Relation
- Unknown
- Gender
- Male
- Age
- 65
- Address
- Ballinchalla, Co. Mayo
