School: St Columba's Abbey, Navan (roll number 882)
- Location:
- Navan, Co. Meath
- Teacher: Br. Abban O' Donoghue
Archival Reference
The Schools’ Collection, Volume 0700, Page 156
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- Collier the Robber.
About eighty years ago living in Navan there was a man know as Collier the robber. He was a notorious robber, but it was only certain people he robbed. He often held up and robbed the stage coach and the coach-driver always shuddered at his name.
When robbing a stage-coach one day Collier brought with him a number of hats and placed them on sticks at the back of the ditch. When the mail-coach arrived he stood on top of the ditch and pretended to call to his men, at the back of the ditch, not to fire yet. The driver seeing all the hats stopped the coach leaving Collier to take what he wanted. Collier then went up and robbed the stage coach leaving his "men" to guard while he went safely off.
Collier was a good-natured robber and was very popular among the farmers of Meath and Westmeath. He was often known to help poor farmers. If there was a poor farmer to be evicted Collier would pay the rent if he had(continues on next page)
