Teaching Staff Involved in the Project The pupils in St Malachy’s Camlough showed great enthusiasm and application in completing the local study of Camlough. Throughout the six week project the pupils held question and answer sessions with grandparents from the local area, visited the Mass Rock and created a slideshow presentation on information they gained from this. The feedback from the pupils was very positive and they have a much enriched knowledge of their local area in years gone by. Christine Mulholland, Camlough PS.
Justin Toner trained as a teacher in St Mary's teaching College in Belfast and graduated in 1997. He has been teaching in St Malachy's Primary School in Ballymoyer for five years and currently teaches Primary 5 and 6. Having studied History as a subsidiary subject he now has responsibility for co-ordinating History and Geography in the school. He also lives in Ballymoyer.
The children from my class and I really enjoyed taking part in this project. It was an excellent experience. It not only covered so much of the Northern Ireland Curriculum but it allowed the children to learn so much about their local area. It allowed them to develop their thinking skills and personal capabilities and it also gave the local community a chance to become involved with their local school. Una Farrell, Drumilly PS.
I was initially quite reluctant to begin the project as I was not from the local area and had a limited knowledge of Bessbrook. However, I found the project very enjoyable and the children benefited immensely from it. I would like to thank the children for their enthusiasm, the staff of St Joseph’s for their help and support and the people from the local community who were a wealth of knowledge and without whose input, our part of the project would not have been possible. Patrice Early, St Josephs PS, Bessbrook.
Daryl Gallogly suggested the Craigmore Viaduct as the focus for our project. This amazing feat of architecture and engineering which takes trains along the main Dublin Belfast economic corridor is a distinctive part of our landscape in south Armagh and now can be viewed from the other side in all its splendour with the opening of the new bypass. We visited the viaduct, explored the old tram line which is now a path and studied the history of this magnificent structure and it didn’t disappoint. Jarlath Burns, VP, St Pauls High School, Bessbrook.
The local heritage programme provided the children with the opportunity to learn about a feature of their local environment. The programme provided learning opportunities right across the curriculum including new learning concepts such as thinking skills, working with others and being creative. Through the programme the children have begun to explore the uses of new technologies such as video cameras and digital dictaphones. Barry McParland, St Peters PS, Cloughreagh.
Learning about their cultural heritage has been a rewarding experience for all involved. The children set about their tasks with great excitement and motivation. A very worthwhile project whereby the children gained many new skills and are now more knowledgeable about local historical sites.
It was a privilege to be asked to co-ordinate, design and produce this multimedia pack. Working with staff from seven primary schools from our local community has been an enriching and rewarding experience. It has also increased my knowledge, appreciation and understanding of the cultural heritage of this area where our pupils live. My colleague, Conor Starrs, ICT technician in St Paul’s, has ably assisted me throughout this project and his technical expertise has been invaluable. Siobhan O’ Hare, Editor.
Sinéad Moley, St Josephs PS, Meigh.
Justin Toner, Ballymoyer PS.
Cultural Heritage Project Foreword The Extended Schools cluster which was co-ordinated through St Paul始s High School, Bessbrook brought together primary schools in South Armagh spanning an area from Meigh to Whitecross wherein lies a wealth of historical sites and significant links to the past. A project based on cultural heritage was agreed as it combined the best of Revised Curriculum practice, involved generations working together within our communities and involved recording the heritage of each area to be presented in an accessible format for future generations. The main aim was to draw together information and sources of information from several communities into a single resource which would promote and nurture awareness of our past. We would like to think that the pack could also be viewed as a showcase of places of interest in this area and will hopefully motivate people to come and visit these sites, looking at them from a fresh perspective. The multimedia pack is a culmination of interviews, visits to sites, research in varying formats, ICT based recording and work in creative and expressive arts. A small selection of the history of our communities is presented through the eyes of our children whose lives will be spent entirely in the twenty-first century. Our cultural heritage defines who we are and it is our responsibility to maintain and pass it on. A debt is certainly owed to all who contributed locally with their stories, photographs and memories. Although there have been many educational benefits for the children involved the greatest benefit is for those who wish to explore the history and places of interest in this part of South Armagh. This project would not have been possible without the support provided through the Extended Schools programme, the hard work of the teachers and pupils involved and the expertise of the staff in St Paul始s High School, Bessbrook who co-ordinated the project and compiled the material for the finished pack. Principal, Brian McKinley, St Joseph始s Primary School, Meigh
History of Camlough
Compiled by pupils from St Malachy’s PS, Camlough
Camlough is located five kilometres west of Newry on the main Newry to Crossmaglen/Newtownhamilton Road. Land to the south east of the settlement rises steeply to Camlough Mountain within the Ring of Gullion. The village of Camlough is situated in the townland of Cross. It is most likely that the name Cross came from the crossroads in the centre of the village and it was an important place commercially during the time of the fair. The name Camlough means crooked lake and the village takes its name from either the crooked lake or crooked mountain. The Camlough River circles the village. There is much evidence of pre-Christian settlers in and around our village, (the erection of Dolmens on Camlough Mountain, The Hag’s chair in Lislea, and the Ballykeel Dolmen), which all point to Stone Age dwellers.
Camlough is very fortunate from an historical viewpoint in that there are numerous monument sites still to view e.g. Scutch Mill, the old Protestant Church and graveyard, the National School building now a community hall and Camlough Mass Rock which is over 300 years old. We know that St Malachy’s Church, Carrickcruppen is the oldest church building in the Parish of Lower Killeavy. It was built in 1816 to replace an earlier church.
Camlough National School The school, which was built in 1836, was located on the Quarter Road. It was a very long building which was divided into a boys’ school and a girls’ school. The classroom was heated by a pot-bellied stove in the centre of the room and pupils would have been sent out to collect sticks for the fire. Children wrote on slates and/or in sand trays and teachers were very strict, often administering corporal punishment with a sally rod. Class sizes were very large and monitors helped the teachers in class. The teachers and pupils had to keep the school clean as there were no cleaners employed. It was often used by the parish for different functions. The first Principal of the girls’ school was Mrs Mc Parland and the first in the boys’ school was Mr Mc Parland. After that came Mrs Murray and Mr King and next came Mrs Mc Geeney and Mr Fearon. In 1936 the two schools amalgamated and the boys and girls were taught together.
Teachers who taught in the old school were Miss Mc Kee, Miss Mulligan, Miss Garvey, Miss Hagan, Mrs Wilson, Mrs Fearon, Mr Frame, Mrs Frame, Mr Pollock, Miss Brady, Miss Fearon, Mrs Crawley, Miss Marmion, Mr Fegan, Mr Mone and Mrs Toal. In 1971 the old school was closed and the new St Malachy’s school opened on the Chapel Road. Finally, it would be remiss of us to have spoken about Camlough Primary School and not have mentioned a man who was associated for so long with the school and GAA in the Camlough area; we speak of course of Dan Fearon. His forward thinking, of having photographs taken, down through the years, of many of the classes he taught have so richly preserved the heritage of the school and for this we will be eternally grateful.
Photo on right: Damien Frame and Bronagh Frame
Photo from the 1930s (On Left) Pupils of Camlough Primary Elementary School pictured back in the early 1930’s. Left to right: Front row ; Patrick Mc Shane, Stephen Barry, James Barry Patrick Geraghty, Ivor Kearney and Martin Sheeran; 2nd row; Thomas Kelly,David Flemming, Joseph Linnon, Gerald Boyle, Kevin Fearon, Gus Boyle ,Mannix Bennett, Tom Gallaghly, John Quinn , Des Fearon 3rd row; James Cunningham, Kevin Winters, John Francis Bryne, Donald Crilly, Jim Smith, Gerald Crilly, Larry Winters, John Byrne, Patrick Campell and Peter Graham. 4th row; Patrick Crawford, Patrick Regan , Dan Fearon, Brian Smith, Henry Joe Mc Shane, Frank Barry and Micheal Barry. Principal Teacher; Mr Dan Fearon
Mass Rock A MASS ROCK (‘Carraig an Aifrinn’ in Irish) was a stone used long ago as a place to say Mass, dating from the Penal Era. During Cromwell’s time, he had a hatred for Catholicism and wanted to rid Ireland of its Catholic ways and convert them to the Anglican Church. He ordered all priests out of the country and this led to the age of the Mass Rock. The priests were hunted down and executed if caught saying mass. Therefore, the priests said mass in the countryside, in remote locations, at night time where they would not be caught. In order to say mass, they used large square stones as altars; these stones were called Mass Rocks. In a lot of cases, the Mass Rock was a stone, taken from a church ruin and relocated to a rural area, with a simple cross carved on its top or carved in the front of it. As saying mass was illegal, the time and place of the Mass would only be known shortly before it started and people were told by word of mouth. The Mass Rock situated in Grant’s rocks, Camlough would have been the same as other Mass Rocks. The rock itself was located in a remote area and slightly elevated to allow the people to see the soldiers approaching. Beside the Mass Rock was an underground hiding place for the priest, which was a stone lined trench. In 2003, a special Mass was held at the Mass Rock in memory of the people who suffered in Penal Times. The site of the Mass Rock is not often visited today but in previous years people from Camlough and Bessbrook would often visit the Mass Rock to say prayers for a special reason and would often leave a penny.
The Mass Rock By H.A. Murphy The Mass Rock here before me On guard in the shelter of hedge, The figure of the cross engraved Deep in its aged face. The pilgrims pour their kindred, One by one in its mould, Their lips on flesh of the stone. I lay my hands upon it, Warm from the heat of the sun, And warm from the heat of the ages, Of those who laid their souls Loyal in the vault of its stone.
Children at Mass Rock. From L-R Ronan Crilly, Tiarnach Lewis, Nicola Crilly, Rachel Larkin, Rachel Barr.
Camlough Fair Pat Byrne remembers farmers from the outlying districts taking their animals to the fair to sell them. Cattle, sheep and horses were all sold on the one day. People came to the fair by foot, bicycle or horse and cart. Occasionally, a farmer would hire a ‘drover’ who would walk the animals to the fair for him and then he would follow on bicycle. The animals were sold on the main street. There were cows and calves from McCrink’s Lane, right down to the Riverside Filling Station. Horses were sold up the Quarter Road. If you were buying you had to bargain with the farmer to make a deal. There were no auctioneers; if two men were haggling over the price, a “go between” would come in and clinch the deal and then this man would make a few pence for his part in the deal. Tommy O’Brien can remember Camlough Fair in the 1940s, 1950s and 1960s and he was at the last fair in 1962. On the way to the fair there were police on every road leading to Camlough. They would write down the farmer’s name and the number of animals in their notebook. They did this in case something was stolen later on. The police barracks was beside the bus stop where Café 35 is now. This photo, on the right, is of James Mc Donald from Lislea at Camlough Fair approximately 1950. In the background you can see the R.U.C station.
Camlough Fair By Redmond O’Hanlon We trudged with the calves Through the tail of the night. Slowly Camlough showed east – a faint glimmer – An’ when dawn umbered Gullion’s bare shoulder in light At its foot winked the lake water’s shimmer. Us ones stood there in clabber Till on in the day – A sore day that I thought Had no endin’ But we sold in the heel an’ I Asked for my pay, An’ the da gave me – Ninepence! for spendin’ You could do things with money Them days in a fair’ Man dear! Ninepence for wages Took beatin! I’d a pennorth of apples, Snow tarts, a curran’ square An ‘the belly pangs died in the eatin’.
Some “pink smokers”, five Marbles, a red rubber ball’ Two fish-hooks with a Bright twinklin’ spinner. An’ a fag for a draw Behind Carragher’s wall While the da was away At his dinner. Now the lake’s shinin’ silver has changed to Grey lead; In the street there’s no clamour now lowin. With the dealers away an’ the oul da long deadAn’ I cry in my heart at their goin.
Sons of Camlough Two of Camlough’s most famous sons are Brian (Donn) Byrne and Frank Aiken. Brian Byrne was a famous author, poet and fluent Gaelic speaker. Frank Aiken is best remembered as a very effective and successful politician. Brian Donn Byrne Brian Byrne was born in New York, on 20 November 1889, and moved to live in Camlough along with his mother and sister. His father was to follow on but was tragically killed in an accident in New York. He attended Camlough school, was an altar boy in Carrickcruppen Church, and from 1902 to 1907 was a pupil at the C.B.S. in Newry. Although a fluent Irish speaker he also spoke many other languages. While at school he won many prizes for Irish conversation. His best known novels are ‘Messer Marco Polo’, ‘Hangman’s House’, and ‘The Power Of The Dog’; all of which have been translated into Irish. In 1928, at the age of 39, Byrne died in a car accident, and has since been considered as one of the most promising of English literati. He was generally known, and so characterised himself, as the last of the traditional Irish storytellers and as a typical Gaelic spinner of yarns. He is laid to rest in County Cork and on his headstone the inscription reads “I am in my sleeping and don’t waken me”.
Frank Aiken Frank Aiken was born in Camlough in 1898 and was politically and militarily active from a young age. He was first elected to the Dáil as a Sinn Féin candidate in the Louth constituency in 1923, continuing to be re-elected for Fianna Fail at every election until his retirement from politics fifty years later. He entered the first Fianna Fáil government as Minister for Defence (1932–39), later becoming Minister for the Coordination of Defensive Measures (1939–45). Aiken was Minister for Finance (1945–48) for three years following the war and was involved in economic post–war development, in the industrial, agricultural, educational and other spheres. However, it was as Minister for External Affairs (1951–54, 1957–69) that Aiken fulfilled his enormous political potential. Aiken sponsored a resolution to prevent the ‘wider dissemination of nuclear weapons’ and proposed peace initiatives for the crisis in the Middle East. In 1969, Aiken, who was then 70, stepped down from his positions as Minister for Foreign Affairs and Tánaiste (Deputy Prime Minister). In 1973, at the age of 75, he decided finally to retire from political life, opting not to stand for re-election in his County Louth constituency. In 1983 he died peacefully, at the age of 85. He is laid to rest in St Malachy’s graveyard, Carrickcruppen.
Frank Aiken’s tombstone at Carrickcruppen Graveyard.
Memories of Camlough Oliver Loughran The fair was held once a month. Cattle were walked to the fair and then graded in Camlough. There was a weighbridge at Doyle’s and the vet graded the animals and stamped them. If the animals were moving to another part of the country they were put into a yard John McCullough with his horse and trap. and transported down to the train station. The “tangles” would go out to the road and try to bid for the cattle. The cows were sold throughout the whole of Camlough village, up to the Chapel Road and the horses were held on the Quarter Road. This fair was one of the busiest in Northern Ireland, with people travelling from Belfast to it and the only motor vehicles were transport lorries. Eugene Mc Creesh In the 1940s, when he was aged fourteen, he remembers the hiring fair when people would have been hired to Mc Mullan’s farm in Camlough. People who had been hired lived in a shed. Eugene used to go around the houses in Camlough, High Street Bessbrook, Quarry Row (now Father Cullen Park) and Rock Row with a milk cart drawn by a pony. Eugene travelled home every evening and was paid 6 shillings a week. He used to spray potatoes using a pump sprayer on his back. He started work at 6.30 am and finished at 8 or 9 pm at night. He also worked on Sunday mornings.
He remembers the following businesses in the village: Pubs in Camlough: Carragher’s, McElhaw’s (now Quinn’s) Doyle’s, Boyle’s, Kelly’s, Toal’s and Peggy Murphy’s. Shops: Boyle’s pub and shop Eating houses: Brigid McAnulty’s - (boarding house) and Mc Connon’s Cobblers: Mickey Burns, Billy Carroll Bookmakers shop: Paddy Kelly, Mickey Burns (on the green) and there was also a shed for stonecutting. Claire Loughran James Mc Keown (her father) worked in the Blacksmith’s Forge, around 1942 – 1943. He was from Maghernahely (Ballinabee). Claire had to pump the bellows up and down to pump air under the fire allowing her father to work at making the horse shoes.
1960s Barney Mc Connon (RIP) and Terry Murphy (RIP) in Camlough across from where Hughes shop is now situated. Old type bus in the background.
Elizabeth Mc Parland In 1926 there were 3 new water pumps put in the village. One was outside Carragher’s Pub and another at the corner of the village green where Costcutter is now, and these 2 pumps are still there. The other one was outside the old school but it is no longer there. Father Mc Peake organised a carnival in Camlough every year, down at the Forester’s Hall. There was dancing, concerts and guest-teas in the marquee in Dan Fearon’s field.
Memories of Camlough Mary Bannon In October 1908, 13 trees were planted in the village and these held a prominent role in village life. There was one grocery shop and post office; it was where Boyle’s Bookies is now. Mrs Fearon ran the Post Office. The children wore shoes into school and when they came out they took their shoes off, as they were the only pair they had. There was a shoe mender in the village and we would take our shoes and boots to get mended. A pair of shoes or boots would last you at least 2 or maybe even 3 years.
Pat Byrne Most houses were self sufficient; you grew your own vegetables to use in the house, you got milk from the cows and kept hens for eggs. If you had a lot of eggs you could take them to the local shops where they were collected by Robinson’s lorry and sold to the shops. You took your eggs to the shop one week and the next week collected your money and it helped buy the groceries. There was no electricity or running water in the houses. Some houses had a hurricane lamp for light outside. Water for cooking had to be carried from the well and if you had a nearby stream or river you would have had to carry water from there for washing. There were no supermarkets but several small local shops around the countryside. There was a shop at Kane’s corner, another in Ballynalack (Paddy Magennis’) and Fleming’s at the lake corner.
Present day pupil holding old time lamp.
The original trees planted in 1908 showing the old forge in the background
Pupils at St Malachy’s Primary School Camlough in 1948
The Late Paddy McGlade RIP
The class picture above shows the late Paddy McGlade standing directly behind the seated pupil holding the slate. Pictured right is Paddy McGlade’s grandson holding his grandfather’s original slate that he used when he was a pupil at Camlough Primary School.
Church of Ireland, Camlough
Aeriel view of old Camlough
Pupils Involved in the Project
Tiarnach Lewis, Rachael Larkin, Nicole Crilly, Rachel Barr, Ronan Crilly.
Drumilly
Compiled by pupils from Drumilly PS
Drumilly is a townland in the parish of Loughgilly in South Armagh. Loughgilly parish has 14,418 acres of land. The name Drumilly means the Ridge of the Summit. Belleek is the nearest village to Drumilly, it is about 1.8 miles away. Camlough is the nearest town to Drumilly, it is about 2.6 miles away. Newry is about 6 miles away. Our heritage project will focus on Drumilly Mass Rock which is near Lislea, the old ringfort across the road from St Brigid’s PS, Drumilly, and the school itself which was built during the famine in 1846.
Declan Matthews
Sorcha Boyle By Declan Matthews and Sorcha Boyle
Drumilly National School Drumilly National School was built during the time of the famine in 1846 which is strange in that the government found money to build a school when millions of people were dying. The school was built close to the Carrowbane Road. Mr John Moley, a past pupil, remembers that the school only had one room and the teachers, Mrs Keenan and Miss Rice had to both teach classes that were put in rows, one class would face one way and the other class would face the opposite direction. Each child had to bring in coal money for the school to buy coal for the fires in the classroom. Mr John Moley remembers the school had no running water, so the older students had to go to a spring well and fill the buckets they were given. At the back of the school they only had two small outside toilets, which were divided by a brick wall. They would use the water fetched earlier that day to clean the toilets. He also remembers the girls and the boys playing on the road, the girls played at the top and the boys played at the bottom. The boys would have played corners on the bridge; any rows that started at school would have been sorted out on the way home, at the Fort crossroads. Mr John Moley also remembers when he was a child they would set out fishing lines in the river, which runs below our school now and try to catch fish.
John Moley visits the school.
He tells us the funny story about his friend called Thomas who asked to go to the toilet but was really going out to check the lines. On the end of one line which was under the bridge Thomas found a giant eel. He put it in his pocket and went back to class with his pocket bouncing everywhere.
John Moley’s Eel When he was sitting at the back of the room with Mr John Moley and his friends he said “It’s a big one.” When the teacher came over and asked what was going on Thomas went to take the eel out of his pocket, but it was so slippery it slipped out of his hands. The teacher Mrs Keenan screamed at Thomas from a chair, “Take that monster out of my classroom” and what a job it was! Every morning the principal Mr Kearney used to go to Mass in the parochial house before coming to school. At two o’clock two or three people would go over to the fort to collect sticks for the fire and take turns to light it. On winter mornings Mrs Keenan would take the milk bottles and make cocoa to keep them warm. Mr Peter Murray told us that if the students didn’t drink the cocoa Mrs Keenan would hold them by the ear until they did. Mr John Moley also recalls the pupils making up excuses to go out and raid the orchard in Burn’s field regularly.
Peter Murray shares his memories with pupils.
Mr Peter Murray remembers if the shutters were down, the school wouldn’t be opened and if they were up the school would be opened.
In the morning Catholic pupils would do catechism, prayer and Bible History up to 10 o’clock and non Catholics wouldn’t come into school until they were finished at ten o’clock.
Mr Murray also recalls the seniors were at one side of the school and the juniors at the other.
Sometimes Mr Moley wished he was a Protestant so he could start school at 10 o’clock.
He also remembers that Miss Rice taught the seniors and Mrs Kennan taught the juniors.
Mr James McKeown remembers that some of the students would have put stones in the key holes so the teacher couldn’t unlock the door.
Aine Malone
Moragaine Mc Parland Drawing of the school by Jack Carr, P7.
By Aine Malone and Moragaine Mc Parland
Memories on Drumilly National School By Mr Peter Murray (Former Principal)
I took up my appointment as principal of Drumilly National School on the 1st July 1955. This was my first teaching appointment as I had just qualified in June previously. Being appointed principal of a school less than one hundred was allowed if one had a degree and a post graduate certificate.
cycled to school each day. Two of his family were also teachers and they were tragically lost at sea in in a boating tragedy in Carlingford Lough. This made a sad impact on his later teaching career. It is nice to record that a housing estate in Whitecross is named after him. From 1923-1924 a little known John O’Donnell was principal. From 1924-1926 Gerry Armstrong, a Co Down man, became principal. When on teaching practice in St.Comgall’s Belfast I came across Mr Armstrong who was then principal. When I became principal of Drumilly in 1955 the school was just one big room with very high windows.
My father Mr Patrick Murray had just retired as principal of St Laurence’s the same year having completed 38 years as principal. My sister Mrs Rose Anne Duffy commenced her teaching career in St. Laurence’s School Belleek in 1952. Three of my sisters, Miss Kathleen Murray (RIP) taught in Drumilly for over 30 years, Miss Ulna O’Donnell and Rita Murray were to follow us into the teaching profession later. I succeeded Miss Margaret Rice (a Markethill lady) who was appointed principal in 1926 having taught as assistant since 1917. Previously Miss Rice taught as assistant in Waterfoot PS Co Antrim. Miss Rice was trained in St Mary’s from 1908-1910. Miss Margaret Keenan (a Newry lady) from Caulfield Place was appointed assistant in 1926. She lodged in Tuley’s House on the Lisseraw Road during the week.
The living conditions were Dickensian with one fire at the end of the room and the children brought one shilling to cover the cost of the coal. Hayes’ well supplied the water for the tea. We were promised a new building in 1958, a long delay followed but in 1962 the new school was opened. Paradise for many pupils, lovely appetising meals cooked for the pupils and free transport.
Mr Charles Kearney was principal from 1882-1922. He lived at Kearney’s Corner (where presently the Leonard family live) and he
Drumilly National School was established in 1846 as a Board of Works school. It was maintained by the Board of Works. There were quite a number of these schools built around Ireland which was then one country. Drumilly was established during the famine years to relieve the poverty and suffering as a result of the famine. Initially the numbers were small, under 50 children. During my time in around the 1980’s the enrolment was around 100. It is pleasant to note that today the numbers are around 70 and Drumilly remains a beautiful, compact and viable school where children receive an excellent and very high standard of education.
Reflections on my days at Drumilly School By James McKeown
Drumilly School, County Armagh: 1895-1996 Reflections on my days at Drumilly School between 1921-1929
I want to say a few words about my days in Drumilly School. I was born on 14th August 1915 and am 81 years old this year. Four generations of my family have attended Drumilly School. I was a farmer’s son in Tullywinney and I’m still a farmer there. I was one of a family of five children: two boys and three girls.
By James McKeown, Tullywinney, Camlough, Co Armagh.
My younger brother, Patrick Francis, died young in 1918 and my younger sister Mary died at the age of 14 in 1936 after being badly burned at the fire in the house. My mother died in 1929 when she was 39 years. I left school at 14 years, in the same year my mother died. I’m the last one of that family still living. I married a former scholar of Dumilly school, Mary McCann, on 16th February 1944. We were fifty-two years married this year. I think Mary might have been a better pupil than I was. We have ten children and all of them have been to Drumilly School. Some of their children, Peter’s, Patsy’s and Brendan’s, have also gone to Drumilly school. I started school around the age of six in 1921. In those days there were no school buses like today; everyone walked. Apart from the winter months (October to March), I always walked barefoot to school. I often got thorns in my feet and my toes got cricked on the rough stones.
Very old photo of pupils at Drumilly.
A young neighbour girl, Mary Markey RIP (sister of Peter Markey RIP and Tom Markey) who was going to Drumilly School at the time, took me on my first day. After that I usually went to school
Reflections on my days at Drumilly School with Gerry McParland and John Rice RIP, both neighbours from Tullywinney.
regarded as great sport at the time to throw sods of clay down on top of the person drinking the water.
Drumilly School was different then. The school was just one big room with very high windows. There were shutters on the outside of the windows. When I went to school and the shutters were still up I knew the school was not open and I still had time to do my homework.
The subjects in the school were: Reading, Writing, Arithmetic and Religion. I wasn’t great at any of them. Only for John Rice - who helped me to do my sums every morning - I would never have been able to do my homework. At that time, parents took no interest in school, and never gave you any help or encouragement.
The school was divided in two halves: one half was for the junior classes run by Miss Rice and later by Miss Keenan and the other half was for the senior classes run by Mr Armstrong and later by Miss Rice.
I never liked school and I knew no-one who did. I often remember on Friday afternoons we would stuff the keyhole of the school with stones to make it difficult for the teacher to open the door on Monday morning. That usually wasted a couple of hours.
There was a fire at the end of the room but it never seemed to give out much heat. Miss Rice took the good out of it.
John Rice and I mitched from school one day and spent the time hiding in whin bushes. I was about nine or ten at the time. Mitching turned out to be even more boring than school and we never did it again.
Every pupil had to bring in one shilling to cover the cost of coal for the year. Each day one pupil had to go to Hayes’ well for water which would be boiled on the fire to make tea for the teacher. Usually the better scholars were picked to go for the water; despite this, I got picked once or twice. My lunch at school was usually half a farl of griddle bread. I don’t remember there ever being butter or jam on it. At breaktime, which was only half an hour, you could get a drink of water from the spring across the road beside the bridge. In order to get a drink, you had to go down on your hands and knees to drink the water; it was
I grew up on a farm and had to do a number of jobs before going to school each day. My jobs included: bringing fodder to the cows, cleaning out the byre, feeding calves and bringing water to the horse. During the harvest time, especially in September and October, I missed a lot of school days because I was kept at home to tie corn and pick potatoes. I preferred it to school.
The teachers were very bad-tempered in my time and nearly everyone got slapped at one time or another. You daren’t complain at home because your parents would say you deserved it. Once Mr Armstrong kicked a book out of my hands and sent pages flying all over the classroom. Miss Rice had a big knuckle duster of a ring which she would hit you with: she would grab you by the hair or the ear and pull you right down on one side. My days at school were the longest in my life. I thought they would never end. The hour between two and three every day seemed to go slower that any other hour in the day. I remember the day I left school: I pitched my school bag into the river and it has never been seen since.
Drumilly Mass Rock Drumilly Mass Rock was used hundreds of years ago during the penal times because Roman Catholics weren’t allowed to practise their religion and so mass had to be held in secret.
The McParland family own the land where the Mass Rock is. Lots of people still go to the Mass Rock every year to remember the time that people had to have Mass in secret. Carmel Hayes remembers buntings being put up, Ann Hughes remembers a bell being rung before mass started. The Whitecross Band led everyone to the mass rock so the mass could begin. Mass started after dinner once a year, the last year of the mass PJ Boyle led everyone. The priests changed in Leo McParland’s house. They had to walk up a hill to the Mass Rock and it started at the end of the Drumily road the Whitecross Band marched up the road and across Mc Parland’s lane to his house where the priest and altar servers were. The band was dressed in yellow, black and green. Then they went to the Mass Rock. There was a small garden with trees and hedges around it; when you went into the garden nobody could see you. In the garden there was a round stone. Mass rock by Niamh Mc Caffery
Cardinal O’Fiach at the Mass Rock in 1983
St Oliver Plunkett who was the last Irish Saint to be canonised is believed to have said Mass at Drumilly Mass Rock. Dr Patrick Donnelly (the Bard of Armagh) is also believed to have said mass at the Mass Rock. Dr Patrick Donnelly was a Bishop who went round the area disguised as a harpist.
The priest changed here before saying Mass
Joe Mc Parland remembers that Fr Regon opened it in the 1930s. In the 1960s there were huge crowds attending the annual mass. Paul McNulty and Paddy Mackin collected money at the gate.
Cathal Murphy
Michael Hughes
Entrance to Mass Rock
Pupils at Mass Rock
Katie Rose McKenna
Ring Fort A ring fort was a place where families built dwellings, so they could live safely in the Celts time. A ring fort was enclosed by a circular wall or an earthen bank and also surrounded by trees and was built on a hill so the Celts could watch their animals and their lands. The Celts could also watch for attackers. Drumilly Ring Fort is across the road from Drumilly School.
Tara O’Connor
Mr John Moley remembers about the ring fort as a child. When he was a little boy he use to play at Drumilly Fort. Mr Peter Murray remembers when he was the principal of Drumilly school if the children didn’t want to go to school they would hide at the fort. The fort is in the middle of a field and is surrounded by trees. There is a road named after the fort and it is called the Fort Road.
Niamh Mc Caffery By Tara O’Connor and Niamh Mc Caffery.
The Carlingford Lough Disaster SS Connemara by Cathal Murphy In 1916 two ships sank in Carlingford Lough as a result of a collision in a storm. One was called the ‘SS Connemara’ and the other ship was ‘The Retriever’. Ninety seven of the people on board died. Two of the people who died were Catherine Kearney and her brother, Patrick John Kearney. Their father, Mr Kearney was the principal of Drumilly National School at that time.
Katie Rose McKenna Catherine and PJ were travelling to meet their sister in Liverpool and while they were waiting at Edward Street Station, in Newry, a police officer said that the weather was very bad. PJ Kearney tossed a coin to see if they would continue on their journey to Liverpool. The result was they were going to sail on the ship. When they were out in Carlingford Lough, the ‘SS Connemara’ and ‘The Retriever’ both collided and the people on board all drowned. There is a housing estate in Whitecross named after Mr Kearney which is called Kearney Crescent. On the Carrickananny Road there is a corner called Kearney’s Corner which is in front of the house where the principal lived. In our school we found the school admission’s register that was started in 1872 and we found PJ Kearney’s name in it and it tells us that he started school on the 16th May 1897. It also tells us what his scores were in his education.
Jack Carr By Katie Rose McKenna and Jack Carr.
Mrs Rice and Paddy Hayes Mrs Rice was a principal at Drumilly National School. Mrs Brigid Hayes who was a pupil at that time, remembers that Mrs Rice was the only person in the country who had a car which was a baby Austin and she drove it to school every day.
Mrs Rice Retirement in 1954
Paddy Hayes’ uncle told him that Fr Murphy asked Mickey Doyle for a field to build a new school, but the field the man was given was too close to the road and was unsuitable. Paddy Hayes’ uncle donated his field to the parish to build a new school. The field that Paddy Hayes’ uncle donated was right behind Drumilly National School, so they knocked down Drumilly National School and built St Brigid’s Primary School, Drumilly in 1962.
Pupils Involved in the Project
Declan Matthews
Tara O’Connor
Niamh McCaffery
Jack Carr
Aine Malone
Moragaine McParland
Kate Rose McKenna
Cathal Murphy
Sorcha Boyle
Michael Hughes
St Joseph’s Primary School Meigh Compiled by pupils from St Joseph’s PS, Meigh
This project was carried out by the Cultural Heritage Team at St Joseph’s Primary School, Meigh.
Quotes from children I enjoyed the art and it was also my first time to use the camera. I know now how to carry out a job. Hannah OʼNeill P5 I enjoyed visiting Killevy old church and doing the voiceover. Jordan Treanor P5 I liked interviewing people and visiting and learning about places which I didnʼt even know existed. Caitlin Magee P6 I had several jobs such as camera person, writing about Ballinliss School and doing the voiceover. I really enjoyed working together as a team. Sean King P6
Bianca Hughes, Roisin Keenan, Aoife Magennis, Hannah O’Neill, Sarah Trainor, Jordan Treanor, Sean King, Rachel Larkin, Ashlyn McCabe, Caitlin Magee, Carl Webb, Daniel Berry, Katie Boylan, Niall Doran, Alice Quinn Three local sites were chosen: 1. 2. 3.
Ballymacdermot Court Cairn Killeavy Old Churches & Graveyard Ballinliss National School
I really enjoyed the movie-making and the ICT part of the project. Alice Quinn P7 I enjoyed visiting local places and coming back to school to put the facts together. Carl Webb P6
Ballymacdermot Court Cairn By Carl Webb
As I made my way up to Ballymacdermot today I was anxiously waiting to find out more about this strange place. As soon as I got there, I knew I was back in time and in another world. First I went into the forecourt and looked around. I saw twelve oddly shaped stones, big and small. I went to feel them and they felt rough and old. In the forecourt I learned that they used to have funerals here and then I think that our ancestors placed their dead in the tombs in urns. Next I stopped and jumped down into the first chamber. It was small. I saw stones on the sides.Twigs and leaves were growing on the stones. After that I stepped into the second chamber. On the ground it was wet and mushy. On the stones I noticed brown and green moss. Then I stepped into the third chamber. I could see that this was the end of the tomb. I jumped out and went down the hill to look back up at this place. So Ballymacdermot is a three chambered tomb!
about the American tank which bumped into the tomb while practising during the Second World War. My Mum and Dad told me a story that every New Year’s Eve at midnight, a ghost would go through Ballymacdermot Court Cairn and if anyone tried to come near him he would eat them. Then he would get on the ghost train that goes over the Eighteen Arches every night at midnight but I don’t believe that!
It dates back to 3500BC. I was surprised at how good a condition Ballymacdermot was in. Years and years ago the tomb used to have a roof but it doesn’t have any roof today. So where was it? I closed my eyes and I could hear the American tank coming towards the cairn then THUD the three chambers shook! And that’s the way I think the roof came off. Ballymacdermot is surrounded by a forest and from here you can see the Mourne Mountains. You can see outstanding views of Newry and Meigh. The hills all around looked beautiful. There are many local stories about Ballymacdermot but I only believe the one
Ballymacdermot Court Cairn – ‘Special Stones’
Ballymacdermot Court Cairn By Bianca Hughes
I enjoyed my fact-finding day at Ballymacdermot. My favourite part was finding out all the history. I had no idea that this was such an old place – prehistoric! I love the fact that Ballymacdermot is in such good condition. I’ve taken visitors to this site before, mainly for the views but next time I will be able to tell them more about its history.
When archaeologists came to Ballymacdermot in 1962, they found bone fragments in the two large chambers. They think the bone was human. Neolithic pottery and flint were also found. I think our ancestors would be pleased that people continue to visit this place over 5000 years later.
As I walked through the gate, I saw something amazing, something I had never seen before. The stones had somehow formed into a circle. At first, I didn’t know why, but as I learned more I was amazed. I found out that Ballymacdermot Court Cairn dates to about 3500 BC. It is a grave and has three burial chambers. The forecourt was used for funerals, and the ashes of the dead were kept in an urn and placed in one of the chambers. I stepped into the third chamber and I noticed that it was bigger than the first but the middle chamber was biggest of all. There would have been a roof covering this grave but unfortunately there are only fragments left. I think they are called jams. In 1816 John Bell of Killeavy Castle and a local landowner Jonathan Seaver opened the tomb and found an urn containing bones. These men were treasure seekers. Once during the Second World War an American tank accidentally bumped into the tomb at Ballymacdermot. Luckily they did not destroy it.
‘Ancient Stones’ by Sarah Trainer
‘Ballymacdermot – In Its Day’ by Hannah O’Neill
‘If Stones Could Talk’ By Roisin Keenan
If these stones could talk
If these stones could talk
What would they say?
They’d talk about views
Would they tell us many stories
Of beautiful Meigh
From a bygone day?
And the fabulous hills
If these stones could talk
If these stones could talk
We’d learn of Neolithic man
They would say they are old
How our ancestors chanted
5000 years in fact
On the dead before burial
‘Old Stones’ by Roisin Keenan
But upright still
If these stones could talk
If these stones could talk
They’d tell us about Bell and Seaver
They would say they are proud
Treasure hunters who opened the tomb
A finely preserved court tomb
Found bone not treasure
With bone pottery and flint treasures
If these stones could talk
If these stones could talk
We’d learn about American tanks
What would they say?
Bumped accidentally into stones
What would they remember?
But yet could not knock us over
Would they answer our questions?
Killeavy Old Churches and Graveyard ‘St Moninna of Killevy’ by Aoife Magennis
St Moninna of Killevy Built a wooden church The daughter of Macha King of Louth and Armagh
She went west with St Ibar To Wexford and Kildare To Faughart then Killevy To build her house of prayer
Baptised by St Patrick Confirmed by him too Her real name Darerca In Donaghmore she grew.
Today she still lies here Beneath a large granite stone As Patrick predicted Here she’ll always be known
‘East Church Stonework’ by Caitlin Magee
‘The Mountain Church’ by Daniel Berry
Killevy Old Churches and St Moninna By Caitlin Magee
Cill SlĂŠibhe, the Irish spelling of Killeavy, means the Church of the mountain. This is a most fitting name, as this church sits at the foot of our lovely Slieve Gullion. Killevy Old Churches are the only pre-Norman churches in County Armagh and they are among the oldest churches in Ireland. The remains of two churches stand here today. So if you visit Killevy at first you might think it is only one building but look closer and you will see two. When I walked through the gates of Killevy Old Churches I was feeling very excited. As I read the information board I realised that
around 518AD it was rebuilt with stone. In the 13th century a second church was built, and some time later, there was a wall built which joined them together. I never knew that there was more than one old church here and yet I live nearby. Our local football club is named after St Moninna. She was known as Darerca and we think she came from near Donaghmore in County Down. She decided to become a nun but as there were no convents in the area, Moninna went to the west of Ireland to join St. Ibar. When Ibar moved to Wexford, Moninna followed him. She visited St. Brigid in Kildare.Then Monnina travelled to Faughart in County Louth where she lived for some time. This was where St Brigid was born. Moninna then moved down the road to Killevy, where she founded her main monastery, Cill Sleibhe Cuilinn, The Church of Slieve Gullion. Today we call it Killeavy but long ago it was called Killevy. The Vikings raided the monastery at Killevy in the year 923AD and in the year 1146AD a very strong storm struck and killed local people, including some nuns at the monastery. The large tree-lined graveyard is still in use today and the annual blessing of the graves takes place on the 6th July.
St Moninna had built a wooden church here in 450AD and in
I touched the wall, closed my eyes and all of a sudden I went back to the year 1542. I saw the nuns working as hard as they could. I saw the last abbess, Alicia O’Hanlon, working along with all the other nuns. She was getting ready to leave Killevy and hand over the site to a man called Sir Marmaduke Whitechurch.
Time-Travelling through Old Killevy By Rachel Larkin
I learnt that there was a round tower at Killevy. This was blown down in a gale in 1768AD. We only know about this from a picture map but I would have loved to see it and wished it was still there today.
When I walked through the gates of Killevy Old Churches I thought to myself, “I’ve been here lots of times but don’t know much about the history of this place”. I closed the gate behind me, walked towards the church and stepped back in time.
This place is so special. Today visitors come to Killevy to see our beautiful treasures of medieval architecture. They also come to pray at St Moninna’s grave which is found in the graveyard. Some people even go to her holy well up the hill and pray for cures. I feel proud to come from such a great place!
In my mind I could see nuns led by St Moninna. The year was 450 AD and a wooden church stood in front of me. What a beautiful setting, this church at the foot of the mountain. The nuns were praying, fasting, studying, cleaning, sewing and busy growing vegetables. A bell rang and the nuns hurried inside the church to ‘The Lintelled Doorway’ by Aoife Magennis
‘Inside East Church’ by Bianca Hughes
pray. However this wooden church is not here today, it was replaced by the west stone church in 518AD. Then I thought hard again. The year was now 923AD. I could see the Vikings charging towards the church. They had come from Carlingford Lough to take Killevy’s treasures. I am sure they took chalices, crucifixes and whatever valuable things they could find. But that wasn’t the end of Killevy Monastery. On my next visit the year was 1146AD and I found myself caught up in a huge storm. Many people were killed at Killevy and lots more people around the area too. What we now call the east church was built some time later, in the thirteenth century. Time-travelling on, I was soon in 1542. I could see Alicia O’Hanlon (the head nun) arguing with a man called Felim O’Neill. I thought they would never stop arguing. Eventually they did. Alicia, the last abbess at Killevy, had to give Sir Marmaduke Whitechurch the site. She looked sad and disappointed as she handed him the keys. Soon she left with her friends. I could not tell where she went to. On my next visit a terrible storm was raging. The tower was blown down by a strong gale. I was in 1786AD. I ran backwards as fast as I could. People were running all over the place. The tower hit the ground with a crash! It was really scary but the main building still stood. Before I knew it my time was up. My adventure was over. Oh no! I
was back in 2010. But I was happy because the old churches were still standing. I thought about how long these churches were going to be at Killevy. Maybe forever. On the 6th July I had to go up to Killevy Old Churches for the annual blessing of the graves. My Dad and I went over to our relative’s grave and said a prayer. We also went over to St Moninna’s grave and said a prayer too. Walking towards the gate my Dad told me a story about the tomb at the back wall. He said that if you touch the wall of the tomb an angel will appear and open a doorway which leads to the top of Slieve Gullion Mountain! I love this place because of its history. I love the peace and tranquillity. I love hearing the wind through the trees and the smell of fresh flowers.
Cill Sléibhe – ‘The Church of the Mountain’ By Niall Doran
Today was the day I was going up to visit Killevy Old Church. As we made our journey up the Ballintemple Road, I was curious. I wanted to find out about Killevy Old Church. I entered the grounds and was keen to learn about its history. I tried to imagine what it was like in 518AD, when St Moninna built this church. How hard it must have been! Who would have helped those nuns to do such heavy work? I thought about how different the church buildings were at different times. I kept thinking about the big round-tower which was then ruined in 1768AD by a great storm. I’ve always wanted to know the stories about Killevy Old Church.
As I left this church I finally realised that this place is somewhere special. The things that are special are the stories, the history, and of course the buildings themselves. Never again will anyone see the original church at Killevy or the round tower or Augustinian nuns. They are treasures of our past. No longer do I see Killevy Churches as old ruins but as part of my past. Today I play for Killeavy GFC. I belong to St Moninna’s Club. On my jersey my crest says Cill Sleibhe. I now know this means “THE CHURCH OF THE MOUNTAIN”. I have learnt so much. I now wear it with more pride!
My favourite story is the one about the fourth Abbess at Killevy Monastery, Derlaisre. She was building a wooden church and found it difficult to carry the timber for the roof-ridge down the mountain. She prayed and prayed to St. Moninna to help her with this difficult situation. Miraculously, the next day the timber was found near the convent ready for use. As I walked around, I closed my eyes and thought about the Vikings charging through those big, black gates. I imagined them leaping over the green bushes. I could almost hear the cries of the nuns and the local people. I tried to think hard about the people who once lived here. I could nearly hear the row between Alicia O’Hanlon and Felim O’Neil. The sound of the row was getting lower and lower and then it was gone.
‘The Mountain Church’ by Daniel Berry
Old Tom
By Niall Doran, Alice Quinn and Katie Boylan
This is a local story associated with Killevy Old Church and graveyard. It was told to us by a local man called Kevin Mulholland. We have written it as he told it to us. There was once a man called Tom, who lived in a place locally known as Ireland, in a village called Meigh. It was one of those nights again where Tom gets drunk, strolls into the forest and eventually walks up to what he should now call his ‘Drinking Bench’ (A DOWA). Whiskey after whiskey, he downed with both joy and tiredness. Tom eventually fell asleep, not knowing he was in a dangerous territory. What Tom didn’t know was that there was a wild boar watching him and it was getting ready to charge. Suddenly a fly landed on Old Tom’s nose and woke him up. Out of the corner of his eye he saw the wild boar charging and Tom decided to climb up the nearest tree. He waited for six whole hours before coming back down. After that night Old Tom never fell asleep out in the countryside again. But he did continue to enjoy his whiskey! And today in the old Killevy graveyard, lies a flat stone with a giant fly on its left and a wild boar on its right. And that is where Old Tom is buried. Another site of interest to the locals in Killeavy is Ballinliss National School. Situated on Seavers Road, Ballinliss opened its doors in
1853 and for the next one hundred and sixteen years children from the Meigh area attended. There were only two buildings, one for girls and one for boys. The girls had infants and juniors. The toilets were outside the buildings. An old inspection report tells us that they were ‘primitive but clean’. As shown in records of May 1952 the toilets were a block of wood with a hole in it. Running water only came to Ballinliss in 1963. That was when they got flushable toilets. Inspection reports also point to small classrooms and poor lighting. The junior classroom measured twelve feet square and there were no seating arrangements for twenty infants. In 1952 windows were enlarged and a porch was added to the boys’ school to create more space. There were no school dinners back then. You could go home for lunch if you lived nearby and if not, you had to take your own lunch every day. All you got in school was a small drink of milk in a bottle. Children had to walk to school in rain, hail, sleet or snow! The classrooms would have been cold in those days because there was no central heating but they had a big fire in the middle of each classroom. The children took it in turns to put turf in it. Smoke came out from the fire and made the room very smoky. In school children learnt History, Geography, Arithmetic, Nature Study, English and Religion. Lessons lasted about half an hour. An old timetable tells us that singing, needlework, drawing, cookery, Irish, handwriting and dictation were also taught.
Ballinliss National School (1853-1969) By Sean King & Ashlyn McCabe
Early records show that Miss Byrne became principal in 1909. Miss Teresa Byrne lived in Kilmorey Street in Newry and she travelled to Meigh by bus. From Meigh, she cycled to Ballinliss leaving her bicycle at Cunningham’s Shop, now ‘Paddy’s Your Store’. Miss Byrne taught the girls to walk correctly with a book on their head for posture. Some early records state that children were very stooped in 1912 and she tried to cure this. Miss Byrne remained a teacher here until 1953.
Playtime was fun. Outside children played German jumps, hopscotch and skipping and if it was raining they would have sat inside and looked out of the window. Some children stayed at school until they were fourteen. Can you imagine being in P8, P9 or even P10? In those days classes were called Standards and were numbered in Roman numerals. Our class would have been called Standard VI (P6). Some pupils went on to secondary school but many got a job and did not go back to school.
Mr Thomas Joseph McEvoy became principal of the boys’ school in May 1925. He was principal of Ballinliss until September 1960 and was replaced by his son, Mr John Francis McEvoy. This man was principal until the school closed in 1969. Other teachers who taught here were Mrs Doyle, Miss Lavelle, Miss McAreevy, Miss Rice, Miss Melia and Miss McLoughlin who became Mrs McEvoy. The teachers wrote on blackboards and children wrote on slates and then in books. Computers were yet to be made.
How times have changed!
Children went to school on Saturdays. The school holidays started in late July and ended in August. Summer holidays only lasted for one month. A lot of children wouldn’t have come to school in November because children would have stayed at home to help their family with the potato picking. In fact, our old registers tell us that Ballinliss School closed for a week at this time of year. The children always got off for St Patrick’s Day. The weather also caused children to stay at home. Old records show that attendance was poor on July 14th 1943 due to rain. Only 48 pupils were present.
Kilmorey Street in 1914
Ballinliss National School
Ballymoyer History
P5, P6 and P7 pupils from St Malachy’s PS, Ballymoyer
Map of Ballymoyer
Ballymoyer is eight miles south east of Newry. The Irish translation is ‘Baile an Mhaoir’ which means the homestead of the steward or keeper. Many years ago important relics such as the Bell, Book and Crozier of St. Patrick were kept by the steward of Ballymoyer. In return for doing this job, the family who guarded them could keep the eight townlands of Ballymoyer ‘rent free’. Ballymoyer was pronounced ‘Ballawire’ until recent years. There are eight townlands in Ballymoyer. Our principal Mr Kennedy taught us an acrostic to help us remember the names of the townlands in Ballymoyer. It is ‘BABCLOCK’. B allintemple A ughincurk B allintate C avanakill L urgana O utlacken C orlet K nockavannon
-
Homestead of the Church (619 acres) Field of Oats (260 acres) Homestead of the Tate (122 acres) Hollow of the Church (381 acres) Shin, Leg or Tree Trunk (177 acres) The Breast of the Hillside (321 acres) The Round Hill of the Monument (121 acres) The Hill of the Kid (746 acres)
The yellow areas on the map above show the location of St Malachy’s Chapel and Primary School and the graveyard. The green area represents St Luke’s Church of Ireland, the Old Graveyard and the rectory.
The Ballymoyer Road runs from the village of Whitecross for nearly 5 miles to the outskirts of Newtownhamilton. It is coloured red in the map to the (top) right. This small map shows where Ballymoyer is located.
The Synnott Family Sir Walter Synnott (1742 – 1821) settled in the parish of Ballymoyer in 1778. His family had originally been large landowners from Wexford but their lands were taken from them by the English Government. Before this they had been a wealthy family who owned lead mines and were successful in the linen industry. Before he became the landlord of Ballymoyer the lands were poor and there were very few trees and shrubs. He planted many trees and created good roads which still remain to this day.
In 1776 Sir Walter Synnott built Ballymoyer House in the townland of Ballintemple. In 1778 he was the High Sheriff of County Armagh and by the 1870’s the Synnotts owned 7321 acres of land. In 1901 the estate had passed through marriage to the Hart-Synnott family who presented it to the National Trust in 1937. The roads and glen are now owned by the National Trust (and which people would now know as the Ballymoyer Woodland walk). Here is a picture of the stately house owned by the Synnott family. It was built in 1776 and was lived in until 1938. The house had three storeys and a basement.
Walter Synnott married Jane Seton. They had three children Marcus, Walter and Maria. (Pictured here in the portrait above). Within the grounds of the old Ballymoyer graveyard can be found the graves of some of the Synnott family. One of the headstones reads like this one on the right.
Painted by Edmond Delaney (Former pupil of St Malachy’s, Ballymoyer).
The Book of Armagh and the McMoyer Family
By Lisa Devlin, Peter Mc Verry, Sean Toner, Elena Murphy, Fearghal Vallely, Cormac Murphy, Courteney Nugent, Laura Mc Grory and David Bell The Book of Armagh is a very important book which was written in Latin many years ago. It was owned by the Church of Armagh and is now in Trinity College in Dublin. It is a collection of manuscripts including a copy of the New Testament, ‘A Life of St Patrick, Patrick’s Confession, and the Life of St Martin of Tours’. It was once signed by Brian Boru who was the King of Ireland.
The person who was in charge of this book was a kind of local judge who might produce the book for sorting out disputes among people. The people involved would then have to touch its pages and take an oath. Its possessor in 1652 was Florence Mac Moyer.
Florence McMoyer and St Oliver Plunkett. In 1679 Roman Catholics were not allowed to practise their religion in Ireland. At that time, Oliver Plunkett was the Archbishop of Armagh. He decided that he would not obey the laws and he continued to preach and baptise people. Soon he was taken prisoner by the government and eventually was hung, drawn and quartered. Florence McMoyer was asked to go to England in 1680 to give evidence against St Oliver Plunkett because he was the keeper of the book. His evidence led to the death of Oliver Plunkett. When Mc Moyer went to England he needed money. He decided to pawn the book for five pounds sterling. He was never able to pay back this money and this was the last time he ever saw the precious book. This stone came from the home of the McMoyer family. The name of the McMoyer family is on this stone although it is hard to read it. On the right is the grave of Florence Mc Moyer.
The McMoyer Family The McMoyer family held in free tenancy the eight townlands of Aughincurk, Ballintate, Ballintemple, Cavanakill, Corlet, Lurgana, Knockavannon and Outlacken. These townlands make up the parish of Ballymoyer (or as people used to call it Ballawire). Picture of the McMoyer Stone
Florence McMoyer’s Grave
Richard Kennon (Ballymoyer Blacksmith 1825 – 1888)
Richard Kennon and his sons were blacksmiths in Ballymoyer for most of the 19th century. Richard was the great grandfather of Hugh Kennon who knows a lot of history about the Ballymoyer area. He sometimes comes into school to tell us what it was like long ago. Richard’s forge was situated at a site between our school and the chapel, near Mrs Delaney’s present classroom. His main job was making and shoeing horses and ponies. As his business grew he employed six men and kept two fires burning. The charge for making a pick, shovel and spade would be ten shillings (50p) and making and putting on four horse shoes would cost two shillings (10p). This was later increased to two shillings and sixpence, half a crown (121/2p). Richard was a skilled craftsman who also made a variety of tools, gates, pots, pans, cranes and rings for pigs noses. One of the gates which Richard made stood at the entrance to Boyle’s farm (at the junction of the Whiterock and Ballymoyer roads). This was where Richard and his wife lived. The gate which was very rusty was presented to our school in 2002 and was restored by pupils. It was then erected at the entrance to our school garden. There was a special opening ceremony. Mr Hugh Kennon and Mr Gerry Kelly from the Department of Education officially opened the gate on 12th November 2002.
Kennon Gate in the Snow
Hugh Cooney Poet There are stories from many years ago that people used to tell to each other. Here are some old ones that were passed on to us by older members of our community. ‘The Wee Fergie’ (By Peter James Mc Parland) When I was a pupil in Ballymoyer School in the 1930’s I was very interested in all sorts of machines. I was not really interested in horses and looked forward to the coming of the tractor as an easier way to do all those hard farmyard jobs.
The Official Opening
Poem by Hugh Cooney The Kennon’s famous forge is silent , No more the bellows roar. Good smiths and mighty men were they, Back in the days of yore. The Boyles and Cooneys too are gone, Both ancient families they. Along that lovely stretch of road, We travelled in our day. Hugh Cooney was born in the townland of Knockavannon around 1880. He was a farmer, a footballer, a poet, a writer and loved Irish traditional music. He wrote this poem about Kennon’s forge.
Stories and Folklore from Ballymoyer In 1939 the great inventor Harry Ferguson came with a Ferguson tractor and plough to give a demonstration of ploughing in what we knew as ‘The ten acre field’ beside ‘the Castle’. Being only ten years old I unfortunately was not allowed to go and see this demonstration – a great disappointment to me then and even now! A big crowd had gathered and all the young farmers were impressed; however many of the older ones doubted ‘these mechanical machines’. They thought that they might be too heavy for the soil and perhaps damage it! Harry Ferguson (pictured left) was a cousin of our neighbour John Strain. He was also related to Tommy King of Moor Farm. He was very keen to get one of his new tractors into our area and knew that most young farmers could not resist such a machine! My father Arthur McParland, bought his Ferguson TVO in 1951. Being a lifelong admirer of Harry Ferguson and his machinery, in 2006 I visited Harry Ferguson’s farm in Dromore, Co Down and saw the field from where he flew his plane. Whoever could have believed the advances in farm machinery over these past 70 years? Here is a copy of the bill that Arthur McParland paid for his Ferguson tractor in 1951. He bought it from Joshua White (Motor Engineer) in Armagh. (Given to us by Eamon McParland – Arthur’s son).
Stories of local interest (from the ‘Wee Laochra Man’)
A Woman with a Magical Ability Stories of local interest were often told. One such story tells of a local woman who lived close to our school who had the reputation of being able to “Blink” the good milk cows of her neighbours. She was supposed to have a strange magical power of being able to take away the ability of a neighbour’s good milking cow and transfer it to her own cow. Many farmers feared her strange ability. In the early 1900s a neighbour man borrowed my father’s pony and spring cart. He had to go to Armaghbreague to collect a man who could reverse the spell and restore his milking cow to her former self. The Great Stallion’s Fright Another story that is often told was about a man from Clady who owned a great stallion horse. He regularly took this stallion to a yard in Newry to “cover” mares. One night when he was returning home along the Ballymoyer Road, near the Dry Arch at the Ballintate Road, he met this very strange looking cat. The stallion reared up with fright and went totally berserk. He could not be controlled. The man made his way home but he was never able to bring his stallion back to Newry again. The stallion never got over the fright. (Horses are supposed to be very aware of unnatural occurrences).
Stories of local interest (from the ‘Wee Laochra Man’)
Fairy Men on their way to a battle An old man once told this story about a troop of fairy men who came onto Kennon’s Street with their little steeds. They wanted them shod. When asked what was on, they replied that they were going to fight a battle in Scotland. Many tales were also told about the ‘Banshee’ and the families that she followed.
The Dry Arch in Ballymoyer Woodland
Whitecross Creamery
By Cillian Murphy, Chloe Murphy, Aisling Canning, Oisin Cooney and James Murphy
Sir Horace Plunkett was a Member of Parliament and he thought it would be good to set up Co-Operative groups in Ireland. The Whitecross Co–Operative Agricultural and Dairy Society opened on Monday 3rd April 1899. It was one of the first six in Ireland. The Creamery was opened by Miss Synott from “Ballymoyer House” which most people called “The Castle.” Miss Synott had the biggest number of shares in the group and that was probably the reason that she was asked to open it. There were lots of visitors at the opening of the creamery. Crowds came from Newry, Bessbrook and Armagh. There were representatives from Belfast and Dublin. A man from Scotland visited and he bought twenty shares in the company. Cardinal Logue along with two priests from Loughgilly Parish visited the creamery in May 1899. They had a good look around and they were very impressed with the machinery, the handling of the milk and the making of the butter and cream. Cardinal Logue wrote a lovely letter to the manager Mr John McDermott. This is a copy of the letter.
Whitecross Creamery A letter received from Cardinal Logue complimenting the Whitecross Creamery in 1899 “Ara Coeli�, Armagh, 11th May 1899 Dear Sir, I beg to tender my sincere thanks to you, and through you to the members of the Whitecross Creamery Committee for the samples of butter and pasteurised cream which you have kindly sent me. I have tried both, and found them excellent. I was especially pleased with the butter, which in taste, colour and the evidence which it showed of skilful handling, spoke well for the future success of the creamery. I am also very grateful for the opportunity you have afforded me, at considerable inconvenience, of seeing the whole process of churning and butter making gone through. As I saw it for the first time, I was deeply interested and convinced that creameries such as that which you preside over, promise to open up a prosperous future for butter-making of the country. I am, dear sir, Yours faithfully, Michael Card. Logue.
Ballymoyer Bank Mr John Mc Dermott was the manager from 1899 until the mid 1920s. There was a Co–operative Poultry Society set up in January 1903. All sorts of poultry and eggs were bought and sold. A cart went around the local townlands twice a week and collected eggs. The two businesses were doing well. In five years there were 1,785,666 gallons of milk received at the creamery and 720,358 pounds of butter had been produced. Whitecross butter won prizes (two second prizes) at the London Show of the British Farmers’ Dairy Association. That was a great prize. In about 1938 Fane Valley Co-Operative Society (founded in 1904) bought the Whitecross Creamery and soon transferred the business to the newly opened Creamery at Altnamackin in the district of Newtownhamilton.
There was a bank started in Ballymoyer School in 1905. Its proper title was the Ballymoyer Credit Society. There was a president, a vice president, a treasurer and a secretary. Meetings were held in our school once a month on a Tuesday before the Newtown Fair. The committee would give people a loan or refuse them. The committee needed to know if the borrower would be able to pay back the money. Here are some of the requests for a loan. £6.00 to buy pigs £5.00 to buy two calves. £10.00 to keep on cattle £10.00 to keep on a cow £5.00 to buy seeds and a calf £15.00 to buy a horse £10.00 to keep on two ‘springing heifers’ All these loans were copied from the big ledger. (It was one of the bank’s account books that were held in a secure box which had to be locked). The interest rate on these loans was very high, (far higher than today) and some people could not afford to repay the loans. There wasn’t much money around in 1905 or in the following years.
Ballymoyer Woodland Walk The Woodland Walk is about three miles long. It runs alongside the Ballymoyer Road and then continues on the other side of the road into a lovely glen. There are two parts to the walk. The first part is about 1km long and is seen in the photograph below. It is very quiet and relaxing in this area.There is a small river that runs alongside the main path which leads under a bridge beside the Dry Arch. On the second part of the walk there is an old sweat house and an ice house. These were used in the old days to keep things cool so that they would not rot.
Start of Ballymoyer Walk
There is also a very steep valley and lots of different kinds of trees such as Douglas Firs, Beech and Oaks, as well as Lime, Sweet Chestnut and Yews. There are even some badgers’ setts which you need to walk around so as not to disturb them. Near the Ballymoyer Walk is ‘Ballymoyer Old Church and graveyard’.
The First Part of the Walk
It was built between 1625-1649 but was not finished at that time. It was not roofed until 1775. Inside the church there is a large fireplace which is between the two windows. There are old headstones in the graveyard but only one has a date on it which reads ‘1713’. Ballymoyer Old Church and Graveyard
Pupils Involved in the Project
Back row - Laura Mc Grory, Courteney Nugent, Lisa Devlin, Elena Murphy, Anna Mc Verry Front Row - Sean Toner, David Bell, Cormac Murphy, Fearghal Vallely, Peter Mc Verry
Bessbrook Mill
Compiled by pupils from St Joseph’s PS, Bessbrook
Bessbrook is situated forty miles from Belfast and three miles north-west of Newry. The site of the spinning mill in Bessbrook first came to the ownership of Sir Toby Caulfield between 1620 and 1650. It lay derelict until 1750 when the Pollock family showed an interest and bought the lease over in 1750. By 1752 they had established a bleaching business. The Pollock family owned a modest woollen industry in Bessbrook and the land in the immediate vicinity. This was then purchased by Mr Joseph Nicholson who erected the first power flax spinning mill in Ireland.
Bessbrook got its name after Elizabeth or Bess Nicholson wife of Joseph Nicholson whose family had carried on the linen business in the district from 1806 until 1845. The word “brook” is a stream that runs through the outskirts of the village. The village lies in the townland of Cloughervan. The Irish name for Bessbrook has been taken from this and is “Cloch Fhuaráin.” Modern Irish has suggested the name “An Sruthán” which literally means, ‘the stream’ however the former would be accepted as the original and more traditional translation of the village name.
Bessbrook was founded by John Grubb Richardson in 1845 as a “model village”. It is similar to the model village of Bournville founded by the famous chocolate making Cadbury family near Birmingham. The village of Bessbrook was based on the philosophy of the “three p’s”: there should never be a pawn shop or a public house and consequently no need for police. To this day, there has been no public houses, no pawn shops and although there is a police station, it is outside of the original boundaries of the village. Model villages were built by industrialists who provided housing in the vicinity of such industry for its workers, away from the larger cities. In the case of Bessbrook this industry was its famous Linen Mill. At one time, Bessbrook produced some of the finest linen in the world and The Mill was the major source of employment in the village. When the Richardson’s took over Bessbrook in 1845 they began to build their model village around The Mill. At this time, the village consisted of about 20 houses. These were constructed to cater for The Mill’s workforce. The houses were of a high quality and are still inhabited today. The newer houses were built from granite from the firm’s quarry in nearby Flynntown. They were a reasonable size and most have a garden, front and rear. James’ Street (now known as O’ Donoghue Park), Frederick Street and College Square were built for the workers during the linen boom. Charlemont Square was built in the 1850s. In 1863 John Grubb Richardson had an estate in Co Tyrone which he had inherited. He sold this and became the owner of the works in the village of Bessbrook and became Lord Charlemont in Camlough.
The Mill Lord Charlemont made his house there at the grounds of Derrymore, meaning “the place of the great oaks.” In 1817 there were no looms in the Nicholson’s premises. Steam replaced water power and the power loom came to stay. At least one power loom was purchased in 1852 with others added in 1853. At the time of all these early developments in Bessbrook Mill’s history, the old Dublin and Belfast Junction Railway Company erected the Craigmore Viaduct (locally referred to as the Eighteen Arches) and it is the highest in Ireland. This made a complete railway connection between the cities, facilitating the transport of Bessbrook’s Linen. However in 1839 The Mill was burnt and the place appeared to have been idle until 1845. The working conditions in The Mill were very good and probably one of the best in any comparable industry. The hours were somewhat shorter and production higher than those continental firms. The Bessbrook and Newry tramway opened in 1884 and in 1866 the Bessbrook Spinning Company took over the tram line. The line which was over three miles long, ran through the woods and the viaduct and past the factory at Craigmore. This tram line provided vital transport to work for many of The Mill workers from the wider Newry area. Electricity for the tramway was generated at Millvale about one mile from Bessbrook. Such was the importance of the tram in the local people’s lives, a song was written in its honour. This song, simply entitled “The Bessbrook Tram,” recalls some of the people who worked on the tramline and helped operate it. The song also recalled some of the sentiment and feeling of the
passengers.
“It runs from Newry to Bessbrook, in sunshine, snow and rain, The fare is only tenpence, but they say it’s going up again And if the fare goes up again, you’ll hear the people shout Only for me and the likes of me, your tram would be down and out!” (This is sung to the air of McNamara’s Band) 1 During the four decades after the establishment of Bessbrook Mill nearly 700 houses were built. In 1890 the population of the village numbered some 3000, while the company employed 4500 people at Bessbrook and its other factories. The range of facilities existing in the village was far in advance of what might have been found in contemporary villages and small towns. A newly built schoolhouse that consisted of two teachers, one male and one female, was built in the village. The following year saw education appear on the account books of the factory as an expenditure. There was very little change until World War II when part of the vegetable gardens were taken over by the local council to build “The Gardens’’. This building work was continued after the war and the work on The Gardens were finished. The Gardens is still in existence as a residential housing area. No other changes were made until the late 1960s when James’ Street and Frederick Street were knocked down to make way for O’Donoghue Park. 1
Gorman, J, “In The Shadow Of The Arches – Stories of Newry and the Surrounding Areas”
The Old School House
Around the beginning of the Troubles (1970-71) the army needed a substantial base in South Armagh and Bessbrook Mill had virtually ceased to function as a linen business, so the former linen mill was requisitioned by the British Army. Although the army had re-designed the interior of The Mill buildings to suit its needs, the sense of the old mill is still there. The major changes to the landscape were the building of the high steel walls around the perimeter and the demolition of The Mill's two chimneys.
On 25th June 2007 the Army left Bessbrook Mill after more than thirty years of occupying the building and land (on the eastern side of Derrymore Road) which was used as a heliport. Bessbrook is a village which is deeply rooted in history. Its physical and social fabric has remained largely intact. Many of its buildings have been listed, consequently it was designated as a Conservation Area in October of 1983.
Bessbrook Mill by Shona Hawthorne
Memories of the Mill Raymond Kimbley I had about five jobs in The Mill. I started off racking yarn, it was wee trays with needles on it and you got the bobbins with the racks sticking up. It went up to the reeling loft and the women up there would spin it in a big wheel and the process went on from there. You did not have to wear a uniform, you just wore your own clothes. When you came in first thing in the morning, the ground was wet and you had to take your shoes off and work all day bare footed. There was a lot of steam. It was very wet and it was very dangerous too because if you stood on the trays of needles they would have gone right through your foot. You would get about ten minutes off for your break. There was no wee room set aside to have break, there was nothing like a TV. I sat while I drank my tea and there was dust, steam and grease surrounding me. There was a canteen outside The Mill where you would eat your lunch. Dinner time was the only time I could leave The Mill during the day, you only got out for an hour. We used to play football by the Roller Pond, I think it is Father Cullen Park now. There was a raft and we used to go and play by the raft. Once the horn went off we rushed to get back in and if you didn’t get back on time you would be locked out and sent home - then you would miss your day’s wages!
The Wages Board at the Mill
Yes, men and women did work in the same floor. I worked in the spinning room, you went in early on Monday morning and when you turned the machines on the steam would fill up the room you were in. It would start to rise at about 10:00am in the morning. It was very steamy before it cleared. It was that noisy you would have to shout to talk; you would have to go up close to the person beside you and shout in their ear. Then when you went home you were still shouting. I’m not sure about the small mill. I haven’t been in it before, it was just across from the big mill. I think the small mill, the weaving mill, is now County Carpets. People from all over South Armagh came to work in The Mill. Lorries went out early in the morning to collect the workers, there must have been about four or five lorries that went out. It was good craic working in The Mill. That’s what kept most of the workers going. There was always someone walking up and down behind us to make sure we did our work and did not mess around.
Arthur Ruddy I went to work in Bessbrook Mill when I was fourteen years old. I had just left school and most of the boys were already working. Flax, in like a loosely twisted-cord form, went through a trough which was filled with boiling water – the steam rising out of the trough softened the flax material. It then went through two separate rollers going at ‘one yard per minute’ to the second set of rollers going at ‘ten yards per minute ‘~that meant that particular yarn was not stretched ten times. That was known as drafting. If you worked in the spinning room it would have been equivalent to working in a sauna (with the door closed of course) for want of another description. There was a series of different jobs such as spinners, doffers, oilers, people who tied bands – there are sweepers, cleaners, and even people who looked after all the waste material products. Then about 1960, they were having great difficulty in getting girls to work in The Mill as you would imagine girls didn’t want jobs that had too much dirt. Having said that, before they left The Mill, they were all spotless as they all washed themselves before leaving. They wore rubber aprons which meant that only their legs were exposed to any dirt and as most of them were in their bare feet, no dirt would be on their clothes. But there was never any positive training and sadly some girls had more difficulty in settling in.
Memories of the Mill Then the trade became more difficult with the introduction of synthetics. Cotton became the big thing and the Mills started to slow down all over the place, not just in Bessbrook.
The one great problem, I think, was the noise – a terrible thumping and rattling all day long and some people did have problems and their hearing was badly impaired. But they were really great people.
When I started working in The Mill my wages were 33 shillings per week and then I was on £14.00. That was massive money then as there were men working with me who were getting £6.00 per week. Then they started a “Bonus Scheme” giving me between £14 and £16 per week. I was giving my mother £5.00 per week- almost a man’s weekly wage at that time.
We played football in the Pond Field…we got an hour for our dinner and we played for three quarters of an hour and came back to work soaking with sweat and into an area of 90°f and the sweat was still sticking to us when we got off that night-Crazy!
Everyone was very friendly with each other and in fact some of them to this day are great friends of mine.
(Taken from Gorman, J, “In The Shadow Of The Arches – Stories of Newry and the Surrounding Areas” )
William Treanor and Mary Vint I worked on the main floor where the weaving looms were. There were some accidents, when the shuttles would fly out of the looms they would hit people. Most people who worked in The Mill were friends and neighbours. There were three shifts: a day shift 8am -5pm, an early shift 7am-3pm and a late shift 3pm-11pm. There were many departments such as spinning, winding, weaving and the cloth office. They made linen and other cloth. There was damask weaving and plain weaving. Some of the damask weaving went to countries all over the world. I started work when I was 15. I was the magazine filler. Then I was taught the weaving. We left school when we were 15 and most went to factories or if you lived in Bessbrook you tried to get a job in The Mill. My sister and brother went together if they were on the same shift. Jack Black was the boss. The old Mill was Bessbrook Spinning Company. It was opened by the Richardson’s and employed thousands from all over Newry and surrounding areas. People travelled on the Bessbrook Tram. The Spinning Company closed and the Ulster Weaving Company opened in the 1970’s. This was The Mill I worked in. I started in 1977 and Ulster Weaving closed in 1986. I worked there until it closed. Jack Black, Jack Adams and Ken Gordon were the bosses.
Artefacts from the Mill
Barney Osborne John Grubb Richardson became the sole owner in 1863 – 1878 when it became the property of the Bessbrook Spinning Company. The Mill wasn’t haunted, nobody died in The Mill. Lots of people would have worked on the same floor at the same time. On the Queen Mary, when she made her maiden voyage, there were table cloths in it from The Mill and a lot of them went to big hotels in London such as “ The Savoy.”
If you came in late you would have to go through the office and you were spoken to about it. There were more women than men working in The Mill. They worked ten hours per day and got 1 hour off for dinner. You were allowed a fortnight off in the summer time and The Mill closed down for the July fortnight and probably Christmas but other than that there weren’t many holidays.
Olive Grant I was 14 when I started working in The Mill. I worked from 8:00am 6:00pm (and not a second later!) I worked in The Mill from 1954-1962, for eight years. When I left I was 22, just before I got married. In The Mill I got paid £1 and 10 shillings a week which is £1.50 a week. In The Mill I was a back minder, that was half-way through the process of making Linen. I had to refill the cards. The process started in the Tow Room and ended in the Reeling Loft. Now the product was completed (the linen). My best memories were making new friends and some of the friends I made are lifetime friends. My best friend (from The Mill) and I, both just turned 70 years old. I also have another memory, that I occasionally got sacked for bossing people about and shouting but I always got my job back and was reinstated very quickly.
Nan Mc Govern I started work when I was fourteen years old, way back in the fifties and I was on £3.00 a week. There was a big mill and a small mill, I worked in the small mill and there I had lots of jobs. To get there I had to walk. At work the bosses were very strict.
The bosses were very strict, so you would be afraid to miss a day’s work and maybe lose your job. It was very difficult to get a job in those days so if you worked in the Mill and had a job there you considered yourself very lucky. I used to give my mother most of my wages every week and only got a little for myself.
Artefacts from the Mill
We got up every morning very early to get ready for work. The Mill horn sounded at 7.50am to hurry everyone into work. I could hear the horn from where I lived in the Green Road. If we weren’t there on time, the gates would be locked and we would lose our day’s pay. That might sound great to get a day off work, but if I had went home and told my mother that I missed work, I would have been in big trouble!
You would have known lots of people from your own area who worked there and you would also have met people you didn’t know before then. Either way you made great friends and some people even met their husbands and wives in it. My brother met his wife in the Mill. He didn’t know her before he got a job in it, but they were working in the same department and ended up getting married a few years later.
Daniela is holding a piece of original Jacquard material made in The Mill. Jordan is holding a modern Irish linen tea towel. Jacquard material was originally handcrafted. It was a French man who designed the machine, which was later perfected in Bessbrook. Pictured Right: This is a sketch of Jacquard material which has been drawn by Emma and Laura.
The Bessbrook Tram My name is Oliver Morrison I’m the manager of the Tram. Although it’s slow in motion it’s the best Tram in the Land. Jack Mc Kelvey blows the horn passing by Muldrews, A credit to all Bessbrook boys, is Oliver Morrison’s Tram. Chrous Tra La La La La La La La `O` Tra La La La La O`Tra La La La – La O`Tra La La La! Tra La La La La la La La La La La There is a man called Tommy Finlay he’s the terror for the booze , He gets it every morning when passing by Muldrews He gets it every morning before he breaks his fast, If he doesn’t get it in Billy Muldrew’s , he gets it in the First and Last Chorus There’s a man called William James Bradley, he’s the ganger on the line, He’s working Saturday and Sunday, to keep the tram on time He’s working Saturday and Sunday to keep the jigger on, But Mc Kelvey says he’ll scuttle her, going round by Ackason’s pond! Chorus There’s a man called Tommy Anderson ,he’s a conductor on the tram, He punches all the tickets and he helps you all he can. If you heard him in the summertime, when lifting the prams, He says the married weemin (women) are the terror of the tram. Chorus It runs from Newry to Bessbrook in sunshine ,snow and rain, The fare is only ten pence, but they say it’s going up again And if the fare goes up again, you’ll hear the people shout Only for me and the likes of me, your tram would be down and out.
The Ballad of the Camlough River Know ye the fame of the bright little river, Which floweth through Bessbrook from moorland and lea ? Between blue waving flax – flowers and rushes which quiver, He runs his short course from the lake to the sea His sire is the mountain of Camlough up towering, His mother-the lake in the valley below; His cradle–grey rocks with red heather a-flowering And gay golden gorse at the source of his flow. And Mount Keggal the wolf, and Mount Sturgan the lion, From bare rugged breasts pour his sustenance down; While blue in the distance Slieve Gullion on high; On the crest of the ridge is his glory and crown. Not a stream in all Erin gives half the employment (For its size )-since our Island rose green from the foam; Nor a stream (For its size) which yields fuller enjoyment To the thousands who make his valley their home. His labours commencing at Camlough’s wide village, With threshing, and scutching, and “targing of tow;” He merrily ripples through meadow and tillage To the four falls of Bessbrook beyond and below. At Bessbrook he screeches, he roars and he thunders Now cold amid turbines, now scalding in steam; When after creating ten dozen of wonders, Says “goodbye”, and rolls onward-the tight little stream. At Millvale he seizes, with watery fingers, Forked lightning, and binds it to waggon and car; And by Millvale’s soft woods you might deem that he lingers, While watching the merchandise drawn from afar. Mid his many strange antics-‘tis strangest that no one Is ever quite sure when he changes his voice, For at Camlough his ripples ring sweet “Garryowen”,
While at Millvale they brattle “the Protestant boys”. Then on to Craigmore, under viaduct arches, (the old Irish name, meaning “Rocks in the wood;”) Thence with wonders repeated he rapidly marches To the last of his labours in freshet and flood. At Moorvale the last of those labours is ended, Ten bowshots beyond, and behold him no more! His current with salt of the ocean is blended, And mingled with billows which beat on the shore. Dear river of Camlough, thy springtide primroses We’ve gathered in childhood, as men gathered gold; Youth and maid, by thy banks, we have plucked summer posies, While shy tales of love have been whispered and told. In autumn we’ve seen thee mid ferns growing yellow, In winter ’neath bitter winds icy and drear; And yet in all seasons we find thy voice mellow, Whilst sometimes lost voices thou bringst to our ear. So then loftier bards, with a loftier ditty, May boast them of Dublin, Belfast, or Armagh; But we will sing pledge to our own little city, To Camlough Mavourneen and Erin Go Bragh. We are told that beyond death’s dark bars is a River Of water of life flowing forth from the Throne, On whose banks Christ’s redeemed, for ever and ever, May mingle and meet when God gathers His own. Be it ours when we kneel in contrition for error To breathe for each other the penitent prayerThat in his own time, freed from tears and from terror, And parting and pain, He may gather us there.
Pupils Involved in the Project
Back row L to R: Aodhan Dalton, James Dynes, Sean Vint, Chloe Morgan, Chloe McVerry, Orlaith McEneaney, Mikey Cunningham, Emily Ward. 3rd Row L to R: Darren Cassidy, Michael Lilburn, Alana Treanor, Emmet Osborne, Daniela Janikova, Laura Reavey, Steven Keenan. 2nd Row L to R: Emma Travers, Sarah O’Callaghan, Annie Doran, Shona Hawthorne, Jordan Hughes, Martha Mulliagan, Lee McKeown. Front Row L to R: Bryan Fleming, Chloe Doherty, Niamh Malone, Turlough McGivern, Adam Matthews, Steven Duffy.
Derramore House Pupils from St Peter’s PS, Cloughreagh
Derramore House is situated in one hundred acres of Derramore Woods, near the populated area known as Cloughreagh.
The Act of Union was drafted in the drawing room of the house in 1800. The Act was to unite the Kingdom of Great Britain and the Kingdom of Ireland. A familiar sight today, the Union Flag was created as a consequence of the signing of the Act of Union. The house was sold in 1810 when Corry moved to Dublin; it was later acquired by the Young family who sold it to the Smyths who in turn sold the land to the Richardson family who had acquired the neighbouring land.
The land was owned by the O’Hanlons, whose property stretched from Armagh to Dundalk. The land owned by the O’Hanlons was later much reduced, and was eventually forfeited during the reign of James in 1607. Derrymore passed from the Bagnals to the Needhams, Earls of Kilmorey and ultimately to the Corry family. Derramore House was built between 1776 and 1787 by Sir Isaac Corry who represented Newry in the Irish House of Commons and was also to become Chancellor of the Exchequer. The surrounding parklands were designed and laid out by John Sutherland, a landscape architect who was one of the most celebrated disciples of Capability Brown.
Bessbrook Mill
Bomb Threat The Richardson family was to go on to build Bessbrook Mill and many of the houses in Bessbrook for its workforce. In 1952, Mr J.S.W. Richardson donated the house and his estate to the National Trust. The house is available for tours most of the year. The house is still partly occupied and some of the children who live in the house attended Saint Peter’s Primary School up to 2008. The banner of Bessbrook Star of Hope Temperance Loyal Orange Lodge 927, depicts Derramore House. Each year the grounds of Derramore House host Newry Agricultural Show which features horticulture, cattle, horses, sheep and goats, as well as special events throughout the day and many novelty items. The house is a single storey U shaped building with a basement. It features unique local thatching on its roof using Turkish Reed. During the 1970s, terrorists planted a bomb near Derramore House; the occupant at the time discovered the bomb. He was afraid that the bomb would explode and damage the house that held so much history. He knew it was dangerous but he lifted the bomb and carried it away from the house to make sure that the house was going to be safe, knowing that he was putting himself in danger.
Walking tour through Derramore Estate
Pupils Involved in the Project Gatehouse at the entrance to Derramore
Top Row Left – Rebecca Magee, Aoife Fearon, Chloe McCabe, Laura Armstrong, Kenneth Mathers, Nathan McCaffrey, Ciara Flinnighin, Shannon Haw, Ronan Hughes. Middle Row Left – Sean Mcloughlin, Dean Watson, Colm Hollywood, Ryan Hughes, Ciara Jones, Aimee Brady, James Ferris, James McLoughlin, James McCann, Tiarna Ferris. Bottom Row – Left – Maeve Talbot, Ronan Carroll, Conor Greene, Olivia McElroy, Niamh Canning, Eimear Wright, Aoife Millar, Caitlin McShane, Shannon Murphy. Missing – Amy McParland, Darren Hanna
Craigmore Viaduct
Compiled by Year 10 pupils from St Paul’s HS, Bessbrook
Our class is 1078 and we attend St Paul’s High School, Bessbrook. As part of our community heritage project, we decided to choose Craigmore Viaduct or the Eighteen Arches as it is better known in this locality. We chose the Viaduct because we believe it is an outstanding and very beautiful piece of engineering which is right on our doorstep. Normally, when something is built through a valley, it disrupts and sometimes ruins the landscape for ever but the Eighteen Arches are an example of man and nature in perfect harmony and proves how we can enhance our local environment by our engineering and building rather than ruin it. During our study we paid several visits to the Viaduct and spoke to many people who have a real interest in this monument. Some we spoke to loved it because of their interest in engineering, but most of our interviewees had a love of the viaduct because of their love of trains and the railway. Part of our study was an attempt to locate the site of the old tram line which ran under the highest of the arches and we took with us a camcorder to record our attempts to find it. It is now a path which is used by walkers; though as we discovered it is badly in need of a clean-up because quite a lot of rubbish has accumulated along the way. There is also a river which runs alongside the path and at times the path gets quite mucky, so
it would be a nice project for the Council to improve the path and clean up the rubbish along the way. The first time we stood under the highest of the arches, we were struck by the sheer grandeur of the viaduct. Some of the pupils who have been lucky enough to stand under the Eiffel Tower said it reminded them in a way of this experience and we got a chance to view up close, for ourselves, the beauty of the arches and the workmanship that had gone into the construction. We also were interested to know how men could have got up so high to build it since it would have been very difficult to build a scaffold or to construct a support scaffold to take the weight of the span before it became complete. Building a bridge is a much more complicated craft than any other type of construction. It is very dangerous and every measurement has to be perfect. The fact that eighteen of these were built in perfect line with one another, at different heights and terrain underfoot was a magnificent achievement and something which has impressed us greatly. The bridge was designed by John Benjamin Mac Neill, an eminent Irish civil engineer, with construction beginning in 1849 for the Dublin and Belfast Junction Railway. Ireland in 1849 was a very poor country with the potato famine just coming to an end, immigration having robbed the nation of a million of its people and another million having starved to death.
However, the second Industrial Revolution was also in its early years and an air of confidence hung over the engineering industry with great advances in steam travel in terms of railway and shipping. With the new interest in this type of travel, many railway companies sprung up around the country and new railway lines had to be built. The company which built the Viaduct was called the Dublin and the Belfast Junction Railway. Dublin and the Belfast Junction Railway Dublin and the Belfast Junction Railway was a railway company in Ireland. The company was incorporated in 1845 and opened in stages between 1849 and 1853. On 6 January 1852 Portadown became a junction, when the northern section of the D&BJct was opened between Portadown and Mullaghglass (about one and a half miles beyond Goraghwood). The bridging of the valley at Bessbrook delayed the running of through trains to just north of Drogheda until 1852. The Boyne Viaduct at Drogheda was not built until 1854-1855, at a cost of ÂŁ124,000, to the design of Sir John Macneill, who was the consulting engineer for the D&BJct. The Dublin and the Belfast Junction Railway line from Drogheda to Portadown connected the Ulster Railway Portadown to Belfast line,
with the Dublin and Drogheda Railway Dublin to Drogheda line, to form the main line between Dublin and Belfast. The Northern Railway of Ireland was formed in 1875 by a merger of the D&D with the Dublin and the Belfast Junction Railway. The Viaduct links the railway line from Belfast to Dublin and is a very important arterial route between the two cities. Three separate railway companies constructed the line. The Ulster Railway began construction in 1839 of a railway line between Belfast and Lisburn, which was extended in stages as far as Clones by 1863. The Dublin and Drogheda Railway constructed the line between Dublin and the town of Drogheda. These two lines were connected by the Dublin and Belfast Junction Railway, which connected the Dublin section with the Belfast section at Portadown. In 1876, these three companies, together with the Irish North Western Railway merged to form the Great Northern Railway (Ireland) (GNRI). In 1921, Ireland underwent partition, with six counties in the north-east becoming Northern Ireland and remaining as part of the United Kingdom, while the remainder formed the Irish Free State. This led to an international border crossing between Newry and Dundalk, which caused significant disruption with trains forced to stop at stations on either side of the border for immigration checks and controls. This disruption only eased in 1947 with the opening of facilities for immigration and customs checks at Amiens Street Station and Great Victoria Street Station. At the same time, the GNRI made its Belfast-Dublin services
non-stop with the launch of the Enterprise Express. The GNRI was nationalised by the governments of the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland in 1953 as the Great Northern Railway Board, before this was split between the Ulster Transport Authority and Córas Iompair Éireann. This led to a running down of rail services in Northern Ireland, with the main line to Belfast closed in 1965. This re-opened again in 1969, with the newly formed Northern Ireland Railways now responsible for running the railway in Northern Ireland. This body purchased new locomotives and rolling stock to restore the Belfast-Dublin Enterprise service as well as local services using new diesel multiple units.
England in the 1820s he met engineer Thomas Telford who inspired him to become a civil engineer. Indeed, he became Telford’s chief assistant for 10 years, eventually succeeding Telford as chief engineer on the massive London-Holyhead road project.
Sir John Benjamin Mac Neill FRS
During the late 1830s and early 1840s, MacNeill focused on his native Ireland. He worked on various railway projects, including the Dublin and Drogheda Railway, including plans to extend the railway beyond Drogheda towards Portadown. Much of Ireland’s modern railway network still follows routes he proposed. For example, the Dublin-Belfast railway line follows the line of the Dublin and Drogheda Railway along the coast (MacNeill was knighted in 1844 following its completion) and many of its impressive original structures remain (eg: the 98ft high Boyne Viaduct built between 1851 and 1855 near Drogheda, the Craigmore Viaduct and the nearby MacNeill's Egyptian Arch).
As previously stated, the Viaduct was designed by Sir John Benjamin Mac Neill FRS (1793 - 2 March 1880) who was an eminent Irish civil engineer of the 19th century, closely associated with Thomas Telford. His most notable projects were railway schemes in Ireland. He was born in Mountpleasant near the town of Dundalk, County Louth, Ireland. MacNeill started initially as a surveyor and during a trip to
Funerary monument, Brompton Cemetery, London
After Telford’s death in 1834, MacNeill established his own consultancy, based in London and Glasgow, and turned his attention towards railways – his first projects were freight schemes in the Scottish coal and ironfields near Wishaw and Motherwell. He was also consulting engineer at Grangemouth Docks and for various Scottish canal projects.
MacNeill was also a noted teacher of civil engineering (his pupils included Sir Joseph Bazalgette), and in 1842 he was appointed the first Professor of the Practice of Engineering at Trinity College Dublin, a post he held for 10 years.
He was involved with harbour improvements in his birthplace town of Dundalk in the early 1850s, but was not averse to the occasional overseas commission. In 1855, he helped survey part of a route for a railway line linking Europe to India, participating in an expedition to the valley of the River Euphrates. Closer to home, however, as Chief Engineer of the Belfast and County Down Railway (founded in 1846), he was responsible for crossing the marshy estuary of the River Quoile (the first bridge was constructed of timber piles driven into the riverbed) to bring the line to Downpatrick in March 1859 (part of the line is still operational from the town’s railway museum). Soon after, in April 1860, MacNeill was appointed engineer of the Londonderry and Lough Swilly Railway, intended to link Lough Foyle and Lough Swilly across the Inishowen Peninsula in north Donegal. It was around this period that the Victorians’ enthusiasm for railways began to wane, and the Lough Swilly Company was one of many that rarely made a profit. This was disastrous for MacNeill as many of his commissions were to be rewarded through share dividends on any profits.With his income dwindling, MacNeill became impoverished and – after a fire destroyed his home - he moved to London. He later became blind, dying at his son's house in Cromwell Road, south-west London on 2 March 1880. A commemorative plaque was unveiled on 20 July 2001 at his (previously) unmarked grave in
Brompton Cemetery in London. When we discovered how such a great man died, blind and in poverty, we felt it was a great shame that he should end his days in this way but the Viaduct will serve as a lasting reminder of the great work he did. The bridge was formally opened in 1852. It spans the valley of Camlough River. The viaduct consists of 18 arches of 60 ft span, the highest being 126ft, making Craigmore the highest viaduct in Ireland. It is around a quarter of a mile long and was constructed from granite stone blocks from the nearby Goraghwood Quarry, which for many years supplied ballast to the Dublin & Belfast Junction Railway’s lines. The Dublin-Belfast railway line crosses the bridge.
Searching for the Tram Line On a crisp January morning 1078 set off to locate the tram line which once went under the Craigmore Viaduct. From our interview with Frank McCabe and Eddie McKee, a railway enthusiast, we knew that it went under the arch at one of its highest points, so this was a good clue. Frank McCabe also recalled how he had travelled as a child on the tram line, though Mr. McKee only travelled once by tram and as a baby in arms. We had the picture to the right as a guide to help us. We got the picture from Bessbrook Library. The path seen in the picture follows the direction taken by the tram line. We were hoping to see some remains of the old tram line and perhaps even locate the remains of a tram that used to travel along that line. We know that one of the old trams is lying in a field on Sturgan Brae, though in recent years it has deteriorated rapidly. The picture proved to be a great help because we were able to locate the path which now takes the place of the tram line, very quickly. The path is passable still, though it is in need of refurbishment. We found out also that the tramway was constructed between Newry and Bessbrook for the carriage of coal and flax from the wharves to the mills, as well as the down traffic of
manufactured goods; the abundant water power available offering exceptional advantages for the line being worked electrically. In the construction of the line the following conditions had to be met. Ten trains were to be run in each direction per day, providing for a daily traffic each way of 100 tons of minerals and goods, and capable of dealing with 200 tons in any single day, in addition to the passenger traffic :- the electrical locomotive to be capable of drawing a gross load of 18 tons on the up-journey, in addition to the tare of the car itself, and its full complement of passengers, at an average speed of 6 miles per hour, and a load of 12 tons at an average speed of 9 miles per hour. The contract for the construction of the line was of a rather special character: the company agreed to place the line entirely at the disposal of Dr. Edward Hopkinson, to whom its construction had been entrusted for a period of time, and to purchase the electrical plant at a fixed sum, when the above conditions had been complied with, and it had been shown that the cost of working as evidenced by six months' trial did not exceed the cost of steam traction on a similar line. The work was commenced in November, 1884, and the line opened for traffic in October, 1885; it was formally taken over by the company, as having fulfilled the conditions of the contract, in the following April.
This photograph (below) which is very rare, was taken of Bessbrook Tram Station when it was in operation. It was given to us by Eddie McKee. If you look closely, you can see Bessbrook Mill in the distance.
The tramway continued in operation until 1948. In our research, we found this very interesting account of the very last journey the tram made.
Last Run on the Bessbrook Tram One local reporter shared the last tram run to Bessbrook, as it set out from the Edward Street terminus in January 1948, with a young boy, and one man and one woman. This is his story: In answer to his query, Mrs Hannah J Copeland replied that departure time was five thirty. ‘You mustn’t be on the tram often or you’d know the time she goes?’ ‘No. I’ve never been on it before and I’m all my life in Newry’, I answered. ‘Well, you’ll never be on it again’, the man cut in, ‘For this is the last.’ He waited for a reaction. Then he continued, ‘We’re from Craigmore and she goes past the door. When she goes, we’ll have nothing.’ His wife was in the spirit for reminiscence. ‘I could cry this night. I am on this last run, and I well mind being on the first. I was a wee girl sitting on my father’s knee.’ I sought for suitable words of reassurance. ‘Sure they’ll likely give you a bus?’ ‘They likely will. But they’ll have to give us a road first!’ Her husband concurred. ‘ There’s forty or fifty families up in Craigmore and now we’re nowhere. Don’t know what’ll come of us.’
Two more men, John Meeks and William Barr boarded. The conductor, Tommy Anderson joined our group. Someone recognised the young chap as a Master Johnson. Of the newcomers, Davy Burns was the most expansive. ‘Ah mind when the fare to Newry was only tuppence. That was before the Bessbrook ones all wore boots!’ he added, enigmatically. There was good craic on the final tram from Newry at night. Everybody talking. If you opened yer mouth too wide you might get a clout of a half-pint bottle! If you complained of thirst, you might get offered an acid drop. The morning tram was even noisier. Full of girls going to the mill, and them all singing as like as not.’ He was enjoying himself. ‘They’d ask if you liked it. “You’re not good,” I’d say, “but give us another verse anyway”. Off they’d go, laughing and singing. Them was good times but now they’re gone. There’ll be no fun like that on the buses.’ The lights dimmed, indicating that the car was slowing to a stop. ‘End of the line’, the Conductor called to the Copelands. Was it said with irony, I wondered. Goodbyes and good lucks were exchanged. They had petitioned the Directors of the Mill for a reprieve but with little optimism. At Millvale along the line, our last passenger, bar myself, Jack Cowan got off. Tommy Anderson told me the story of the two Brook men one time approaching the tram. ‘Are you going on the tram?’ asked the first. ‘No’, replied the other, one Willie Bradley. ‘I’m in a hurry today. I’ll walk it!’
At the terminus, the foreman concurred. ‘It’s sad but it had to happen. She’s too slow,’ he added. Sheltering from the icy wind, awaiting the return tram to Newry, I had time to reflect on the Bessbrook/Newry tram’s history. It had opened with a flourish just sixty three years before in September 1885 and only two years after the Irish Tramways Act that enabled its construction. Its primary purpose was the conduct to Newry Port of the products of the Bessbrook Spinning Mill and the carriage of raw materials in the opposite direction. Michael Faraday had only recently made his great electrical discoveries. It was less than four years since the world had had its first electric tramway. Electric traction with the third rail system was developed by Siemens and Halske and shown at the Berlin Exhibition of 1879.
It was expected the Bessbrook tram would haul 28,000 tons of product a year. An ingenious innovation was incorporated in the local system, the flangeless wheel and shoulder rail construction of Mr Henry Barcroft of the Glen in Newry. This enabled the wagons to be used on the rail or on road, as desired. This was a unique world development. Another advantage was the ability to carry passengers too. At its maximum the driving car carried a load of 56 tons and thirty four passengers at a speed of 12 m.p.h. A 56 H.P. turbine made at Belfast fed the two dynamos via the mid-rail system. Yet at all road crossings, primarily for safety reasons, an
long-trousered and becapped, movie bound to Newry. Up at the front, girls joked with the Conductor, and from the rear floated the strains of the current croon sensation - ‘How are things in Gloccamara?’ - not liltingly as Davy Burns might recall, but ‘swooningly crooned’ - you know what I mean! And so I ended my journey on the last tram to Newry. The Brook ones would tell you it was the longest tram in the world, because the track looped at both termini. My lasting impression was sympathy with Willie Bradley’s complaint - maybe it was ‘too slow’. Conclusion
overhead wire was substituted for the rail conductor. My reverie was interrupted by the conversation buzz arising from the queue at the corner of the Square, awaiting transport to Newry. This was a different crowd entirely from that whose camaraderie and bonhomie I had so recently shared. Modern youth, self-possessed and self-assured, dressed in nylon macs and slouch hats with fur-lined bootees, not the peaked caps, and shawls and aprons of my recent companions. There were boys with girlfriends, a soldier going back from leave, and a gang of nippers,
We in 1078 would like to thank all those who helped in any way to make our Heritage Project come together. We would particularly like to thank Mr. Eddie McKee who provided us with many pictures, photographs, stories and local history on the Viaduct. One of the stories around Craigmore Viaduct is that there was one man killed for every one of the arches. Mr. McKee who has done extensive research into local railways and the Bessbrook Viaduct was able to confirm that this was just a myth and that he was not able to locate any evidence to back up this story. We certainly enjoyed learning about the Viaduct, the tramline and even the Egyptian Arch which got its name from the simple fact that it resembled a pharaoh’s head. This Heritage project has brought a significant part of our local history to life for us in a very real and satisfying way.
Pupils Involved in the Project
Drawing of the Viaduct by Daryll Galloghly
Back Row Left to right: Caitlin McCann, Megan Bradley, Tierna Boyle, Mairead Britton Middle row Left to right: Colm Gorman, Lee Treanor, Cailum Hanna, Francis O'Hanlon, Conor Kearns, John McEvoy, Daryll Galloghly Front Row Left to right: Declan McCamley, Michael McQuaide, Lee Tumilty, Matthew McEvoy, Caolan Lonergan, Ryan McParland