A SCULPTURE remembering the often forgotten Charter School children of Ireland is to be unveiled in the middle of Innishannon, completing a trilogy of sculptures depicting the history of the village.
The sculpture, which depicts a youth releasing a bird to freedom was made by Seán MacCarthy – who previously sculpted Christy Ring for Cork Airport and Bill Clinton for Ballybunion – and symbolises the resilience of the young and nature to overcome the hardships of restraint.
Speaking to The Southern Star, Alice Taylor of Innishannon Tidy Towns said Innishannon had its own charter school, which was established in 1752.
‘The fate of the Charter School of Ireland seems to have been relegated to oblivion despite the fact that Charter Schools which were attended by children of all denominations, were part of our educational system from 1733 to 1832,’ said Alice.
‘In 1730 George III issued a Royal Charter decreeing that a series of charter schools be established around Ireland. On August 2nd, 1752 one of these schools accommodating 50 boys was set up in Innishannon. Local landlord Thomas Adderley gave a two-acre site on the grounds of the rectory and a grant of £200.’
Alice said that the main aim of these Charter Schools was to ‘civilise’ the Irish by converting Catholic, Quaker and Dissenter children to Protestantism as well as teaching them English and train them in good husbandry.
‘Boys and girls were taken in at a very young age and some of the schools had nurseries attached where children were boarded and fed until the age of 14. As poverty was rampant at the time many parents availed of these schools to sustain their children.’
While these schools were well run initially, with children being cared for and receiving an education, neglect crept in and they ended up as institutions of cruelty with squalid conditions where children suffered punishment, disease, and neglect.
By 1830 these schools ceased to function, following the introduction of the National School system.
‘Those Charter School children were part of our local heritage but there is no memorial or any acknowledgment of their existence in Ireland. Now almost 300 years after the royal charter was issued, a sculpture is to be erected outside the old rectory wall,’ said Alice.
This is the last in a trilogy of sculptures depicting the history of Innishannon, with both The Blacksmith (2005) and The Horse and Rider (2011) already in place in the village. These have been part-funded by the Christmas magazine, Candlelight, which has been published for more than 40 years.
Alice thanked several members of the Tidy Towns group who carried out preparatory work on the sculpture site, including Eamon McCarthy who made the plinth, while Pat O’Mahony made the stonework around the base. She also thanked Vincey O’Sullivan for taking away the surplus earth and debris, and David from Green Piece Nursery who carried out planting around the base.
The unveiling of the sculpture takes place on Sunday October 13th at 3pm at the Charter School Cross in Innishannon. Local artist Mary Nolan O’Brien, a founder member of Candlelight, and a Tidy Town member, will unveil the sculpture.
All are welcome and refreshments will be held in the nearby parish hall.
