My first day at school at the age of five was in September of 1941. So my memory of the old school is as follows: the teachers at the time were Mr. Power from Newport and Mrs. O'Halloran from Kilbride. My first recollection of school life was Mr. Power wearing a pair of "Plus 4's" trousers. He was a small man and he was the only person who could put a point on a pupil's pencil. I remember this because I used to be fascinated with the skill in which he pointed it.
Every morning each pupil had to bring two sods of turf with them to school or at the beginning of the year one's father had to bring an 'ass.,cart of turf' to school. Some- times the turf may have been wet and so you would throw the turf in the corner first so that the other pupils turf would cover it and the teacher would not know who took the wet turf to school. It would take the whole morning to light the fire because not only was the turf wet but the paper was also damp.
As a schoolboy I wore three-quarter length trousers and in the winter the wellingtons were worn and when they were worn out you had to go to school in your bare feet.
I remember when we moved into the new school, every place was very clean and tidy and the smell of fresh paint was everywhere. I remember, in later years when a pupil was transferred from another school for being disobedient his name was Joe Hartigan (R.I.P.). Very shortly after he started in Cuilmore School, himself and headmaster Power or An Paorach as we used to call him, had a fight. It started in the corridor and finished in the yard, Power getting the better of Joe. I remember a lot of us were frightened of our lives that Joe would get the better of Power and that Joe would kill the lot of us.
Sometime after that Mrs. Coughlan came and I remember this incident quite well: Joe Hartigan, Patsy Sweeney, Mike Keane, Tommie Geraghty, myself and my town brother John went out to Rice's orchard in Derrylohan, we used to do this every autumn, and we were so busy pulling and eating apples that we never found the time slipping by and I remember getting back one day and it was nearly two o'clock. Well I can tell you Mrs. Coughlan was not in good humour, we each received six slaps on each hand.
These are a few of the fond memories I recall from my happy days in Cuilmore National School, both old and new.