placenamesKilkerrin
Cill Choirín
Kilkerrin’s records trace changing forms of education and public organisation, from nineteenth-century parish schools to a central school opened in 1977.
The name
These Irish name elements are associated with this record in the Logainm glossary.
An element’s translation is a clue, rather than a complete explanation of the name. Its form and meaning depend on local history and the full Irish name.
Recorded forms
- Cill Choirín · Irish · main form · validated name
- Kilkerrin · English · main form
Place & story
Schools in the nineteenth-century parish
Samuel Lewis recorded several forms of education in Kilkerrin parish in 1837. A parochial school taught about forty children, supported by an annual contribution from the rector, who also supplied a house and two acres of land. Four private schools taught roughly 320 children, and a Sunday school operated too. The figures describe the wider parish, showing the variety of local schooling before the later consolidation of education in the village. [2]
Meetings and political newspapers
Patrick Treacy recalled joining Kilkerrin’s Sinn Féin club in 1917 after an education at the Franciscan Brothers’ monastery. In his Bureau of Military History statement, he described fortnightly meetings held alternately in Kilkerrin and at Welford House. Members distributed political literature and sold Irish Nationality outside the parish church on Sundays. His recollection names Martin Farrell as secretary and Patrick Stephens as chairman, giving specific people and routines behind local political organisation. [3]
Four schools joined in 1977
Saint Oliver Plunkett National School opened on 30 May 1977 through the amalgamation of four two-teacher schools: Kilkerrin Girls School, the Monastery Boys School, Curraghmore and Shankill. The school’s own history records a major refurbishment in 2001 and an additional classroom in 2010. Its crest, introduced to the uniform in 2016, recalls the local church and graveyard, the D’Arcy family and Oliver Kelly, the archbishop associated with Tuam’s cathedral. [4]
Geographic information
Sources & further reading
- Logainm.ie — Kilkerrin. Place names and geographic record, licensed under CC BY 4.0.
- Kilkerrin, Samuel Lewis, A Topographical Dictionary of Ireland,1837 · Samuel Lewis, reproduced by GB Historical GIS
- Witness Statement1425, Patrick Treacy, opening page · Patrick Treacy, Bureau of Military History, Military Archives
- About Us: Saint Oliver Plunkett National School, Kilkerrin, history · Saint Oliver Plunkett National School
Name record retrieved 2026-10-25 · Source record modified 2012-01-11. How this page was prepared.