Irishtown

Irishtown (Baile Gaelach) is a village in County Mayo, located on the R328 regional road, halfway between Claremorris and Tuam, on the southern county border with Galway. Irishtown is in the Civil Parish of Crossboyne, in the Catholic Diocese of Tuam. This charming rural area has a vibrant community and facilities in the village include a primary school, church, community centre, pub and a number of small businesses.

Famed as the home of the Land League, a plaque in the village of Irishtown proudly states: 'Cradle of Land League. Site of Tenant Right Meeting of 20 April 1879 which led to foundation of The National Land League'.

History of The Land League

At the end of the 19th century in Ireland, 800 families owned 50% of the land resulting in the majority of the agricultural population living as tenants on meagre plots of land rented from landlords. The tenants had very little rights and many could no longer meet their rents and were faced with eviction.

In early 1879 the tenants of Canon Burke, a landlord of Irishtown in east Mayo, approached James Daly the editor of the 'Connaught Telegraph' seeking help. These tenants were facing eviction because they were in already in arrears and Burke was seeking to raise their rent. James Daly was a well known activist of tenancy rights in Mayo, and he quickly organised a protest meeting at Irishtown. The meeting was a resounding success - 8,000 people turned out in spite of a warning by the Catholic church not to attend. It was clear at this meeting that tenants were prepared to resist attempts to evict them more vehemently than they had during the Great Famine. That meeting was the genesis of what would later that year become the Land League.

Connaught Telegraph Article 1879

In an article in the 'Connaught Telegraph', James Daly described the march to Irishtown: ‘Since the days of O’Connell a larger public demonstration has not been witnessed than that of Sunday last. About 1 o’clock the monster procession started from Claremorris, headed by several thousand men on foot - the men of each district wearing a laurel leaf or green ribbon in hat or coat to distinguish the several contingents. Further along the road, they were joined by a contingent of tenant-farmers on horseback 'showing discipline and order that a cavalry regiment might feel proud of' ......... A further 500 carriages from other towns and neighbourhoods joined the procession, the marshals wearing green and gold sashes. The sight was truly imposing. The endless train directing its course to Irishtown, a neat little hamlet on the boundaries of Mayo, Roscommon and Galway.’

Irishtown National School

Irishtown has a history of education dating back hundreds of years, with the early existence of two Bardic schools at Poll Chormaic, Leface and Poll Dumh, Lisduff. These Bardic schools preceded hedge schools in a number of villages including Kilmacnella, Crimlin, Boleyboy, Cullane and Fallagherin. The first schools under the National Schools System opened in Irishtown in 1873, with two schools, one for boys and one for girls, both sited in the old priests house of the time. In 1897 the existing national school was built and opened and, following extensive renovations in 1983, that well-equipped school still serves the educational needs of Irishtown and surrounding areas.

There is an interesting article by Peter Ryan titled "Recollections of Irishtown School". This article is one of a number of articles available through the Ballindine Post.