Anyone schooled at St Gerald’s De La Salle College in Castlebar in the early to mid-1980s will know what it was like to go on a ‘Nature Walk’ on the shores of Lough Lannagh during a double science or biology class, when the weather improved in May or in September after the long summer break.
I have great memories of such walks with our science teacher PJ Geraghty and biology guru, Brother Donal. We learned some, had some fun, and made it back safely and on time for the next class.
Class outings, tours, and trips, including those to support the various college teams, were always an adventure and fraught with risk for those tasked with supervision. Our Paris trip of 1983 was the stuff of legend – a coming of age experience. Our French teacher, the great Matt Coady, led that week-long Easter campaign – what happens in Paris, etc.
When I discovered recently that the Christian Brothers at Gerald’s were organising adventure trips long before our Easter escapade of 1983, I was not too surprised. That there was a tale to tell after one such trip in 1922, surprised me even less, save in one respect.
The 1922 trip made the national news and the newspapers in far-flung places like Derry and Ballymena. We did our best to be interesting, but we never quite attracted that level of notoriety.
In October 1922, while the Civil War was underway, Brother Urban decided to take the Intermediate Boys on a boat trip. The destination – Bilberry Island on Bilberry Lake.
On Monday September 18, the college reopened after the summer. Earlier in the month, parents were reminded of the importance of ensuring their children return to school – the ongoing troubles would not continue forever. Eventually, things would return to normal.
When that happened, there would be a need for educated people – they were assured that influence and wire pulling would give way to merit and educational fitness. The results of the Intermediate Examinations published that week listed many high achievers and details of those who secured scholarships.
During the Civil War, Bilberry Lake and its islands were known for Irregular (Anti-Treaty ) Forces activity. When lunch was packed, the party set out for the lakeshore. It is not known whether they launched their boats at Lough Lannagh near Castlebar or whether they travelled directly to Bilberry Lake. A waterway connects the lakes.
The boys loaded the boats with provisions, and Brother Urban skippered the lead boat out into the lake in the direction of the island. When the party reached their destination, the boys quickly pulled the boats up onto the beach, brought the picnic ashore and unpacked their lunch – white tablecloths were laid out over the grass.
Brother Urban and the boys gathered around and assumed places on the grass around the tablecloths – a plain and straightforward lunch was served. Everyone was in good spirits – Brother Urban kept a watchful eye on proceedings.
When lunch was served but before anyone had commenced eating, the rattle of machine-gun fire could be heard in the distance. Then, without warning, a hail of bullets cut up the ground around where the boys were seated. Brother Urban screamed for everyone to take cover – no one argued as they disappeared behind whatever shelter they could find.
The whole island was then raked by machine gunfire. A white tablecloth was lashed to the branch of a tree, but the Free State troops did not see it – the assault on the island continued. Brother Urban concluded that unless he took some more obvious action to alert the soldiers about the identity of those crouching behind the trees and rocks, lives would be lost. He stood up and walked into the open, where he was visible.
The gunfire ceased immediately. Free State troops travelling between Castlebar and Westport, saw activity on the Island and concluded that the boys were Irregulars. Brother Urban negotiated the surrender of his Irregulars and safe passage off the island.
We do not know whether Brother Urban and the boys completed their lunch that day, but everyone made it back safely – another memorable class outing!
