Quakers

Mountmellick Street Map

This map gives a layout of some of the prominent buildings in the town of Mountmellick, including the Friend's Meeting House and Friend's School.

Mountmellick Street Map

This map gives a layout of some of the prominent buildings in the town of Mountmellick, including the Friend's Meeting House and Friend's School.

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Quakers is the popular name for the members of the Religious Society of Friends. The Society owes its origins to the political and religious turmoil experienced in England in the middle of the 1600s. In 1642, England was engulfed in Civil War which resulted in the execution of Charles I in 1649.

As a result of the breakdown of authority, radical ideas found fertile ground at all levels of society. It was a period of great religious fervour when men sought to redefine their religion and society.

Among the radical groups that emerged were the Quakers. The movement was founded by George Fox around 1647. The word 'Quaker' was originally coined as an insult to George Fox, who told an English judge to 'tremble at the word of the Lord.' The judge retaliated by calling Fox a 'Quaker.'

In the 1650s it gained numerous converts among farmers and craftsmen in both rural and urban areas. It has been estimated that by 1660 the movement had between 30,000 and 40,000 members in England. The first record of Quakers in county Laois dates from about 1654.

Around that year, William Edmundson visited two Quaker families in Rosenallis. The two families appear to have been the Cantrills of Tineil and the Chanders of Ballyhide. In 1659, Edmundson, with a group of other Quakers, settled in the vicinity of Mountmellick. William Edmundson is believed to have been the first Quaker in Ireland. He was not a Friend when he first arrived in Ireland. While on a trip to England, William became 'convinced' of the truth of Quakerism by James Naylor. Edmundson had a charismatic personality. He converted numerous people to Quakerism and was totally convinced of the righteousness of his convictions.

Quaker Cemetery

The Quaker Burial Ground in Rosenallis is locally known as the "Friends Sleeping Place." It is one of the most attractive graveyards in the country. A rich sprinkling of deciduous trees covers this picturesque countryside.

Quaker Cemetery

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Quaker School

The Quaker School opened on the 30th January 1786. The purpose of the school was to provide education for the children of poor Quakers. Initially only girls attended this school. This appears to have been behind the present day Community School, in what now is known locally as Smith's Field.

Quaker School

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Although the Quakers held their first meeting in Mountmellick in 1659, it was not until 1709 that the first official Quaker Meeting House was built. Their first school was opened in January 1786. John Pim, John Heiton, Jack Gatchell and Mungo Bewley built the boarding school to provide education to poor Quaker families. In 1824 three privately owned Quaker schools were recorded in Mountmellick and these were the only private schools in County Laois. Below is a list of some of the early Quaker settlers in the area: