Mary wrote: > My Cunningham ancestors from Slackhead in the Rathven/Enzie area > seemed to have been illiterate although I believe there was a good > standard in schools at the time(mid 19th century). > can anyone tell me what the local school would be ... I don't know about quality, but as regards quantity of educational opportunity, the 'New Statistical Account' article on Rathven (written March 1842) states: "The number of the schools in the parish is fourteen. Six of these are endowed [ie the salary of the teacher was paid out of parish funds] and the other eight are supported by fees." Annoyingly, the names and locations of these schools are not given. There are additional uncertainties in that (1) since 1835, the western end of the parish (including Slackhead) had become the 'quoad sacra' parish of Enzie, which had separate Registers of Baptism and Marriage. I have not been able to find out whether it had an independent school. (2) the Enzie area contained a high proportion of Roman Catholics, and again, I do not know what separate educational provision they may have made. To return to the 'New Statistical Account', which continues (in slightly self-contradictory terms): "In an extensive parish of this kind, it cannot be very easily ascertained what number of the young, betwixt six and fifteen years of age, cannot read or write. There are few, if any, who are not able to read; but a considerable number cannot write." This latter may well have been the situation of your ancestors. They will probably have been taught enough to be able to read the Bible, but in some schools (particularly 'adventure' schools, where the teacher depended entirely on fees to make a living) being taught to write cost extra. > ...and whether any school records/teachers reports survive. It is unusual for school records to survive earlier than the introduction of state schooling in the 1870s. > If so where are they kept? because of the complicated administrative history of the Northeast, it could be either Aberdeen City Archives or Moray Archives. Gavin Bell

> > My Cunningham ancestors from Slackhead in the Rathven/Enzie area > > seemed to have been illiterate although I believe there was a good > > standard in schools at the time(mid 19th century). > > can anyone tell me what the local school would be ... > I don't know about quality, but as regards quantity of educational > opportunity, the 'New Statistical Account' article on Rathven (written > March 1842) states: "The number of the schools in the parish is fourteen. > Six of these are endowed [ie the salary of the teacher was paid out of > parish funds] and the other eight are supported by fees." Annoyingly, the > names and locations of these schools are not given. I wonder whether the book on Banffshire schools and schoolmasters would help? Grant Lodge had a copy, but the books have not yet come out of storage so I don't think it's available to check in Elgin, but maybe someone else has access to a copy? Anne