Lettershanbo School.

There was a hedge school at old Doonan house in the middle of the 19th century. Miss Mc Nulty taught there. She stayed in Mc Menamins of Moneen and she was a sister of Master Mc Nulty that was teaching in Ardlaghan school at the time. She used to go to Ardlaghan to teach needle work to the girls in that school. This school at Doonan had previously been a byre and there was bedding shaken on either side of the sink for the pupils to sit on.

Lettershanbo School

Lettershanbo School was built in 1884, opening for the first time on November 1st that year. Master Rowan was the first teacher there.

In 1909 Master Gowan from Drumquin in County Tyrone was appointed principal in Lettershanbo. He married Mary Ann Mc Hugh and she taught as his assistant in the school.

When Master Gowan died in 1925 Mr Charlie Mc Dyre, from Glenties, became Principal and Mrs Gowan remained on as his assistant. He stayed until 1929.

In those days also many of the schools had classroom assistants called Monitors. Among those was a sister of Francie Mooney author of "Gleanntaí Glas Ghaoth Dobhair" and an aunt of Máire Ní Mhaonaigh of Altán. Miss Mooney, although only young, had only spent over a year in Lettershanbo when she became ill and after a long period of hospitalisation she died.

Miss Mooney was replaced by Charlie Ferry another native of Gweedore. Charlie spent nearly 13 years teaching in the school. He was very interested in football and was a member of the Gaelic Football team that was formed in Glenfin in 1934.

In September 1946 Charlie Ferry went to teach in a school in Co. Leitrim and Rosie Mc Cauley from Meenacross in Dungloe replaced him as principal in Lettershanbo. Rosie stayed in Mc Ginty's in Cloghanmore when she first came and later she shared accommodation with Nurse Green in Tom Mc Cormack's house in Brockagh.

Anna Holms (now Wallace) replaced Rosie Mc Cauley in 1950. Anna was related to the Mc Menamins in Moneen and stayed with them for the five years she taught in Lettershanbo.

In 1955 Mary Mc Menamin (Mary Herron) was appointed Principal in Lettershanbo, a position she held until the school was closed and amalgamated with Dooish in 1979.

In 1968, when there was a temporary increase in the number of pupils, Mrs Mary Harkin became an assistant teacher in the school and after she transferred to teach in Meenglass in 1971 there were a number of temporary assistants including Margaret Mc Cool, Mary Mc Dermott, Tessie Mc Loone and Mary Shovlin.