Shaws' leap back in time with "A Hop, Skip and Jump."

When William Shaw founded his bacon curing business in Limerick in 1831, the contribution of the Shaws name to the city was to continue after his death, through the benevolence of his son Alexander and the strong links he established with St. Michael’s Parochial School, the history of which is celebrated in A Hop Skip and a Jump by Barabara Bingham.

 

Founded in 1873 by Archdeacon Benjamin Jacob, St. Michael’s had a strong Christian ethos for the education of underprivileged children orphaned by the ravages of famine and cholera which claimed many lives in Limerick. It was during a collection for the school that Alexander Shaw, a neighbour of Archdeacon Jacob, became a patron of St. Michael’s, which at that time was located within a mile of the Shaws factory. Records found by current St. Michael’s parent Karen Long Eacrett while researching A Hop Skip And Jump show in detail the substantial support given by Alexander Shaw over many years.

 

From 1878 until his death, his donations, which were in both a personal and professional capacity, helped to maintain the good work of the school in educating disadvantaged children, who would otherwise have little or no education. Many pupils indeed found later employment in the Shaws factory as testament to the high standards set by St. Michaels and the very purpose of its foundation... the support of others less fortunate.

 

In 1882 the school moved to a purpose built premises at a cost in today’s money of

€ 52,335.50, with Alexander Shaw contributing some € 3,400 to the funding of the project. Today the link between Shaws and St. Michael’s, which became a National School in 1883, has been renewed through Shaws sponsorship of A Hop Ship And Jump, which we were delighted to be involved in and wish St. Michael’s every success with this book.