Tyrone Crystal facts for kids
Tyrone Crystal was a company in Dungannon, County Tyrone, Northern Ireland. They were famous for making beautiful crystal products.
How It All Began
People have been making and decorating glass in County Tyrone for a very long time. In fact, glass work was happening there way back in the early medieval period! Modern glass making started in 1771 when Benjamin Edwards set up a company.
Tyrone Crystal itself began much later, in 1971. A local priest, Father Austin Eustace, started the company. He wanted to create jobs for people in the Dungannon area, where there weren't many jobs available. The problem was, nobody in the area knew how to make crystal!
So, they put an advertisement in a newspaper looking for someone to teach them. Two men from Austria, who were experts at blowing and cutting glass, saw the ad while hiking in England. They came to Dungannon to train the new employees. The trainees started by practicing on simple glass jars and bottles. Soon, they became skilled enough to create amazing crystal pieces on their own. They set up their glass-blowing shop right there in Dungannon.
Growing and Creating Amazing Things
Tyrone Crystal quickly became known for its high quality. In 1988, the company earned a special award called ISO 9000 for its excellent standards. They were the youngest glass company in Ireland or the UK to get this important award.
In 1990, a new factory was built. It wasn't just a place to make crystal; it also became a popular place for tourists to visit! The company grew even more. In 2000, Tyrone Crystal bought another company called Tipperary Crystal. They also spent a lot of money to open a brand new visitors' centre in 2001.
Tyrone Crystal made some very special items. From 2005, they created the trophy for the Canadian Grand Prix, a famous car race.
One of their most impressive creations was a giant chandelier for the Great Room in the Merchant Hotel in Belfast. A designer named Marcus Notley helped create it. This chandelier is made from gold and has 2,600 pieces of blown crystal. It's huge! It stands 4.5 meters (about 15 feet) tall, is 2.9 meters (about 9.5 feet) wide, and weighs 400 kilograms (about 880 pounds). It was installed in 2006 and is the largest chandelier in all of Ireland.
The End of an Era
Sadly, the Tyrone Crystal factory in Dungannon closed its doors on March 12, 2010. This meant that 31 people lost their jobs.
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