Historically Tyrone stretched as far north as
Lough FoyleLough Foyle, sometimes Loch Foyle , is the estuary of the River Foyle in Ulster. It starts where the Foyle leaves Derry. It separates the Inishowen Peninsula in County Donegal, Republic of Ireland from County Londonderry in Northern Ireland.-Transport:...
, and comprised part of modern day
County LondonderryThe place name Derry is an anglicisation of the old Irish Daire meaning oak-grove or oak-wood. As with the city, its name is subject to the Derry/Londonderry name dispute, with the form Derry preferred by nationalists and Londonderry preferred by unionists...
east of the
River FoyleThe River Foyle is a river in west Ulster in the northwest of Ireland, which flows from the confluence of the rivers Finn and Mourne at the towns of Lifford in County Donegal, Republic of Ireland, and Strabane in County Tyrone, Northern Ireland. From here it flows to the City of Derry, where it...
. The majority of County Londonderry was carved out of Tyrone between 1610-1620 when that land went to the Guilds of London to set up profit making schemes based on natural resources located there. Tyrone was the traditional stronghold of the various O'Neill clans and families, the strongest of the Gaelic Irish families in
UlsterUlster is one of the four provinces of Ireland, located in the north of the island. In ancient Ireland, it was one of the fifths ruled by a "king of over-kings" . Following the Norman invasion of Ireland, the ancient kingdoms were shired into a number of counties for administrative and judicial...
, surviving into the seventeenth century. The ancient principality of Tír Eoghain, the inheritance of the O'Neills, included the whole of the present counties of Tyrone and Londonderry, and the four
baroniesIn Ireland, a barony is a historical subdivision of a county. They were created, like the counties, in the centuries after the Norman invasion, and were analogous to the hundreds into which the counties of England were divided. In early use they were also called cantreds...
of West Inishowen, East Inishowen, Raphoe North and Raphoe South in
County DonegalCounty Donegal is a county in Ireland. It is part of the Border Region and is also located in the province of Ulster. It is named after the town of Donegal. Donegal County Council is the local authority for the county...
.
Geography
With an area of 3155 square kilometres (1,218.2 sq mi), Tyrone is the largest county in Northern Ireland. The flat peatlands of East Tyrone borders the shoreline of the largest lake in Ireland,
Lough NeaghLough Neagh, sometimes Loch Neagh, is a large freshwater lake in Northern Ireland. Its name comes .-Geography:With an area of , it is the largest lake in the British Isles and ranks among the forty largest lakes of Europe. Located twenty miles to the west of Belfast, it is approximately twenty...
, rising gradually across to the more mountainous terrain in the west of the county, the area surrounding the
Sperrin MountainsThe Sperrins or Sperrin Mountains are a range of mountains in Northern Ireland and one of the largest upland areas in Ireland. The range stretches the counties of Tyrone and Londonderry from south of Strabane eastwards to Maghera and north towards Limavady...
, the highest point being
Sawel MountainSawel Mountain, historically Slieve Sawel , is a mountain in County Londonderry and County Tyrone, Northern Ireland. It is the highest peak in the Sperrin Mountains, and the seventh highest in Northern Ireland. To the north of Sawel is County Londonderry, and to the south, County Tyrone. The summit...
at a height of 678 m (2,224 ft). The length of the county, from the mouth of the
River BlackwaterThe River Blackwater is a river in County Armagh and County Tyrone, Northern Ireland, as well as County Monaghan and County Cavan in Republic of Ireland, which has its source to the north of Fivemiletown, County Tyrone...
at Lough Neagh to the western point near Carrickaduff hill is 55 miles (88.5 km). The breadth, from the southern corner, southeast of
FivemiletownFivemiletown is a village and townland in County Tyrone, Northern Ireland. It is 16 miles east of Enniskillen and 26 miles west-south-west of Dungannon, on the A4 Enniskillen-to-Dungannon road. Its population as of 2009 is estimated to be 1,128. The village is most famous for its creamery, which...
, to the northeastern corner near Meenard Mountain is 37.5 miles (60.4 km); giving an area of 1,260 square miles (in 1900). Annaghone lays claim to be the
geographical centreThere has long been debate over the exact location of the geographical centre of the United Kingdom, and its constituent countries, due to the complexity and method of the calculation, such as whether to include offshore islands, and the fact that erosion will cause the position to change over time...
of Northern Ireland.
Demography
It is one of four
countiesThe counties of Ireland are sub-national divisions used for the purposes of geographic demarcation and local government. Closely related to the county is the County corporate which covered towns or cities which were deemed to be important enough to be independent from their counties. A county...
in Northern Ireland which presently has a majority of the population from a
CatholicThe word catholic comes from the Greek phrase , meaning "on the whole," "according to the whole" or "in general", and is a combination of the Greek words meaning "about" and meaning "whole"...
community background, according to the
2001 censusA nationwide census, known as Census 2001, was conducted in the United Kingdom on Sunday, 29 April 2001. This was the 20th UK Census and recorded a resident population of 58,789,194....
. In 1900 County Tyrone had a population of 197,719, while in 2001 it was 166,516.
Medium towns
(population of 10,000 or more and under 18,000 at 2001 Census)
- Cookstown
Cookstown may refer to either of the following:*Cookstown, County Tyrone, Northern Ireland*Cookstown, Ontario, Canada*Cookstown, New Jersey, United States...
- Dungannon
Dungannon is a medium-sized town in County Tyrone, Northern Ireland. It is the third-largest town in the county and a population of 11,139 people was recorded in the 2001 Census. In August 2006, Dungannon won Ulster In Bloom's Best Kept Town Award for the fifth time...
- Strabane
Strabane , historically spelt Straban,is a town in west County Tyrone, Northern Ireland. It contains the headquarters of Strabane District Council....
Intermediate settlements
(population of 2,250 or more and under 4,500 at 2001 Census)
- Castlederg
Castlederg is a village in County Tyrone, Northern Ireland. It lies on the River Derg and is close to the border with County Donegal. The village has a ruined castle and two ancient tombs known as the Druid's Altar and Todd's Den...
Villages
(population of 1,000 or more and under 2,250 at 2001 Census)
- Ardboe
Ardboe is a small village in the north east of County Tyrone, Northern Ireland. It is near the western shore of Lough Neagh and lies within the Cookstown District Council area...
- Carrickmore
Carrickmore is a village and townland in County Tyrone, Northern Ireland. It lies in the heart of the county on an raised site colloquially called "The Rock"; between Cookstown, Dungannon and Omagh. It had a population of 612 in the 2001 Census.-History:...
- Dromore
Dromore is a village in County Tyrone, Northern Ireland. It is situated nine miles south west of Omagh on the A32 road and sixteen miles from Enniskillen. The town had a population of 1,101 in the 2001 Census. Agriculture and the building trades are the primary sources of employment in the town...
- Fintona
Fintona is a village and townland in County Tyrone, Northern Ireland. It is the second largest settlement in the Omagh District Council area, after Omagh itself. Its 2010 population was estimated to be 1,410.-History:...
- Fivemiletown
Fivemiletown is a village and townland in County Tyrone, Northern Ireland. It is 16 miles east of Enniskillen and 26 miles west-south-west of Dungannon, on the A4 Enniskillen-to-Dungannon road. Its population as of 2009 is estimated to be 1,128. The village is most famous for its creamery, which...
- Moy
Moy or The Moy is a village and townland in County Tyrone, Northern Ireland. The 2001 Census recorded a population of 1,218.It is about southeast of Dungannon and is beside the smaller village of Charlemont. Charlemont is on the east bank of the River Blackwater and Moy on the west; the two are...
- Newtownstewart
Newtownstewart is a village and townland in County Tyrone, Northern Ireland. It is overlooked by hills called Bessy Bell and Mary Gray and is at the confluence of the rivers Strule and Owenkillew. In the 2001 Census it had a population of 1,479 people. It lies within the Strabane District Council...
- Sion Mills
Sion Mills is a village in County Tyrone, Northern Ireland on the River Mourne. In the 2001 Census it had a population of 2,050 people. It lies within the Strabane District Council area...
Small villages or hamlets
(population of less than 1,000 at 2001 Census)
Subdivisions
Baronies
- Clogher
Clogher is a barony in County Tyrone, Northern Ireland. It is bordered by four other baronies in Northern Ireland: Omagh East to the north; Dungannon Lower to the east; Magherastephana to the south; and Tirkennedy to the south-west...
- Dungannon Lower
Dungannon Lower is a barony in County Tyrone, Northern Ireland. It was created in 1851 with the splitting of the barony of Dungannon. It is bordered by four other baronies in Northern Ireland: Dungannon Middle to the north; Tiranny to the south-east; Clogher to the west; and Omagh East to the...
- Dungannon Middle
Dungannon Middle is a barony in County Tyrone, Northern Ireland. It was created in 1851 with the splitting of the barony of Dungannon...
- Dungannon Upper
Dungannon Upper is a barony in County Tyrone, Northern Ireland. It was created in 1851 with the splitting of the barony of Dungannon...
- Omagh East
Omagh East is a barony in County Tyrone, Northern Ireland. It is bordered by nine other baronies: Omagh West and Lurg to the west; Strabane Lower and Strabane Upper to the north; Dungannon Middle and Dungannon Upper to the east; Clogher and Tirkennedy to the south; and Dungannon Lower to the...
- Omagh West
Omagh West is a barony in County Tyrone, Northern Ireland. It is bordered by three other baronies in Northern Ireland: Strabane Lower to the north-east; Omagh East to the east; and Lurg to the south...
- Strabane Lower
Strabane Lower is a barony in County Tyrone, Northern Ireland. It is bordered by five other baronies in Northern Ireland: North West Liberties of Londonderry to the north; Tirkeeran to the north-east; Strabane Upper to the east; Omagh East to the south; and Omagh West to the south-west...
- Strabane Upper
Strabane Upper is a barony in County Tyrone, Northern Ireland. It is bordered by six other baronies: Tirkeeran and Keenaght to the north; Loughinsholin and Dungannon Upper to the east; Omagh East to the south; and Strabane Lower to the west.-List of main settlements:There are few settlements...
Parishes
Townlands
Sport
The major sports in Tyrone are
Gaelic gamesGaelic games are sports played in Ireland under the auspices of the Gaelic Athletic Association. The two main games are Gaelic football and hurling...
, Association football and
Rugby UnionRugby union, often simply referred to as rugby, is a full contact team sport which originated in England in the early 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand...
.
- Gaelic football
Gaelic football , commonly referred to as "football" or "Gaelic", or "Gah" is a form of football played mainly in Ireland...
is more widely played than hurlingHurling is an outdoor team game of ancient Gaelic origin, administered by the Gaelic Athletic Association, and played with sticks called hurleys and a ball called a sliotar. Hurling is the national game of Ireland. The game has prehistoric origins, has been played for at least 3,000 years, and...
. The Tyrone GAAThe Tyrone County Board of the Gaelic Athletic Association or Tyrone GAA is one of the 32 county boards of the GAA in Ireland, and is responsible for Gaelic games in County Tyrone. The county board is also responsible for the Tyrone inter-county teams....
football side has had considerable success since 2000, winning three All Ireland titlesThe All-Ireland Senior Football Championship, the premier competition in Gaelic football, is a series of games organised by the Gaelic Athletic Association and played during the summer and early autumn...
(in 2003, 2005 and 2008), they have also won thirteen Ulster titlesFor information on this years competition, see Ulster Senior Football Championship 2011-2010 Draw:-2009 Draw:-2008 Draw:-Top winners:* All-Ireland winning years in bold.-Roll of honour:Notes:* 1907 No final result in records...
(1956, 1957, 1973, 1984, 1986, 1989, 1995, 1996, 2001, 2003, 2007, 2009, 2010) and two National League titlesThe National Football League is a Gaelic football tournament held annually between the county teams of Ireland, under the auspices of the Gaelic Athletic Association. The prize for the winning team is the New Ireland Cup, presented by the New Ireland Assurance Company...
(in 2002 and 2003).
- Underage Gaelic football teams have also had considerable successes on the field at both provincial and national level - winning the All-Ireland Minor Football Championship
The All-Ireland Minor Football Championship is the premier "knockout" competition for under-18 competitors of the game of Gaelic football played in Ireland...
seven times (the most recent, also in 2010) and the All-Ireland Under-21 Football ChampionshipThe All-Ireland Under-21 Football Championship is the premier "knockout" competition for players aged between 18 and 21 in the game of Gaelic football played in Ireland. The series of games are organised by the Gaelic Athletic Association and are played during the summer months...
four times.
- Association Football also has a large following. Omagh Town F.C.
Omagh Town Football and Athletic Club was a Northern Irish association football club that was based in Omagh, County Tyrone. Founded in 1962, the club played in the Irish Football League from 1990 up until its closure in 2005. They won the North West Senior Cup on six occasions and competed in the...
were members of the Irish Football League until they folded in 2005. Dungannon Swifts F.C.Dungannon Swifts F.C. is a semi-professional, Northern Irish football club playing in the IFA Premiership. The club, founded in 1949, has risen from the Mid-Ulster league to the top tier in Northern Ireland since its election to the Irish League First Division in 1997...
compete in the IFA PremiershipThe IFA Premiership – formerly the Irish Premier League, and before that the Irish Football League–and still known in popular parlance simply as the Irish League, is the national football league in Northern Ireland, and was historically the league for the whole of Ireland. Clubs in the league are...
. Other teams include Irish League Division One side Coagh United F.C. and Division Two sides Dergview F.C.Dergview is an intermediate, Northern Irish football club playing in the IFA Championship 1. The club, founded in 1980, hails from Castlederg, County Tyrone, Northern Ireland, and plays its matches at Darragh Park. Club colours are red, black, and white. The current manager is Adrian Forbes...
and Killymoon Rangers F.C.Killymoon Rangers F.C. is an intermediate, Northern Irish football club playing in IFA Championship 2. It hails from Cookstown, County Tyrone.-Club history:...
.
- Rugby Union
Rugby union, often simply referred to as rugby, is a full contact team sport which originated in England in the early 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand...
is very popular in the county. Dungannon RFCDungannon RFC is a rugby union club from Dungannon, Northern Ireland. The club first team plays in the AIB League Division One, Ulster Senior League and Ulster Senior Cup.-History:...
are one of only three Ulster teams currently playing in All Ireland League One. Other teams include Omagh RFC, Clogher Valley RFC, Cookstown RFC and Strabane RFC.
People
Notable residents of County Tyrone have included:
- Hugh Ó Neill, 2nd Earl of Tyrone (Aodh Mór Ó Néill), 1540–1617, Irish leader during the Nine Years' War
The Nine Years' War or Tyrone's Rebellion took place in Ireland from 1594 to 1603. It was fought between the forces of Gaelic Irish chieftains Hugh O'Neill of Tír Eoghain, Hugh Roe O'Donnell of Tír Chonaill and their allies, against English rule in Ireland. The war was fought in all parts of the...
- Philomena Begley
Philomena Begley is an Irish country music singer.-Background:Philomena Begley was born and grew up in Pomeroy Co. Tyrone and worked in a shirt factory in Cookstown before her break into music.-Career:...
, Irish country music singer
- Tom Clarke
Thomas James "Tom" Clarke was an Irish revolutionary leader and arguably the person most responsible for the 1916 Easter Rising. A proponent of violent revolution for most of his life, he spent 15 years in prison...
, a leader of the 1916 Easter RisingThe Easter Rising was an insurrection staged in Ireland during Easter Week, 1916. The Rising was mounted by Irish republicans with the aims of ending British rule in Ireland and establishing the Irish Republic at a time when the British Empire was heavily engaged in the First World War...
- John Dunlap
John Dunlap was the printer of the first copies of the Declaration of Independence and one of the most successful American printers of his era.-Biography:...
(1747–1812), publisher of the first American daily newspaper the Pennsylvania Packet in 1784, also the printer of the American Declaration of IndependenceA declaration of independence is an assertion of the independence of an aspiring state or states. Such places are usually declared from part or all of the territory of another nation or failed nation, or are breakaway territories from within the larger state...
.
- Janet Devlin, soul
Soul music is a music genre originating in the United States combining elements of gospel music and rhythm and blues. According to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, soul is "music that arose out of the black experience in America through the transmutation of gospel and rhythm & blues into a form of...
and popPop music is usually understood to be commercially recorded music, often oriented toward a youth market, usually consisting of relatively short, simple songs utilizing technological innovations to produce new variations on existing themes.- Definitions :David Hatch and Stephen Millward define pop...
artist and contestant on the Xfactor
- John Hughes
John Joseph Hughes , was an Irish-born clergyman of the Roman Catholic Church. He was the fourth Bishop and first Archbishop of the Archdiocese of New York, serving between 1842 and his death in 1864....
, (1797–1864), born in Annaloghan, first ArchbishopAn archbishop is a bishop of higher rank, but not of higher sacramental order above that of the three orders of deacon, priest , and bishop...
of Roman Catholic diocese of New York.
- Peter Canavan
Peter Canavan is manager of Fermanagh and an Irish former Gaelic football player for Tyrone, and is one of the most decorated players in the game's history, winning two All-Ireland Senior Football Championship medals, six GAA All Stars Awards , four provincial titles, and two National Leagues and...
, former All IrelandAll-Ireland is an attributive which emphasises the island of Ireland. It contrasts with expressions such as the South or Northern Ireland which apply only to regions. Many sports are organised on an all-Ireland basis....
winning Tyrone captain and second top scorer in Senior Ulster Championship football.
- Darren Clarke
Darren Christopher Clarke is a professional golfer from Northern Ireland who currently plays on the European Tour and has previously played on the PGA Tour. He has won 22 tournaments worldwide on a number of golf's main tours including the European Tour, the PGA Tour, the Sunshine Tour and the...
, professional golfer.
- Paul Brady
Paul Joseph Brady is an Irish singer-songwriter, whose work straddles folk and pop. He was interested in a wide variety of music from an early age...
, musician.
- Brian Dooher
Brian Dooher is an Irish Gaelic footballer who was a member for Tyrone between 1995 and 2011.He has won three All-Ireland Senior Football Championship medals, five Ulster Senior Football Championship and two National League titles with the county...
, current captain of the Tyrone senior football team.
- Hugo Duncan
Hugo Duncan is a singer and BBC broadcaster born in Strabane, Co Tyrone, Northern Ireland on 26 March 1950. His nickname is "The wee man from Strabane"....
, singer and broadcaster on BBC Radio.
- Dennis Taylor
Dennis Taylor is a retired snooker player, and current BBC snooker commentator. Winner of two ranking events, he is best known for winning the 1985 World Championship, beating World number one Steve Davis on the final black in one of the sport's most memorable finals...
, former World Snooker Champion.
- Aaron Hughes
Aaron William Hughes is a Northern Irish footballer who plays for Fulham. Hughes is able to play centre back, right back or left back, as well as anywhere in midfield. He is usually deployed in a centre half position for his club and country, and is the current Northern Ireland captain...
, current captain of the Northern Ireland football team and also plays for Fulham.
- Benedict Kiely
Benedict "Ben" Kiely was an Irish author and broadcaster from Omagh, County Tyrone, Ireland.-Early life:Benedict Kiely was born in Dromore, County Tyrone to Thomas John and Sara Alice Kiely. He was the youngest of six children, the others were Rita, Gerald, Eileen, Kathleen and Macartan; four of...
(1919–2007), writer and broadcaster
- Thomas Mellon
Thomas Alexander Mellon was a Scotch-Irish American, entrepreneur, lawyer, and judge, best known as the founder of Mellon Bank and patriarch of the Mellon family of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.-Early life:...
, founder of Mellon Bank, now Bank of New York MellonThe Bank of New York Mellon Corporation is a global financial services company formed on July 1, 2007 as result of the merger of The Bank of New York and Mellon Financial Corporation...
- Flann O'Brien
Brian O'Nolan was an Irish novelist, playwright and satirist regarded as a key figure in postmodern literature. Best known for novels such as At Swim-Two-Birds, The Third Policeman and An Béal Bocht and many satirical columns in The Irish Times Brian O'Nolan (5 October 1911 – 1 April 1966) was...
, 1911–1966, writer
- Victor Sloan
Victor Sloan MBE is an Irish photographer and artist.Victor Sloan studied at the Royal School, Dungannon, Co. Tyrone and Belfast and Leeds Colleges of Art, England. He lives and works in Portadown, County Armagh in Northern Ireland...
MBE, Visual Artist
- William Burke, 1792–1829, grave robber and murderer
- William Carleton
William Carleton was an Irish novelist.Carleton's father was a Roman Catholic tenant farmer, who supported fourteen children on as many acres, and young Carleton passed his early life among scenes similar to those he later described in his books...
, 1794–1869, writer
- Brian Friel
Brian Friel is an Irish dramatist, author and director of the Field Day Theatre Company. He is considered to be the greatest living English-language dramatist, hailed by the English-speaking world as an "Irish Chekhov" and "the universally accented voice of Ireland"...
, dramatist and theatre director
- Chloe Coyle, The All Ireland Talent Show (series 2)
The second series of The All Ireland Talent Show was announced on 10 August 2008. The winner was Chloe Coyle, The North.The second season is an extended one with more shows, seventeen in total....
- Ivan Sproule
Ivan Sproule is a Northern Irish professional association football player. Sproule, a winger who is known for his explosive pace, only turned professional after he signed for Scottish Premier League side Hibernian in January 2005, just a month before his 24th birthday...
, football player for Bristol City F.C.Bristol City Football Club is one of two football league clubs in Bristol, England . They play at Ashton Gate, located in the south-west of the City...
See also
- Abbeys and priories in Northern Ireland (County Tyrone)
- High Sheriff of Tyrone
The High Sheriff of Tyrone is the Sovereign's judicial representative in County Tyrone. Initially an office for lifetime, assigned by the Sovereign, the High Sheriff became annually appointed from the Provisions of Oxford in 1258...
- List of civil parishes of County Tyrone
- List of places in County Tyrone
- List of townlands in County Tyrone
- Lord Lieutenant of Tyrone
This is a list of people who have served as Lord Lieutenant of County Tyrone. The office was created on 23 August 1831.*Du Pre Alexander, 2nd Earl of Caledon 17 October 1831 – 8 April 1839*Francis Caulfeild, 2nd Earl of Charlemont June 1839 – 26 December 1863...
Further reading
- McNeill, I. 2010. The Flora of County Tyrone. National Museums of Northern Ireland. ISBN 978-905989-17-1
External links