Tullamore
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- For the Tullamore in New South Wales, Australia see Tullamore.
Template:Infobox Irish Place Tullamore (Tulach Mhór in Irish Gaelic) is a large town in County Offaly, Republic of Ireland, located in the midlands region of Ireland, with approximately 20,000 (census 2002) inhabitants in the district. It is the county town (main administrative town) of County Offaly, a status previously held by Daingean. Tullamore is a major commercial and industrial center in the region and is renowned for medical industry, major international employers in the town include 'Tyco Healthcare' and 'Boston Scientific'. Tullamore is the home of the 'Midland Regional Hospital' and 'Midland Health Board' which employ over 1000 people. A new state of the art hospital is currently under construction and due to open in 2007. Tullamore was designated a 'gateway' town in late 2003 by the Irish Government, making it eligible for increased infrastructural investment. The town and its community received a bronze medal in the Governments National Tidy Towns Competition in 2004 and also played host the 'World Sheep Dog Trials' in 2005 which attracted huge international interest in the region.
The towns most famous export is Tullamore Dew - an Irish whiskey previously distilled by Tullamore Distillery - that can be traced back to 1829. The distillery closed in the 1950s but its traces are still visible in the town. Tullamore Dew is now produced by Irish Distillers Ltd. in Midleton, County Cork, and marketed by Cantrell & Cochrane.
History
Tullamore was part of the first English plantation of Offaly in the 1570s. In 1785 the town was seriously damaged when the crash of a hot air balloon resulted in a fire that burned down about 100 houses giving the town the unusual distinction of being home to the world's first aviation disaster. The Grand Canal linked Tullamore to Dublin in 1798. Tullamore became county town of County Offaly in 1835.