Donegal Carpets is a

trademark A trademark (also written trade mark or trade-mark) is a type of intellectual property consisting of a recognizable sign, design, or expression that identifies products or services from a particular source and distinguishes them from others ...

brand of handmade wool carpets produced in

Killybegs Killybegs () is a town in County Donegal, Ireland. It is the largest fishing port in the country and on the island of Ireland. It is located on the south coast of the county, north of Donegal Bay, near Donegal Town. Its Irish name ''Na Cealla ...

, a town in

County Donegal County Donegal ( ; ga, Contae Dhún na nGall) is a county of Ireland in the province of Ulster and in the Northern and Western Region. It is named after the town of Donegal in the south of the county. It has also been known as County Tyrconne ...

, Ireland. Donegal Carpets can be found in

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, the

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Brighton Brighton () is a seaside resort and one of the two main areas of the City of Brighton and Hove in the county of East Sussex, England. It is located south of London. Archaeological evidence of settlement in the area dates back to the Bronze A ...

, Eltham Palace, and the U.S.

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as well as many other parts of the world.

History

Although making carpets in Donegal is an ancient tradition, the company Donegal Carpets is but 100 odd years old and was founded in 1898 by Scottish textile manufacturer

Alexander Morton Alexander Morton (born 24 March 1945) is a Scottish actor. He is best known for his roles as Andy Semple in '' Take The High Road'', Golly MacKenzie in '' Monarch of the Glen'' and Billy Kennedy in ''River City''. Acting career Glasgow-born Mo ...

. Before establishing Donegal Carpets, Morton had first established a carpet crafting house on the west coast of Ireland and put to practice the techniques of the Donegal people who had been working with wool for generations. The first example of a Donegal carpet with Celtic designs was that carried out for the Department of Agriculture and Technical Instruction for their offices at the Cork Exhibition in 1902. There is another earlier example, a small Celtic-ornamented altar carpet, a Morton's gift to the St Eunan's Cathedral, Letterkenny County, Donegal, which was opened in June 1901. The altar carpet was designed by Signor Oreste Amici, a Roman painter, who carried out the Celtic ornamental painting in the St Columba Chapel in 1900. The Mortons sold the company to a consortium called Donegal Carpets Ltd. in 1957. There were four manufacturing houses at one time in County Donegal but three of the four facilities closed during

The Great Depression The Great Depression (19291939) was an economic shock that impacted most countries across the world. It was a period of economic depression that became evident after a major fall in stock prices in the United States. The economic contagio ...

and in 1987 the last facility closed. Local Donegal people petitioned the government to help re-open them in 1997 and in 1999 they were making carpets again for places such as

Áras an Uachtaráin (; "Residence of the President"), formerly the Viceregal Lodge, is the official residence and principal workplace of the President of Ireland. It is located off Chesterfield Avenue in the Phoenix Park in Dublin. The building design was credite ...

and the

University of Notre Dame The University of Notre Dame du Lac, known simply as Notre Dame ( ) or ND, is a private Catholic research university in Notre Dame, Indiana, outside the city of South Bend. French priest Edward Sorin founded the school in 1842. The main campu ...

. 1898 establishments in Ireland Carpet manufacturing companies

Carpets A carpet is a textile floor covering typically consisting of an upper layer of pile attached to a backing. The pile was traditionally made from wool, but since the 20th century synthetic fibers such as polypropylene, nylon, or polyester have ...

Textile companies of Ireland {{furniture-stub