Waterford
Town
Waterford (from the Old Norse: Veðrafjorðr
meaning "Ram fjord" or Windy fjord; Irish:
Port Láirge, meaning Hilly Shore) is a city in
Ireland. It is the primary city of the South East region,
and the fifth largest in the country. Founded in 914
AD, by the Vikings, it is Ireland's oldest city, and
its motto Urbs Intacta Manet Waterfordia ("Waterford
remains the untaken city"), that did not capitulate
to Cromwell's New Model Army, but surrendered to Henry
Ireton on 6 August 1650.
Waterford is the largest city in Ireland
to retain its Viking-derived name, Vedrarfjord.[3] Reginald's
Tower is the oldest urban civic building in Ireland,
and the oldest monument to retain its Viking name. It
is to this day Waterford's most recognisable landmark.
The tower is believed to be the first building in Ireland
to use mortar.
Waterford and the River Suir by night
The population of the city in 2006 was
49,240; of which 45,775 lived within the city limits,
and 3,465 lived in the city's suburbs in County Kilkenny.
The River Suir flows through Waterford
city and has provided a basis for Waterford's long maritime
history. Waterford Port has been one of Ireland's major
ports for over a millennium. In the 19th century shipbuilding
was a major industry in the city. The owners of the
Neptune Shipyard, the Malcomson family, built and operated
the largest fleet of iron steamers in the world between
the mid-1850s and the late-1860s, including five trans-atlantic
passenger liners.
Today, Waterford is synonymous with
Waterford Crystal the world over, a legacy of one of
the city's most successful and enduring industries,
glass making. Glass, or crystal, has been manufactured
in the city since 1783. Waterford is the sister city
of St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador and Rochester,
New York.
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