County Tyrone is the second largest of the nine counties of Ulster and the largest by area of the six counties of Northern Ireland. The county borders the Northern Ireland counties of Armagh, to the south-east, Fermanagh, to the south-west and County Derry to the north-east. The county also borders Lough Neagh to the east. The borders with the Republic of Ireland are County Monaghan to the south and County Donegal to the north-west.
The flat peat lands of East Tyrone borders the shoreline of the largest lake in Ireland, Lough Neagh, with its many amenities, rising gradually across to the more mountainous terrain in the west of the county, the area surrounding the Sperrin Mountains, the highest point being Sawel Mountain at a height of 678 m (2,224 ft). This is wonderful walking and hiking territory.
Historically Tyrone stretched as far north as Lough Foyle, and comprised part of modern day County Derry east of the River Foyle. The majority of County Derry was carved out of Tyrone between 1610 and1620. 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 Ulster, surviving into the seventeenth century. The ancient principality of Tir-Owen, the inheritance of the O'Neills, included the whole of the present counties of Tyrone and Derry and the two baronies of Inishowen and Raphoe in County Donegal.
Omagh is the County town of Tyrone. The town is said to owe its origins to an abbey founded in 792 AD, making it one of the oldest towns in Ireland. The town is in west central Ulster and is traditionally considered to be part of West Tyrone. Strabane, Dungannon and Cookstown make up the other main towns. All are market towns with agriculture being the predominant industry in the lush countryside.
Gaelic Games are particularly strong in Tyrone. In 119 years since the foundation of the GAA, Tyrone had never won an All-Ireland Football title, but in the 2003 they won their first and followed with two more in 2005 and 2008. Mickey Harte, their manager for all three, has been canonized as result!
The visitor will find a vibrant pastoral county marked by the friendly nature of its people and the surprising places of interest. The main towns have good accommodation and leisure facilities to suit all the family.
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