Shannon Ulster Titanic Society
Abbeyleix Heritage Titanic Exhibition
The Titanic exhibition at Heritage House celebrates the initiative of Ivo de Vesci, the 5th Viscount, who was instrumental in setting up a very successful carpet factory in Abbeyleix in 1904. Making high quality carpets, the factory supplied carpets to Harrods in London, Marshall Fields in Chicago and supplied specific orders for the coronation of King George V, for the secretary's office in the Grandstand at Royal Ascot , for the Mansion House in Dublin and many more.
Forced to amalgamate with a factory in Kildare and losing control of the Abbeyleix factory, the Titanic connection was born out of Ivo de Vesci's determination to win back the factory. Following a personal drive to fill orders for the flagging factory, The White Star Line ordered four hand-tufted rugs for the S.S. Olympic, built at Harland and Wolff and launched in 1911. When the Titanic was being fitted out, The White Star Line, impressed with the quality of the carpets supplied to the Olympic, ordered three hand-tufted carpets for the state rooms of the S.S. Titanic.
Believing the fortunes of the factory to be on the turn, and recognising the power of advertising, Ivo de Vesci had the foresight to photograph the Titanic carpets on the looms at Abbeyleix A copy of that photograph forms part of the Titanic Exhibition, and uniquely, a photograph from the Fr. Brown collection depicting the writing room on the Titanic clearly shows one of the Abbeyleix rugs in situ on the Titanic.
The Titanic exhibition is complemented with some wonderful memorabilia which is on loan from The Shannon Ulster Titanic Society.
Abbeyleix Heritage Company is indebted to Patrick Toms for his continued support of the Titanic Exhibition at Heritage House.
The Titanic exhibition at Heritage House celebrates the initiative of Ivo de Vesci, the 5th Viscount, who was instrumental in setting up a very successful carpet factory in Abbeyleix in 1904. Making high quality carpets, the factory supplied carpets to Harrods in London, Marshall Fields in Chicago and supplied specific orders for the coronation of King George V, for the secretary's office in the Grandstand at Royal Ascot , for the Mansion House in Dublin and many more.
Forced to amalgamate with a factory in Kildare and losing control of the Abbeyleix factory, the Titanic connection was born out of Ivo de Vesci's determination to win back the factory. Following a personal drive to fill orders for the flagging factory, The White Star Line ordered four hand-tufted rugs for the S.S. Olympic, built at Harland and Wolff and launched in 1911. When the Titanic was being fitted out, The White Star Line, impressed with the quality of the carpets supplied to the Olympic, ordered three hand-tufted carpets for the state rooms of the S.S. Titanic.
Believing the fortunes of the factory to be on the turn, and recognising the power of advertising, Ivo de Vesci had the foresight to photograph the Titanic carpets on the looms at Abbeyleix A copy of that photograph forms part of the Titanic Exhibition, and uniquely, a photograph from the Fr. Brown collection depicting the writing room on the Titanic clearly shows one of the Abbeyleix rugs in situ on the Titanic.
The Titanic exhibition is complemented with some wonderful memorabilia which is on loan from The Shannon Ulster Titanic Society.
Abbeyleix Heritage Company is indebted to Patrick Toms for his continued support of the Titanic Exhibition at Heritage House.
