Great Torrington is a market town in Devon, England. Parts of it are sited on high ground with steep drops down to the River Torridge below, with the lower-lying parts of the town prone to occasional flooding. Torrington is in the centre of Tarka Country, a landscape captured by Henry Williamson in his novel Tarka the Otter in 1927. Great Torrington has one of the most active volunteering communities in the United Kingdom.
Dartington Hall in Dartington, near Totnes, Devon, England, is an historic house and country estate of 1,200 acres (4.9 km2) dating from medieval times. The group of late 14th century buildings are Grade I listed; described in Pevsner's Buildings of England as "one of the most spectacular surviving domestic buildings of late Medieval England", along with Haddon Hall and Wingfield Manor. The medieval buildings are grouped around a huge courtyard; the largest built for a private residence before the 16th Century, and the Great Hall itself is the finest of its date in England. The west range of the courtyard is regarded nationally as one of the most notable examples of a range of medieval lodgings. The medieval buildings were restored from 1926 to 1938.
Riedel Crystal is a glassware manufacturer based in Kufstein, Austria, best known for its glassware designed to enhance different types of wines. According to Petr Novy, Chief curator Museum of Glass and Jewellery in Jablonec nad Nisou, Czech Republic, Riedel is the oldest family owned and operated global crystal glass brand worldwide. Established in Bohemia in 1756, the company is managed by Georg Riedel and Maximilian Riedel. Later, it was re-established by Claus J. Riedel in 1956, with the support of the Swarovski family.
Bakewell Glass is nineteenth-century glassware from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, produced by a company founded by Benjamin Bakewell. Bakewell's company can be found under the names ThePittsburgh Glass Manufactory, Bakewell & Page and, Bakewell, Pears & Co. Bakewell glass built a reputation of being both luxurious and utilitarian during the 80 years it was in business.
Edinburgh Crystal was a cut glass manufactured in Scotland from c. 1820s to 2006, and was also the name of the manufacturing company. In addition to drinking glasses, Edinburgh Crystal made decanters, bowls, baskets, and bells, in several ranges.
Tyrone Crystal was a crystal manufacturing company in Dungannon, County Tyrone in Northern Ireland.
Iittala, founded as a glassworks in 1881, is a Finnish design brand specialising in design objects, tableware and cookware. Iittala's official i-logo was designed by Timo Sarpaneva in 1956.
The firm of James Powell and Sons, also known as Whitefriars Glass, were London-based English glassmakers, leadlighters and stained-glass window manufacturers. As Whitefriars Glass, the company existed from the 17th century, but became well known as a result of the 19th-century Gothic Revival and the demand for stained glass windows.
High Bickington is a rural village and civil parish in the Torridge district of Devon, England. The village lies on the B3217 road, around 6 miles (10 km) east of Great Torrington, 8 miles (13 km) south-west of South Molton, and 8 miles (13 km) south of Barnstaple. At the 2011 Census, the parish had a population of 837.
Chance Brothers and Company was a glassworks originally based in Spon Lane, Smethwick, West Midlands, in England. It was a leading glass manufacturer and a pioneer of British glassmaking technology.
Caithness Glass is a Scottish artistic glassware manufacturing company. It was established in Wick, Caithness, Scotland in 1961 by Robin Sinclair, 2nd Viscount Thurso. It was rescued by George Mackie, Baron Mackie of Benshie in 1966. Mackie was chairman for the next two decades. Since 2006, the company has been based in Crieff, Perthshire. The company was created to help create additional employment in the face of continuing decline in local fishing and agriculture and also to take advantage of the easy availability of sand for glassmaking in Caithness. The local sand, however, proved unsuitable for manufacturing clear glass. The company soon specialised in the manufacture of glass paperweights, plus some ornamental glassware. The firm also became well known for supplying the annual trophy for the BBC Mastermind television quiz programme. The company was awarded a Royal Warrant by the Queen Mother in 1968.
The Fostoria Glass Company was a manufacturer of pressed, blown and hand-molded glassware and tableware. It began operations in Fostoria, Ohio, on December 15, 1887, on land donated by the townspeople. The new company was formed by men from West Virginia who were experienced in the glassmaking business. They started their company in northwest Ohio to take advantage of newly discovered natural gas that was an ideal fuel for glassmaking. Numerous other businesses were also started in the area, and collectively they depleted the natural gas supply. Fuel shortages caused the company to move to Moundsville, West Virginia, in 1891.
The Sneath Glass Company was an American manufacturer of glass and glassware. After a brief 1890s startup in Tiffin, Ohio, the company moved to Hartford City, Indiana, to take advantage of the Indiana Gas Boom. The small city was enjoying the benefits of the boom, and could provide natural gas as an energy source for manufacturers. Sneath Glass was one of many glass manufacturers that moved to the region, and became Hartford City's second largest employer.
Stevens & Williams was an English glass company located in Stourbridge, established in 1776 under the name of Honeybourne. It is one of the oldest crystal glass brands in England. In the late 1930's it became known as Royal Brierley, and mostly made fine cut glass brand. It is now owned by Dartington Crystal and based in North Devon.
Barometer World was the world's only barometer museum, and was located in the village of Merton, near Great Torrington, Devon, England. Barometer World makes, sells and restores barometers of a variety of types. It was established in 1979 by Philip Collins.
Royal Brierley is a fine cut glass brand, owned by Dartington Crystal and based in North Devon. It is one of the oldest crystal glass brands in England.
Hartford City Glass Company was among the top three window glass manufacturers in the United States between 1890 and 1899, and continued to be one of the nation's largest after its acquisition. It was also the country's largest manufacturer of chipped glass, with capacity double that of its nearest competitor. The company's works was the first of eight glass plants that existed in Hartford City, Indiana during the Indiana Gas Boom. It became the city's largest manufacturer and employer, peaking with 600 employees.
Seneca Glass Company was a glass manufacturer that began in Fostoria, Ohio, in 1891. At one time it was the largest manufacturer of blown tumblers in the United States. The company was also known for its high-quality lead (crystal) stemware, which was hand-made for nearly a century. Customers included Eleanor Roosevelt and Lyndon B. Johnson, and retailers such as Marshall Field and Company, Neiman Marcus, and Tiffany's.
Georg Josef Riedel is an Austrian glassmaker and businessman. He is the 10th-generation owner of Riedel established in 1756 and best known for its production of grape variety-specific glassware designed to enhance types of wines based on specific properties of individual grape varieties. Georg Riedel joined the family business in 1973 serving as accountant, before rising to co-CEO of Riedel Crystal alongside his father, Professor Claus Josef Riedel, from 1987 until 1994. He served as chief executive officer from 1994 until 2013. Georg Riedel succeeded his father, who first developed the concept of wine-enhancing glassware in 1958, and is best known for bringing variety-specific wine glasses to a global audience.
Indiana Glass Company was an American company that manufactured pressed, blown and hand-molded glassware and tableware for almost 100 years. Predecessors to the company began operations in Dunkirk, Indiana, in 1896 and 1904, when East Central Indiana experienced the Indiana gas boom. The company started in 1907, when a group of investors led by Frank W. Merry formed a company to buy the Dunkirk glass plant that belonged to the bankrupt National Glass Company. National Glass was a trust for glass tableware that originally owned 19 glass factories including the plant in Dunkirk. National Glass went bankrupt in 1907, and its assets were sold in late 1908.
