Солтүстік Ирландиядағы Комбер қаласы

Town in County Down, Northern Ireland
town in Northern Ireland

Comber ( /'//k//ʌ//m//(//b//)//@r/, CUMber, locally cummer) is a town in County Down, Northern Ireland. It lies 5 mile (8 km) south of Newtownards, at the northern end of Strangford Lough. It is situated in the townland of Town Parks, the civil parish of Comber and the historic barony of Castlereagh Lower.

The confluence of two rivers, which gave the town its name, is that of the Glen River and the Enler River which meet here. During the influx of Scots in the early 1600s (see Plantation of Ulster), a settlement grew up at Comber, although it was focused about 1 mile (2 km) further south than at present, in the townland of Cattogs, and there is evidence that the settlement was a port used by traders and fishermen. By the 1700s, however, the focus of the town had moved to the area of the present main Square and Comber became established as an industrial centre with several mills. The Andrews family made Comber a centre of both linen production and grain processing by the second half of the 1700s. Whiskey distilling was a prominent industry by the mid 1800s, the most prominent of the distillers being John Miller, uncle of William James (Lord) Pirrie and Eliza (wife of Thomas Andrews Snr.). One member of the Andrews family, Thomas Andrews, was the designer of the and lost his life when the ship sank in 1912. By 1841 the town had 1,400 inhabitants. The 20th century saw Comber lose much of its industry but re establish itself as a commuter town for the Belfast urban area, swelling in population from 4,000 in 1961 to 8,933 according to the 2001 census. In Comber's square stands the statue of Major General Rollo Gillespie. Gillespie was a local war hero from the 19th century, famous for his heroic exploits in India. It was constructed under the oversight of John Fraser, the first county surveyor of Down, and was unveiled on 24 June 1845 (St. John's Day). Fifty lodges of the Masonic Order were present, in what is believed to be the biggest Masonic gathering in Irish history. It was calculated that 25,000 to 30,000 people crowded into the town to witness the ceremony. The column is 55 feet high. At the foot of the column are many Masonic symbols and his famous last words "One shot more for the honour of Down". The Square also has a memorial to those who died on the Titanic, which has strong links to the town. The town has its own "Comber Titanic Audio Trail which guides you to special places of interest throughout Comber that relate to the Titanic story." In 1978, the Provisional Irish Republican Army bombed La Mon restaurant, killing 12 people. The Enler River in Comber has flooded many times. As a result, the Comber flood wall was built along the river through the town which has held the water back since.

Comber railway station on the Belfast and County Down Railway, opened on 6 May 1850, but finally closed on 24 April 1950. Comber also has a good public transport network with buses travelling to Belfast and Newtownards everyday on a frequent basis. In 2003 'phase two' of the Comber bypass was officially opened for traffic. This new section starts at the end of the dual carriage way from Newtownards and links up with the existing section via a roundabout on Killinchy street. Comber is also connected by a direct cycle route to Belfast. Known as the Comber Greenway, this traffic free cycle path runs for 7 mile (11 km) along the old railway track bed.

One of the three local primary schools is Comber Primary School. There are 15 teachers at the school. Notable alumni include Northern Ireland footballer Stephen Craigan. The other local primary school is Andrews Memorial Primary School, operating under the headmaster, Ralph Magee, which is of a similar size and as part of the school buildings includes the Andrews Memorial Hall, which was built by the citizens of Comber in memory of Thomas Andrews, the shipbuilder of the
The third primary school is St. Mary's Primary School, which is much smaller in size. Many pupils from these schools go to Nendrum College, Comber, next door to Comber Primary, and Regent House Grammar School, Newtownards.

Comber is most famous for being the birthplace of Thomas Andrews (born in 1873), the RMS Titanic's shipbuilder, who died in the sinking of the Titanic in 1912. John Miller Andrews was Northern Ireland's second Prime Minister between 1940 and 1945. He was born in 1871 and became a flax spinner and a wealthy landowner in Comber. He died in 1956. Sir Robert Rollo Gillespie (1766–1814) reached the rank of Major General, campaigning against the French in the West Indies and also in India. He participated in the Vellore Mutiny and in Sumatra where he fought against the Sultan. He was killed in action storming a Gurkha fort in Kalunga, Dehradun, India. Racing driver Jonny Kane (born 14 May 1973), was born in Comber. He was crowned British Formula Three champion in 1997 and went on to become 'rookie of the year' in the 1999 IndyLights series in the United States. Edmund De Wind, was born in Comber and was a Canadian (also considered Irish) recipient of the Victoria Cross in World War I. He was a member of The Royal Irish Rifles, killed during the 1918 Battle of the Somme on 21 March 1918, after repelling attack after attack until he was mortally wounded and collapsed. There is a housing estate in Comber named after him built in the 1950s. Edmund was officially remembered in Comber on Friday 14 September 2007 through the unveiling of an Ulster History Circle "Blue Plaque" in his honour. He was educated at Campbell College, Belfast. Former Northern Ireland footballer Stephen Craigan hails from the town. Stephen played 54 times for his country in a career spanning 18 years. He retired in May 2012 at Motherwell FC to pursue a career in the media. Stephen attended local schools, Comber Primary and Comber High School (now Nendrum College). The jazz singer Ottilie Patterson (1932 2011) was born in Comber.

The Ballydrain Harrier and Athletic Club was founded in 1932 and originally trained from The Old Schoolhouse, Ballydrain. For many years it was one of the most successful clubs in Northern Ireland, but went into decline, and by 2010 had only a few members left. A move to training at the North Down Cricket Club brought about a resurgence in membership, continuing to grow quickly with members training and racing weekly.

The Ards Circuit through Comber was a motorsport street circuit used for RAC Tourist Trophy sports car races from 1928 until 1936. At the time it was Northern Ireland's premier sporting event, regularly attracting crowds in excess of a quarter of a million people.

One of Comber's finest sporting moments came on Christmas morning 1991 when local amateur football team Comber Rec., managed by Mervyn Boyce, overcame favourites Brantwood to lift the Steel and Sons Cup for the first time.

Comber is also the home of one of Ireland's oldest and most successful cricket clubs, North Down Cricket Club, which has played its home matches at The Green since 1857. It has won the NCU Challenge Cup a record 30 times, the NCU Senior League outright on 17 occasions and the Irish Senior Cup 3 times since its inception in 1984.

North Down Hockey Club is a field hockey club affiliated to the Ulster Hockey Union. The club was founded in 1896. The club was formed by members of North Down Cricket Club in 1896 and is one of the founder members of the Ulster Hockey Union. The first reported Club match in Ulster was played in Comber against Cliftonville on 7 November 1896, with North Down winning 8–0. In 1899 1900 North Down won their first two trophies. In the only year when the Keightley Cup for the Ulster Senior League was played for on a knock out basis, Antrim were defeated 3–2 in the final and in the Kirk Cup Final Cliftonville were beaten 4–2. North Down Hockey Club is based at The Green in Comber, home of North Down Cricket Club. The first hockey pitch was at the Castle Lane side of the ground on the cricket outfield. A celebration game against Cliftonville as part of the Centenary was played on this same pitch. In 1994 the decision was taken to play all first team games on the artificial turf pitch at Glenford Park, Newtownards. In 1999 the team returned to Comber and now play at Comber Leisure Centre. The Club still uses the synthetic pitch at Glenford Park and also at Nendrum College, Comber so that all home games are played on synthetic surfaces.