The later 19th century brought a boost to the town's development: the former 2000 people-small town arose to an industrial centre of glass, porcelain and toy production. Furthermore, mining saw a resurgence by gaining fluorite and "Braunstein" (manganese ore). After being connected by railway in 1879, the industrial revolution reached the town. Some factories for porcelain ("Graf von Henneberg Porzellan" since 1777), glasswares (the "Sophienhütte" since 1852) and toys developed and grew until the Great Depression. It weakened especially private consumption, so that Ilmenau's toy industry collapsed, same as some porcelain producers focussed on bibelot.