Historical monument Archives

The historic Eidsvoll – Solbakke

Sundgata 12: Solbakke

Sundgt. 12 was built in 1897, first as a private residence for Otilie Andersen. She sold to Helge Myrvang, and the house was then used as a commercial building for a period.

It has housed both children's clothes, a shoemaker with horse equipment, a sewing room, a warehouse and a glass store. The building initially had 9 small rooms. In 1987-1994, the house was restored and converted into a residence again by Odd and Astrid Myrvang. B

y then, the house was almost 100 years old, and it was time for restoration. It was a big job. Among other things, the entire back wall had to be taken down due to rot, and for a period it was left open, with only one post to hold the roof up.

The current owner is Espen Jansen.

Blaker Skanse

Activities

Blaker Skanse offers beautiful surroundings, both because of the park, the fortress and of course the old buildings. If you are interested in history, and you like a special atmosphere, Blaker Skanse i really worth a visit.

Blaker Skanse is one of Romerike’s best preserved and less known pearls. It is located on the top of the hill, viewing Glomma, the largest river of Norway, and with buildings from the middle of 1700.

Blaker Skanse was built in 1683 as a defence against attack from Sweden, and to prevent the enemies (Swedes) to cross the river. From 1917 till 2003 Skansen was a place for education of craftsmen, art teachers and designers.

Today, the old fortress is used for offices, cultural creativity, happenings, weddings, parties, exhibitions, meeting, courses and conferences.

Nes Church ruins

The first stone church in Nes was built on the headland between the Glomma and Vorma rivers in the twelfth century.

The ruins of the old Nes church can be visited any time anf guided tours for groups by prior arrangement April- October.

In pre-Christian times, there was a sacrificial site here. The church was built as a long church in Romanesque style in the 12th century. It was set on fire by the Swedes during the Seven Years' War in 1566, but was rebuilt and expanded into a cruciform church in 1697. In 1854, the church burned down again, but due to the danger of landslides, it was not rebuilt.

Some of the inventory from the old church was saved and is now located in the new Nes church from 1860. Magnificent views of the confluence of the rivers and the Nesbygda area.

Today the ruins host concerts and weddings at this magnificent location.

Nes, or Store Nes as it was called in ancient times, got its name from the promontory formed by the meeting of the Vorma and Glomma rivers. Nestangen is worth a visit in itself. Here you will find varied vegetation, beautiful cultural landscape, reminders of major landslides, and, not least, the church ruins, which the national antiquarian called the most beautiful ruin in Norway.

Around the church, there is a park where benches and tables have been set up for a pleasant rest. The old church cabin standing here was moved here from Fenstad north in the village and was the place where Norway's first coin engraver came from.

From E16, it is well marked with signs. Outside the winter season, you can drive all the way down to the ruins during the daytime, where a parking lot has also been constructed. On the way down, you pass Ullershov farm with proud traditions spanning many hundreds of years.

Important information for visitors to Nes church ruins
It is not allowed to drive by car or other vehicle down to Nes chruch ruins at night time!
Road barrier has been set up at the farm Ullershov, with information about opening hours. The barrier goes down at 11pm and does not open until 7am.
During the winter months, the road will be inaccessible to vehicles, due to ice or snow. All traffic will then be at your own risk.

Information from Visit Greater Oslo

Filtvet Fyr

The first lantern at the lighthouse station was lit in 1840. It was placed in the wall of a private house. Gradually, ship traffic increased sharply, and in 1877 the new lighthouse was completed. The lighthouse was placed in a bay window on the second floor, above the lighthouse keeper's residence. When the lighthouse became electric in 1919, the lantern was moved up to a new lantern house, and since then, Filtvet lighthouse has looked like it does today. For more than a hundred years, lighthouse keepers lived here who made sure that the light never went out.

One of the more famous lighthouse keepers was Thomas Neumann. He came here in 1895, after a long career as skipper of several sailing ships. At that time, he was already 68 years old, and this was to be his retirement job. He moved into the lighthouse keeper's house with his wife Caroline. He was so happy that he protested when the lighthouse service wanted to replace him at the age of 82. He argued that it would be difficult to get a new job, as old as he had become. The case was solved by him receiving a small pension from the state, which was quite unusual at the time.

The automation of Norwegian lighthouses started in the 1980s, and since 1985 no people have lived in Filtvet lighthouse. But there is still a functioning lighthouse here, now in the form of a concrete column at the sea's edge.

Fetsund Lenser

Fetsund Lenser – a national heritage monument, timberfloating museum and nature centre. A unique blend of cultural and natural adventures, set in beautiful scenery on the Glomma, at the gateway to Nordre Øyeren nature reserve, northern Europe's largest inland delta. Norway's only preserved timber-sorting facility, now a national heritage monument.

Museum
Timber-sorting facility on the water, 20 listed buildings, boats, workshops, exhibitions.

Visitor Centre Wetland, Northern Øyeren.A 300 m2 children-friendly centre with lot of interactivity, prize-winning architecture and exhibitions with focus on regional nature and wetlands. Nature trail, beautiful surroundings and a walk path following the river through the museum area Cafe and shops.

Member of Visit Greater Oslo

Roald Amundsen´s home Uranienborg

For 20 years, Roald Amundsen lived in his house Uranienborg at Svartskog. When he disappeared in 1928, Uranienborg was left full of stories from the life he had lived and the people around him, including the secrets he had tried to keep to himself.

Roald Amundsen bought the house in 1908, and lived here until he stepped outside for the last time on June 16, 1928. He disappeared a few days later while trying to search for a missing Italian airship expedition.

Amundsen’s polar expeditions were costly and he eventually ran into money problems. In 1924, he went bankrupt, but two of his financial supporters, Herman Gade and Don Pedro Christophersen, bought Uranienborg and let Amundsen stay. After Amundsen’s death, they gave the property to the Norwegian state in 1933, and since 1934 Uranienborg has been a museum.

His home has been kept just as it was when he left for his final expedition. In 1911 Amundsen and his men skied to the South Pole as the first to reach the pole point.

More information you will find here

Member of Visit Greater Oslo

The historic Eidsvoll – The Gold Mines

Gullverket – the country's most famous gold mine.

If you drive the county road from the center of Eidsvoll to Nord-Odal, you pass an area called Gullverket. The place has a prehistory that deals with exactly what the place name implies: Norway's most famous gold mine was located here.

Mining for gold continued far into the forest from 1758 to 1907, with long interruptions in between. The Danish-Norwegian state, Bernt Anker and two English companies were among the owners of the gold works. Norwegian and Danish government officials, professors and writers visited the work in the pioneering period and wrote about their impressions and great hopes.

The Gold Mine became famous, but the truth was that neither company made any money. When the operation was at its most intense at the beginning of the 20th century, approximately 200 men worked in the gold operation at the Gold mine The mining community was international and modern with English directors and skilled workers, Swedish and Norwegian miners. The area had electricity and a telephone. The children of the miners had their own school, and the place had a shop and cultural offerings.

In 1907 it came to an abrupt end. The English company itself filed for bankruptcy, workers had to move away, buildings and machinery were sold at auction. Today, only the piles of rock, the mine shafts and the foundations of the settlement remain, apart from one house – the old laboratory. For well over 100 years, it has stood as it was left when operations ceased – with the chemical jars on shelves along the walls and the crucibles ready to be put into the melting furnaces.

The Norwegian Mining Museum at Kongsberg has described the laboratory as unique in a national context. The association of friends of the gold mines, Guldværket Cirkumferens, takes care of all the gold memorabilia and runs information on mining history. Information boards have been set up in several places, and the old laboratory has been restored and furnished as a museum where the association has collected all objects and photos from the mining era. Tours are now offered both in the museum and at the largest mining area, Brøstad mine.

Where the large gold washery stood while the English operated the works, the Friends' Association has built a cabin/hut with photos, maps and information about the operations and the ruins. Just book a tour.

On special days, the museum is opened for visitors without registration, with a subsequent offer of a guided tour of the mining area.

A book has also been written about the exclusive mining operations in the constitutional village; "The dream of gold". It is sold by the association of friends. Further information can be found online: http://www.gullverketmuseum.no/.

Dynamite history of Sætre

The factory was situated to Sætre as Håøya served as a natural shield that would help reduce the spread of an explosion and cause major damage. Embankments were also built around the factory to protect Sætre. In addition, Sætre had several other advantages such as access to hydropower, access to the sea to ship out dynamite and its remoteness from the largest towns.

The factory was a cornerstone company in Sætre; Around two-thirds of the population had their income from it. Workers' housing, a village hall and a school were built, and the local community grew. The life of the workers at the Engene dynamite factory was tough and risky, with the risk of explosions and accidents, of which there were several over the years. Dynamite production required accuracy and precision. The workers were also at risk of poisoning, health problems due to long working hours and poorly ventilated working conditions that caused chronic suffering.

How dynamite is made:

The main ingredient in dynamite was nitroglycerin, an extremely explosive liquid. Nitroglycerin was made by mixing glycerin with a strong acid mixture, usually nitric acid and sulfuric acid. Liquid is very unstable and can easily detonate on impact, heat or friction, so workers had to be careful. Then, the nitroglycerin had to be stabilized before it could be used to make dynamite. This was done by mixing with a porous absorbent material, usually diatomaceous earth (a naturally occurring silicate mineral). The dynamite was then sent to the "bakery" and mixed with other substances into a thicker mass that could be shaped into rods or other desired shapes. The dynamite was usually wrapped in cardboard or metal cover to protect it during storage and transportation.

After the dynamite was produced, it was carefully checked to test its explosiveness and stability, as well as to ensure that each production batch was uniform.

Due to the dangerous working conditions, technological developments and changes in the market, dynamite production ended in 1973 and the production of nitroglyceration in 1976. Nitrocellulose was produced until 1991, while production of dynamite continued at the plant at Gullhaug in Lier. Dynamite production at Engene was an important contribution to Norway's industrial development, but also a symbol of the risky working conditions that characterized the industry of the time.

Carsten Ankers summerhouse

Eidsvoll museum

Visit Eidsvoll Municipal museum, Eidsvoll Occupation museum, Feiring ironworks, St. Paul's iron mine and Carsten Anker's house

Member of Visit Greater Oslo

Ljan Mansion Hvervenbukta

The area was developed as a business park after Kolbotn was connected to the new E18 between Oslo and Vinterbro, which was completed in 1970, but it was not until the mid-1980s that major players such as IBM Norway, Orkla Foods, Robert Bosch, Volvo Norway, Kodak Norway and Norgesbuss established themselves here.
This, together with the construction of hotels, made Mastemyr a hub for international business in Oppegård and nearby areas.
The development also gave a boost to housing construction: nearby areas such as Mellomåsen, Trollåsen and Ingieråsen were developed within a few years. Today, Mastemyr is an extension of Kolbotn with Quality Hotell Entry as a gathering point and residential areas close to beautiful recreational areas such as Ingierstrand, Hvervenbukta and walks in the fields by Gjersjøen.