EGERSUNDS WOODEN HOUSES A walk around
Egersund is one of the best preserved ‘wooden house towns’ in Norway. It is situated in Eigersund municipality, which, together with Bjerkreim, Lund and Sokndal, makes up the Dalane region. Eigersund municipality has a population of about 13.500.
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Egersund church. In the Middle Ages, there were probably two churches along the Egersundstranda shoreline. St Mary’s probably stood on the site of today’s Egersund church, a site that has been important from the earliest times. The square in front of the church, which is now the market square, was called Lahedlå in former times, a name that indicates that there was already a wharf there in the Viking era. The history books also tell us that the King’s Leidang ship, where taxes were collected, was also moored at the site of the present church. According to legend, the site of the church is called Heidningeholmen (heathen island). This, plus its proximity to Hauen, may indicate that it was the site of a pre-Christian cult. The old roads and paths to the harbour end at Lahedlå. Egersund church is the town’s oldest surviving building - and parts of it have been dated to the 1620s. Its present appearance dates from the years 1785 to 1788, when it went from being a long church to a cruciform church. Alterations have been made to its interior on several occasions. Among other things, galleries were built as the town’s population increased. In 1888, it was the second biggest church in the county of Rogaland and seated 1,160. The graveyard was the only graveyard in the parish until 1844.
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Strandgaten is a street of closely built and varied houses. It used to be the town’s main street. It was built as a result of a zoning decision in September 1843, when all the buildings in the area extending from the church and along the shoreline were destroyed by a huge fire. Two-thirds of the town was destroyed - a total of 92 residential houses in addition to wharfside warehouses, boathouses and boats. On reconstruction, the area destroyed by fire was planned on Renaissance lines with a ‘modern’ town plan based on a grid design. The buildings here were influenced by the Continental architectural style (Late Empire), but there are also traditional small houses with central chimneys. Beside the shore were the merchants and ship-owners’ houses, while seamen, craftsmen etc. lived on the slopes on the other side of the street.
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One of the most characteristic Late Empire buildings is Strandgaten 58. The house was built in 1846 by District Recorder Christian Feyer in 1846 after he had lost his old house in the fire. The park on the other side of the street used to be the garden of that property. On 2 July 1869, the day after the telegraph cable (from Peterhead to Hestnes), was brought ashore, there were big celebrations with many toasts and long speeches in the district recorder’s house. The consul even addressed the British guests in English. The building was purchased by the municipality that same year and it was used as a secondary school until 1990. In 1992 the building was restored to its original appearance, and is now used for offices and as an exhibition and concert venue.
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From Skriverbrygga wharf, we have a clear view of Egersund’s inner harbour area. The town’s seafront clearly illustrates how important fishing and shipping have been for the town. There are still wharfside warehouses there that were built during the herring fisheries boom around the 1850s and the trading companies set up to serve the shipping industry. The town puts great emphasis on preserving its historical identity, and great effort is put into ensuring that new buildings in this area have the design and dimensions tradition demands. On the other side of the bay, there are fish-processing factories and other maritime enterprises, and on the left we can also catch a glimpse of Lindøy battery emplacement, which still has cannons and a powder tower from around the time of the Napoleonic wars. Storgata 49, which is also called the Hammersgården building, is an example of the spacious conditions that were characteristic of waterfront properties after the big town fire. There was a general store and a storeroom in the basement. The residential part of the building contained a great number of reception rooms, while the attic has eight to ten rooms and chambers. Until 1987, the building housed the municipality’s administration.
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A little further out, at the junction with Brattegaten, in number 46, we find Stiftelsen Feylingbua (the Feylingbua Foundation) - a property that provides a good picture of a waterfront property from the 1880s. It was one of the earliest houses to be built in the Swiss style in the street. The buildings now serve as a coastal culture centre with both wharfside warehouses and merchants’ houses. Guided tours are available in summer and by arrangement. Number 44 houses a traditional potter’s studio and shop. There, ceramics are turned and moulded using old traditions and moulds from the former Egersund faience factory.
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A little further out the street stands one of the town’s listed buildings, which is still in use as a residence, Strandgaten 43. (Strandgaten 41 and 58 are also listed buildings). This house still has its old ‘spying’ mirrors in place, so that it is possible to sit in the house and have full control of what is happening out on the street in both directions. Take particular note of the well-preserved classical entrance. Proceeding further up Brattegaten, we come to Nygaten street, where we stop.
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Nygaten 14 (11), Bilstadhuset. Like most of the other buildings in the area, this house was built right after the fire. What makes this house unusual is that it still stands exactly as it was when new, with its original weatherboarding and windows. There used to be a sailmaker’s workshop in the part of the building facing onto Øvre Bekkegate. It is completely intact and the tools used in the workshop are also still in place. The property also contains a small barn with a byre - it was very common during the last century for townspeople to keep livestock. The Bilstadhuset building is owned by Dalane Folk Museum. Guided tours are available during the summer and by arrangement.
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If we head towards the town centre, we arrive at Skriverallmenningen square, which is so named because the district recorder (sorenskriver) used to live there (see 4. Strandgaten 58). Diagonally across from here, we see the old school building. There has been a school there ever since it was built. First it was a primary and lower secondary school, then an upper secondary school and now it is a culture school. The reason why Skriver-allmenningen square is broad and straight with linden trees up the centre is that it was intended to act as one of the towns three firebreaks.
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Skriverallmenningen number 3 on the right is a traditional house with a central chimney that was built in 1846. In 1865, two households with a total of seven members lived in the building.
Having passed the Salvation Army’s meeting hall, we take a left turn down Ludvig Feylings gate. This street ends in Årstadgaten which is built on what was once one of Årstad farm’s shoreside roads. Along the way, we pass distinctive low-rise, yet charming wooden houses - often with small, cosy gardens.
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Our walk continues up Årstadgaten to Peder Clausens gate. Peder Clausen Friis was born here in 1545. He is known for his writings on history and geography and for his translation of the Icelandic historian Snorri Sturlasson’s Heimskringla (Sagas of the Norwegian kings).
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We continue up Årstadgaten to Johan Feyers gate, which, like Skriverallmenningen square, is also intended to serve as a firebreak. The street is named after the son of district recorder Feyer, who founded Egersund faience factory in 1847. The factory was in operation for 132 years, and many fine examples of its production are on
STOP 14 show at Egersund Faience (ceramics) Museum. If we look down Johan Feyers gate, we see Storgaten 12, which was restored and taken into use as a hotel in 1995. On the right at the junction with Kirkegaten, you can see the house (number 23) where Priscilla Presley’s maternal grandfather grew up. There is a star-shaped memorial stone embedded in the pavement in front of the house. Peder Clausens gate ends in Lerviksbakken hill. Kjell Grette Christensen’s sculpture ‘The girl with the harmonica’ stands at the bottom of the hill.
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Descending from Lerviksbakken, we arrive at Lervika. There were big fires in this area in both 1859 and 1862 and some tens of buildings were destroyed. Lervika bay has now been partly reclaimed, but the old wharfside warehouses clearly indicate where the shoreline used to be. Today, the area in front of the warehouses is officially called Nytorget square.
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From here, we proceed up beside one of the old warehouses into Storgaten (storgate = big street). This was the main street in Egersund until motorised traffic began in earnest and roads of a different standard were required. The buildings on the southern side of the street were moved to create more space for motorised traffic. The street is still a lively shopping street, but it has now been pedestrianised and has a good selection of charming shops with a personal touch as well as restaurants. At the junction with Kirkegaten is Grisatorget square, where the trade in piglets (gris = pig) took place in former times. Skule Vaksvik’s sculpture of piglets is a reminder of this.
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Kirkegaten, (church street) was popularly called ’kraksasmaue’ (cracks lane) since there used be several stoneware shops there (kraksa meaning cracks or ceramics seconds and smau being Norwegian for lane or alleyway). A shop of this kind has been reconstructed at the Faience Museum.
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The Hauen area is Egersund’s ‘mediaeval town’. Although the buildings in this cluster have undergone a great deal of change, the foundations remain the same as when the area was first developed, probably between 1750 and 1800. Hauen has grown organically and been developed to meet a variety of needs and uses, and was not built according to any plan. In the Hauen area, residential houses stood in perfect harmony with outhouses, workshops, barns and byres, and (with one vote against in the town council) the area escaped demolition in the 1970s. Today, the area has been restored and contains a nice mix of houses, businesses, shops and restaurants. It is one of the real gems of Egersund town centre.
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With Hauen (the old town) in the background, we come to Torget market square, an arena for large and small events. In both summer and winter, you will find market traders selling fresh fish and fish products, flowers, fruit and vegetables. It also hosts activities and concerts during the many annual events such as the Dalane Blues Festival, Fyrfestival (a culture festival for the disabled), Egersundsugå Festival, Egersund Folk Music festival, the Okka Festival, markets and fairs and, not least, the Christmas Town, when the market square is converted into an old-fashioned Christmas market with a big Christmas tree and entertainment for young and old. To celebrate the last day of the year and to welcome in the New Year, the whole town gathers in the market square to be entertained and to enjoy some spectacular fireworks.
5. Feylingsbua 6. Strandgaten 43 7. Nygaten 11 - Bilstadhuset 8. Skriveallmenningen
9. Skriveallmenningen 3 10. Ludvig Feylingsgate 11. Peder Clausensgate 12. Johan Feyers gate
13. Lervika 14. Storgaten 15. Kirkegaten 16. Hauen
17 Torget
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e nd me r m u co to Re de
Recommended detour Kari Agner • NBK • BKFR Sculptures • Paintings Open studio: Saturdays 11 - 14 or by appointment, tel: (+47) 928 28 910 Elvegaten 15, 4370 Egersund studio@kariagner.no www.kariagner.no
www.sogndalstrand-media.no. Front page photo and page 2, 3, 4, 5: Hugo Lütcherath
1. Egersund church 2. Strandgaten 3. Skrivergården 4. Skriversbrygga