The history of a town

FOTEFAR MOT NORD

Vefsn Museum "... and behind is Vefsen, the crooked fiord, where many grassy slopes lead down to lovely bays and inlets" (: Trompet) It began with some boathouses. The farmers in the inland A new church was consecrated in i735. Attending church valleys were also fishermen and needed buildings where took a long time then, often requiring overrright accom- they could keep their boats and gear. Not far away is modation, so beds were put into the boathouses. Dolstad, where a church has stood since the Middle Ages. As time went by, shacks were also built and two tradesmen Front cover: Jacobsenbrygga in Sjpgata, now Museum. Karl set up business, one at each end of the row of boathouses. Jacobsens Enke was a shipping ffice situated here. The firm sutvives as Craftsmen built their workshops and houses, and still more J. Jacobsen & Sønn, with premises on the railway quay. tradesmen came, even an executioner. A street was Petter Dass ( 1647-1707) served as the family teacher for the minister oJ' eventually made behind the boathouses and the shacks. On Vefsn Church. His intimate knowledge of the area is reflected in his 1 January 1875, Mosjgen achieved the status of a town. poem " Nordlands Trompet". Mosjpen sprang up on one oJ the " grassy The busy centre in the new town was Sjøgata. slopes", where the River enters the fjord. The tycoon and the log driver SjBgata had - and still has - room for everyone. Like today, around 1860, you could find an average ofthe popu- lation in Sjøgata. The rich merchant, the hardworking craftsman, the go-ahead telegram boy and the toiling log driver had one thing in common - they lived in Sjøgata. At the north end of Sjøgata, Peter Bech opened a mer- chant's business and guest house in 1782. Andreas Bech Jiirgensen, who inherited it in 1866, expanded it into a mini-empire involving forests, sawmills, silver mines, a shipping company and fish processing in . He also ran a merchant's business in Sandnesjøen, was an active politician and the mayor for several periods.

Injust a few years, he had built several buildings that are still standing in Sjøgata. No. 1 was the main one, followed by no. 2, three waterfront warehouses (Nybryggen, Landgangsbryggen and Storbryggen), a large boathouse, servant's accommodation and a storehouse. These bear witness to the initiative shown by Andreas Jtirgensen.

And close by, Nils Jensen, a postman and log driver, built his modest house in 1868.

The t,vcoon oJ Sj;lgata, Andreas Bech Jiirgensen, was a versatile gentleman, but he w*as forced to discctntinue his bu.sinesses in 1892. He still holds an important position in the history rf Mosjpen. The log driver's house is still standing, too, but Nils Jensen is only one among many other names. Engelskbru ket on Halsøya= The North of Europe Land & Mining Co. Ltd. Modern - and Vefsn - are direct results of the in England, and the desire for free trade had removed the industrial revolution in England. Industrialism transformed the customs duty that had protected Canadian timber. Hence, there whole of society, the settlement pattern, the political life, ideas was a lot of profit to be made for the Englishmen in the dense and beliefs. The modernisation of society implied a cultural forests of Vefsn, Grane and . revolution. The old society was buried and a completely new - They also had a technological advantage. English engineering reality was created. had developed highly efficient sawmill machinery and steam The meeting with England and the new era reached Vefsn engines. These made the old waterpowered saws in Norway early and was very direct.In 1865, five Englishmen, Frost, hopelessly old-fashioned. The steam saws also had the Prince, Comyn, Croskey and Collis, bought "Vefsen's advantage that they could be sited at the mouths of big rivers, Clearings" from Fredrik Holst and began a major forestry thus easing the delivery of timber and the shipping of sawn and sawmill operation in the district. There was a huge timber. This is why Engelskbruket was placed on the island demand for timber to build houses in the new industrial towns of Halsøy outside Mosjøen. ffi jr-*i,l ' . ] -,--':',l -1 ;J ] flfu l England had an outstanding position of power in the mid-19th century and English businessmen looked upon themselves as representatives of a more advanced civilisation when they started trading and industrial enterprises in every corner of the world.

Steam power and industrial development were supposed to spread civilisation and advance to peoples and nations at a lower stage of evolution - such as those in and other 'primitive people' on the fringes of Europe.

Many in Norway feared the steam saws and English capitalists. Instead of advance and civilisation, unemployment, destruction of nature and loss of the country's riches were envisaged. The old sawmill privileges were therefore not abolishedbefore 1860.

Timber was one of the country's leading exports and the authorities believed that the free initiative would be a blessing to this industry, too. To ensure the 'enhancement of the national wealth' , the old system of privileges was dismantled, and the way was paved for greater freedom in business. Liberalism became the guide for the civil servants' plans for developing the country. Engelskbruket had its place here.

Engelskbruket meant that the little community that was already developing on the shore at the mouth of the Vefsna became the first town in . The sawmill needed many workers. Farmer's sons and cotters set up as shopkeepers and craftsmen. People from far and near settled in Mosjøen, attracted by the new opportunities. The place was becoming part of the modern world.

A busy London scene a century ago. Englandwas a global pov)er cen- tre of vital importance for modern Norway and the growth of Mosjpen as a town- A iob with a future Ole Mo (1845-1906) had served his apprenticeship as a fields. He was a leading Liberal on the local council, an watchmaker in Trondheim. He was one of many craftsmen adherent of New Norwegian and a teetotaller. He became who moved nofih at the time Engelskbruket existed to make the first chairman of Mosjøen craftsmen's guild in 1898. In Mosjøen the centre for craftsmanship in Helgeland. More 1905, he was on the committee to elect the form of than25 crafts were present in Mosjøen. government for the newly independent country - he agitated for a republic. Watchmaking was a job with a future then. Time had a new rhythm and was regulated by the clock, not by the seasons Ole Mo mostly had his workshop and home in Peter Bech's and traditions. Pocket watches became common in the gate, but he travelled to America several times to earn money. 1850's, and the first trained watchmakers came to MosjØen After Engelskbruket closed down, many craftsmen emigrated in the 1860's. The very first were Jens A. Laksfors and Peder or 'commuted' across the Atlantic. In America, Ole Mo lived Klæboe. With the herring fishery and Engelskbruket at their in Sioux City in Iowa - in the heart of Norwegian America. peak, people could afford to decorate themselves with a Both his sons stayed there and followed their father's watch chain. Ole Mo made his mark on the town in several profession. Ole Mo returned to Mosjøen for good in 1905. Tailors and seamstresses At the turn of the century, Mosjøen had five tailor's shops. The tailors often had years of apprenticeship behind them in In addition to around ten tailors. there were about 40 seam- towns further south in Norway - some had even been abroad. stresses, mostly self-employed. Tailoring, like shoemaking, For instance, master tailor Ivar Hansen from Hemnesberget, baking and carpentry, was an important business in Mosjgen. who came to Mosjgen in 1921, had lived in London for Youngsters, especially girls, came from far and near to learn several years, and worked as a tailor in Copenhagen, and to sew. After a winter's apprenticeship, many returned home Savoy. to practice their skills. Master tailor Johan Henrichsen ( 1865- 1913) was born at Torget in Brønnøy and served his apprenticeship in Brønnøy- sund and Trondheim. He came to Mosjøen in 1896. The town had recovered from the depression following the collapse of Engelskbruket. In 1908, he bought 2l Sjøgata, where he had "an exceptionally fine shop and fabric store". He employed several journeymen and sewing maids in his workshop. Johan Henrichsen must have been unusually able because in 1908 he won a state scholarship to attend a course at the Academy of Cutters in Copenhagen. He also studied tailoring in Stockholm.

When he died in 1913, his wife Emilie took over the business. It gradually became modernised, more goods were added * shirts, ties and galoshes, and readymade suits and coats. When their son, Hilmar, took over after the 2nd World War, the "tailor's business" had become a "mens' outfitters". Their daughter, Klara (Baadst@), opened her own ladies' wear shop in 1932. Other Mosjøen craftsmen also opened shops. A "shoe shop" was opened by a shoemaker named Rødseth, a paint shop by a master painter named Gudmundsen and a tinsmith named Brandth began selling ironware and kitchen utensils.

Emilie Henrichsen (1869- 1965) had many talents. Besicles sewing, she upholstered.furniture, washed gloves and cleaned Panama hats, which v,ere in.fashion. When her husband died, she v,cts able to clemonstrate her busine,ys talents, too. She erpanded the business, employing journel,men and sen*ing maids, who ofien lived in. Making prefabricated houses is a tradition The claddin g on 24 Sjøgata conceals timber walls, each log scored with marks. These numbered timbers tell us that the building was completed somewhere else, before being dismantled and reassembled on this particular site.

Transport costs could be saved by doing the carpentry where the forest was. MosjØen's first newspaper, Helgelands Tidende, occasionally had advertisements offering prefabricated houses for sale. Not only the houses came from the villages, but also the plans. Many houses in Sj6gata are designed like typical farmhouses. ) Sjpgata was not only a street for business and craft trades. No. 51 was built in 1872 by a telegram messenger named Elias Fiskum. When the house was renovated, the carpentry was found to be a patchwork of different kinds \\ of timbers. The wages of a telegram messenger were W certainly modest, and Fiskum had used materials from al demolished buildings or remnants from the construction .,1 of larger buildings. But a house was built - and it's still b'' standins todav. !$ )';;, I /- I It vvas the building boom of the I 870's **hich gave Sjøg(Ita the mark of a town street, and through the numerous additions and ertensions, a I :.-fF- _---:]-'-i:.--] : . certain degree oftechnical ingenuih, has quite rlien been dispLayed. No. .- Otf ce 37 wcLs built in 1865 by Johon Hansen, Grevnes, a carpenter who became a shopkeeper. His business was successlul and he soon needed more sp(rce inhis store. In 1B72, he extendedthe house by cLttting out some of the timber in the ground.floor and pulling, it out like a drawer. The opening gave space.for a new dottble door and an additional shop window,, ond above the pulled-out "dravver" he built a netv rottrn on the .first .floor.

8 o -:fi-1e Mosjqen in the 1890's mld'' ri . .,'l ----__r/ . .\'\

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Siøgata in Mosiøen

1 Storehouse built by Per Chr. Anderssen, Alsgaard 2 Andreas Bech JUrgensen's business premises 3 Karen Tanke Olsdatter's caf6 4 Alexander Vik's business premises 5 Skogbrygga - warehouse (Vefsn Museum) 6 Hjeronimus Ingebrigtsen Forsjord's house 7 Storehouse built by Daniel Jørgensen Skog 8 Rossvoll boathouse 9 Jacobsenbrygga - warehouse, now Vefsn Museum, Sjøgata information and shop 10 10 Business premises belonging to Jacobsen and Elnan, now a centre for cultural activities 11 Lydiabrygge - warehouse 12 Bathen's dwelling house 13 Ola Oktobe/s storehouse (Vefsn Museum) 14 Watchmaker Peder Klæboe's house and Nils Johnsen's large boathouse 15 House belonging to the telegram messenger Elias Fiskum 16 Schrøder's merchant house and guest house, now Fru Haugan's Hotel lbeyono the protected area) The numbered buildings have signs giving historical information.

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E I l-H REBi r!æ.f- --- qf, 3l Id I is-'J JJ E Standard houses are not a new invention The reason why the production of prefabricated houses was so widespread was that the demand which people placed on houses then was generally satisfied by a few set designs. The most common dwelling had a three-room design with one large room crossing the entire building at one end and two smaller ones side by side at the other end. It was this type which Hjeronimus b'* Ingebrigtsen Forsjord, for instance, used when he built 23 Sjøgata. On the ground ryl floor, he had rJ a shop where he sold beer, while the first floor r* and attic were living accommodation. In other houses of &.!a S,iæ this type, the ground floor might contain a general store, a workshop or an office. The first floor was almost always living accommodation. Incidentally, no. 23 has reverted to serving lood and drink again. "s il

hT Tithe Day in Sjpgcta arlnnd the turn of the century. The Tithe Day. Market was arouncl Michaelmas, 29th September, and was origirutllt, the time institutecl.for people tu pav their tct.res and tithes. Far into this centLrry, Tithe Dtn'v,as ut occasionJbr a big cel.ebration in,-olving people Jrr.tnt the entire district. A col.ourful .fl.ock oJ visitor,s made their mctrk on the town. People c'ante from.f urther south in Norwuy, there were Syt,edes, Sami (Lupp.s), pedlars and jugglers. Tratling and bartering took pLace amid haggling. Cafås and todging hou,ses had goctd rlay,s. Drunkerttess and rov,diness w*ere comnTonplote. In on.e of his novels, Andreas Haukla.nd tells how, w*hen mtrrket time cLpproached, Ol-Jprgen and his mother had to move Jrom the boathouse bft w-hicll they rented in Siøgata. The oy,-ner, h.imself, v,ould live there: "But Ol- JVtrgen's mother took their bedclothes with her cnttl thel' gtt a roof'over their heads at the ltome of two wtnnen, a ntother and tlaughter, the most notoricttts in towt. As night np1trcachecl, a group of market revellers gathered there. The nbleJilledwith bottl.e.s and glusse.y... the cards ctmte out ..." IJ Of-Jørgen's world Mosjøen won town status in 1875. At that time, SjØgata was the town - at any rate its centre. Here you could find the shops, the craftsmen and the good citizens. There were caf6s and lodging houses. And you could find those who were not so lucky.

In 1873, a boy named Andreas Elias Davidsen was baptised in MosjBen. Lived in a boathouse loft, as the son of a living-in sewing maid, he is now known as the writer, Andreas Haukland. His childhood on the seamy side of Sjøgata was portrayed in his first book about Ol-JBrgen. Ol-Jgrgen is the son of a sewing maid living on charity in a boathouse loft. Like the author, he is fatherless, and his friends make sure he remembers he's a bastard. Little Ol-Jgrgen is hungry and thin, occasionally having to steal to stave off his hunger. His surroundings are dominated by vulgarity and primitive living. "He's as thin as a dead louse", his friends would say about him. Sjøgata, as Haukland presents it, is a completely diflerent world from that which the bourgeoisie experienced. Poor and rich lived side by side, but didn't share the same destiny.

Times changed. Merchandise began to be sold in another way and there were new demands as regards housing standards. Many moved from the area. Cars entered the scene. Time had apparently left Sjøgata standing still. Decay had begun to sneak its way in. "Pull down the mess, make parking places", some said. Others wanted to let Sjggata live - as a testimony to the good days and the bad days.

SjEgata ttbotLt I870. The oldest known photograph shttvirtg a ,street scene in MosiØen. The pr.tor and the rich lived here side by side. They had the sonte sttrroundings, but their destinies could be completel-t dffirent.

14 People are meant to live in the houses A street is a community in its own right. You find some people who are successful, and others who are weighed down with problems. You find children, young people, the middle aged and the elderly. Some work where they live, others have jobs further away. But all of them 'own' the street.

When the renovation of Sjøgata gathered momentum, it was important to get people to live in the houses and create jobs that fitted into the suroundings. Sjøgata was not meant to be a ghetto for proponents ofprotection who led a successful life, but varied and alive. Active effort - at times oure conversion - was needed.

Modern people now live behind the renovated frontages in Sjøgata. In 'their' street, you'll find craftsmen, shops, pleasant places to dine and caf6s. Caring treatment of the open spaces has helped to give Sjøgata and its atmosphere enhanced value for residents and visitors alike.

Sjggata has about 100 houses, boathouses, waterfront warehouses and outhouses. A charming, disorderly conglomeration where people spend their everyday lives, just like everyone else in Norway. But, nevertheless, quite differently. Because they live in Sjøgata.

Many years of uncertainty about the fate of Sjqgata had Left their mark on the area. As we see from this photograph taken about 1970, some buildings were becoming dilapidated. Renovation required a detailed knowledge of the construction of old buildings. A comtnittee \uas set up to organise the work, and it assisted the hr.tuse owners with their renr.t- vation plans andfunding. The necessary expertise regarding old build- ings was mobiLised, and both Local and national aLLthorities were drawn into the effort. Everlone pulled their weight with the house r.twners to make Siøgdta what it has become. Lydiabrygga showed that anything was possible

When the Sjøgata conflict blew up, some enthusiasts in 1971 formed a society, 'Friends of Lydiabrygga' , and bought 35b. The new owners faced huge problems. This waterfront warehouse, built in 1877, was damaged by a landslide in 1890, but was immediately repaired. When the society took it over, it was in a dilapidated state.

Tireless voluntary effort gave the building a new lease of life. The society opened a caf6, reviving an old Mosjøen tradition. 'Coffee Helena' had opened the first caf6 in Sjøgata as early as about 1850. Many others followed over the years. A corespondent wrote to Helgelands Tidende in 1894, "I don't think anywhere in the country has as many caf6s as MosjØen, relative to its population and what it can support. Imagine a population of just over a thousand where about 20 families live mainly - many solely - on selling cups of coffee." However, caf6s were also an important part of Mosjøen's social and political life

Bu| the whole of Sjøgata could not be caf6s. People had to live there and find work. An enthusiastic society could not restore Sjøgata's varied atmosphere alone. Much more was needed. The Protection of Architecture Year in l9'7 5 gave the work a boost. Sjpgata became a national matter. Architectural students from Trondheim surveyed the houses and looked at ways in which they could still be used. The next year, the Norwegian Cultural Council promised a sizeable grant to renew Sjggata and its atmosphere. In 1919, the borough council followed up with an area development plan to preserve the area.

Lydiabrygga vlas one of MosjqJen's most derelict buildings.

16 Business premises became a centre for cultu ral activities Jacob C. Jacobsen was a cotter's son from Olderskog in Vefsn. In 1852, he leased a cotter's property in Mosjøen. About the same time, he began trading from a tiny waterfront building in Sjøgata. The cotter's property stood in the middle of what would become Strandgata, and in front of it, in Sjøgata, he built his own business premises in 1861.

J.C. Jacobsen died in 1867, and his widow Dorthea ran the business until 1877 when it was taken over by their son Karl Jacobsen and son-in-law Ole S. Elnan. Elnan had been a shop assistant with the merchant, Andreas Bech Jiirgensen. He was an active local politician, and mayor of Mosjøen for many years. The firm was called Jacobsen & Elnan.

The third chapter in the firm's history began with Elisabeth Jacobsen. who ran the business from 1914 under the name Karl Jacobsen's Widow. It was therefore the Jacobsen family who kept alive the tradition of the old 18th century merchant houses later than any others.

The premises tn 22-24 Sjøgata were reduced to a warehouse in 1960, but in 1983 an all-purpose centre for cultural activities was opened. It has a great atmosphere. Its interior and exterior were restored through cooperation between the Institute of Architectural History and the Central Office of Ancient Monuments and Historic Buildings. It houses weaving studios, workshops and meeting rooms, a gallery and a pleasant caf6. The first floor also has an elegant 'banqueting room' where something of the atmosphere from the heyday of the merchant's premises is recreated. The lfe filling 22-21 Sjpgata now contrasts with the activity oJ' bygctne days.

17 A new lease of life for old waterfront buildings

In the mid- 1 8th century, fishermen from Vefsn formed the Iargest group taking part in the Lofoten fishery. Boathouses and jetties were therefore part of everyday life. Gradually, the big wharves belonging to the merchant's houses came too. Nowadays, this part of Vefsn's 'coastal culture is presented on the river side in Sjøgata.

The waterfront warehouses at Mosj@en lack the uniform character of those in and Trondheim. We find a wide range here, with large and small warehouses, shacks and boathouses, and the many gable ends facing the sea contrast with warehouses of large firms, which stand full-face to the water.

No. 31b Sjøgata, built in 1880 for Jacobsen & Elnan, has been made into exhibition premises fbr Vefsn Museum. It displays the history of Sjøgata and the growth of Mosjøen from a shore village to a town during last century - when the English company 'The North of Europe Land & Mining Co. Ltd. ' carried on extensive forestry and sawmill activities in the district. The museum also aims to present an impression of the varied life in the villages of Vefsn and in MosjØen right up to the present-day society.

The warehouses and boathott,ses lining the waterfront present the major challenges when Sjpgata is being renovated. To survive, they need nen, functions, which often Lead to structural changes. A waterfront warehouse which is to be u.red as l.ivin.g accommodation not only requires internal aLteration.s, but sometimes also windows which transform the frontages. How successful the compromises have been, you can judge for y-oLLrself. However, the warehouses and boathouses are still living parts of Sjpgata's varied image.

18 t ? "Yes please, o e 'i\ both" N \ Sjøgata has nurtured an author, Andreas Haukland, and a composer, . They grew up in SjØgata under different circumstances. One was the son of a poor a rK$PEDI$JOru sewing maid, the other came from the home of a merchant. s ÅrtltnesttnrR: $Au - FRE oToo - lEso But they had one thing in common, happy memories of fine \t Paul *{jaavatn A.s 't summers on Haukland farm near Mosjpen. Andreas tended the animals, David enjoyed his leisure as a guest. s s David Monrad Johansen took with him many happy memories o \ of Mosjgen when he moved to with his mother as a 16- e \] year old. "The gates ofparadise closed then" the old o' - composer said of his departure. However, his childhood realm continued to echo in his music. Folk music from Vefsn and the atmosphere from the period when he grew up enter into many of his compositions. You'll find the childhood home of David Monrad Johansen at 15 Sjggata, where his father ran a business. A bust of the composer has been erected close by.

When you wander along Sjøgata, you are struck by the great diversity. Modern people are living here, craftsmen have o' found niches in their own workshops, the museum has its U attractions to offer, and there is the busy cultural centre. You c can pop into a caf6, enjoy an excellent med in special N sunoundings, or go shopping in pleasant shops.

o A visit to Sjpgata is much more than a trip along something a that used to exist. Sjøgata has achieved what politicians frequently yearn fo1 but don't succeed in - living up to Winnie-the-Pooh's: "Yes please. both".

a \ Sjpgata is a living street. Its special quaLities have been retained, adapted to modern demands as regctrds housing standards, at the sune time cts you can.find speciaL attractions, shops and pLaces to eat and drink.

19 -.jn"ln:1' t'"'t-(- Vefsnp Siøgata in Mosjøen I /-\ The first buildings in Mosjøen were mosily boathouses and shacks belonging to farmers up the valley. They stood in rows along the shore close to the mouth of the River Vefsna, as was the case with many similar sites in northern and . Here, the farmers kept their boats and fishing gear. They also had space to spend the night when they had something that needed doing by the sea, and when they attended the church at Dolstad. lts convenient posilion as a route centre led to two trading posts being eslablished here in the lBth century, soon to be followed by other businesses" About 1850, farmers and skippers of cargo boats had set up almost continuous rows of waterfront storehouses, "brygger", at high{ide level, seaward of the row of old boathouses.

An English company opened a sawmill on Halsøya in 1866. This gave a boost to the development of the town. In a shorl time. a ,,.,t:t Fotefar ,l street appeared with houses and business mot nord ,i,. ,lr':r:rr:'rr premises behind the row of old boathouses. A guide to lhe history of North In 1875. the shore settlement won town Norway and Namdalen. status and a plan was adopted to develop it A cultural relic from each in a more organised fashion. district creates a broad picture ol the region's people, nature About 1970. Sjøgata like many other old and activity during the past ten parts of towns was threatened by demolition. thousand years. postwar But resistance to the fervour for Text: Hans Pedersen. with redevelopment schemes had awoken. The contrilruti,,l, llorrr Arrrc Fr.jcrr rnd Sjøgata Society was founded and in 1979 it Dag Nilsen. Coordination: Vef.sn was decided to preserve the Sjøgata area. Museum. Design: Gul Reklame. Trondheim, Eng. translation: -IrunJheirn. The Norwegian Cultural Council helped to Rirhrr,l Binn:, Pritrterl fund its renovation. h1: Lrde Oll.et. Trondheinr. L,';u. graphic prolile: U. Holbye ard The individual house owners have been re- L. Kanck. Maps: Statens karlvcrk. Financial support lr0n: sponsible for the improvements and restora- I irnd'dL l.ur\rl!.1 f,'r \,'rLJ-\,'rgL tions. Vefsn Museum. the Central Office of og N;rmdalcn rnd Vcfsn komnrunc Ancient Monuments and Historic Buildings ISBN U2 9l 138 31 1. and the Instituie for Architectural History in Trondheirn. June I 997. Trondheim have given professional assist- ance. The aim throughout has been that $øgata should be a living part of Mosiøen,,, Area de'velopment plan fot Mogjøen, 1876 The project has been financial suppoftedr r'su$strM by the Norwegian Cultural Council. S.jøgara 31 b N 8651J Mosjpen