Oskarshamn
Encyclopedia
Oskarshamn is a coastal city
and the seat of Oskarshamn Municipality
, Kalmar County
, Sweden
with 17,258 inhabitants in 2010.
. There followed 200 years of merchancies in the town, during which it was governed and dependent on Kalmar; while the surrounding towns and municipalities made frequent requests to grant it a charter
, consequently turned down each of the attempts made in the years: 1786, 1798, 1800, 1815, 1818, 1823, 1825, 1830 and 1838. In 1843 it got some independence, with a local council, but the council itself was occupied by citizens of Kalmar. In 1854, the King Oscar I of Sweden
promised to grant it a charter as soon as it had fulfilled certain demands, including building a prison and a council hall, among other things. When they had accomplished the feats, the charter was granted, and the city became one of the Cities of Sweden starting 1856, on May 1. This status has today no legal significance, but Oskarshamn is now the seat of the much larger Oskarshamn Municipality, without being a political entity of its own.
, which at its height had almost 1500 employees. But in the 1970s, the Swedish shipbuilding industry suffered a large financial crisis and many shipyards closed down. In Oskarshamn, the shipyard went through a large downsizing which left many people unemployed.
However, at around the same time, two major industries were established in Oskarshamn. In 1966, Scania AB bought the truck
cab factory, which had been building truck cabs since 1948, and started expanding. The Scania factory is today one of the biggest employers in Kalmar county with almost 2000 employees. Liljeholmens Stearinfabriks AB
, established in Oskarshamn in 1970, is the world’s largest candle manufacturer, specialized in stearin candles.
There are three BWR units
in a nuclear power plant
near Oskarshamn. There is also a laboratory for research concerning long-time storage of spent nuclear fuel. The Aspo Hard Rock Laboratory
is open to the public to visit.
there are tourist boats which take visitors to the island and national park Blå Jungfrun
. There are also boats that cruise the coastal waters closer to Oskarshamn. Within the municipality there is the Oskarshamn archipelago
which consists of over 5 000 islands and small islets.
In the harbor area there are restaurants, pubs and cafés. There are also viewpoints over the harbor. On the south side of the port there is a 72 meters long wooden bench called Långa soffan. It was built in 1867 and it is believed to be the longest of its kind in Europe. From the bench there is a panorama view over the harbor and the quite lively shipping activity going on there.
Another panorama-view of Oskarshamn and the sea outside is obtained from the top of the town’s northern water-tower which is open to the public.
The older part of Oskarshamn is preserved fairly well. In one particular part of town there are older wooden houses originating from the 19th century. The area is called Besväret and Fnyket.
Fredriksbergs Herrgård is a manor-house built in 1784 situated just outside the city center of Oskarshamn. It is open for the public to visit and houses a restaurant, café and a small museum.
. His studio as well as the Döderhultarn Museum
, containing more than 200 of his carvings are located here. There is also a maritime museum in Oskarshamn.
At the release of The Simpsons film, Swedish newspaper Sydsvenska Dagbladet concluded that Oskarshamn is the Swedish equivalent to Springfield, the Simpsons' hometown
.
Each summer there is a music festival located to the harbor area. The festival, named Latitud 57, is taking place simultaneously as the annual Oskarshamn Offshore Race which is a popular competition for powerboats. The world championship in Offshore was held here 2011.
on the Swedish island of Gotland
. Oskarshamn also has its own airport
, situated some 11 km to the north of the city centre.
is the name of the local ice hockey
team. Between 5th to 10th of July 2011, Oskarshamn will host the world championship in offshore powerboat racing
.
City status in Sweden
Stad is a Swedish term which nominally means town but can also encompass the English word "city". Since 1971 stad has had no administrative or legal significance in Sweden and there exists no commonly accepted definition of the term.-History :...
and the seat of Oskarshamn Municipality
Oskarshamn Municipality
Oskarshamn Municipality is a municipality in Kalmar County in south-eastern Sweden, where the city Oskarshamn is seat....
, Kalmar County
Kalmar County
Kalmar County is a county or län in southern Sweden. It borders the counties of Kronoberg, Jönköping, Blekinge and Östergötland. To the east in the Baltic Sea is the island Gotland....
, Sweden
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
with 17,258 inhabitants in 2010.
History
The location of Oskarshamn was known as Döderhultsvik since the Medieval age. In 1645, the city of Kalmar, to the south, made a request to the Royal Government on holding commerce in the bay there, which was granted, giving it merchancy rights as a köpingKöping
This article deals with the Swedish denomination for a market town. For the city, see Köping, Sweden. For the municipality, see Köping Municipality....
. There followed 200 years of merchancies in the town, during which it was governed and dependent on Kalmar; while the surrounding towns and municipalities made frequent requests to grant it a charter
Charter
A charter is the grant of authority or rights, stating that the granter formally recognizes the prerogative of the recipient to exercise the rights specified...
, consequently turned down each of the attempts made in the years: 1786, 1798, 1800, 1815, 1818, 1823, 1825, 1830 and 1838. In 1843 it got some independence, with a local council, but the council itself was occupied by citizens of Kalmar. In 1854, the King Oscar I of Sweden
Oscar I of Sweden
Oscar I was King of Sweden and Norway from 1844 to his death. When, in August 1810, his father Jean-Baptiste Bernadotte was elected Crown Prince of Sweden, Oscar and his mother moved from Paris to Stockholm . Oscar's father was the first ruler of the current House of Bernadotte...
promised to grant it a charter as soon as it had fulfilled certain demands, including building a prison and a council hall, among other things. When they had accomplished the feats, the charter was granted, and the city became one of the Cities of Sweden starting 1856, on May 1. This status has today no legal significance, but Oskarshamn is now the seat of the much larger Oskarshamn Municipality, without being a political entity of its own.
Recent history
Industrialisation began with the inauguration of the railway line to Nässjö. From then on, industries as well as the harbour began to expand. The biggest private employer for a long time was the Oskarshamn ShipyardOskarshamn Shipyard
Oskarshamn Shipyard is a shipbuilding and repair facility located in Oskarshamn, Sweden, Europe.-General information:The shipyard company was established in 1863 when a dry dock was built in Oskarshamn. About 540 vessels have been built and launched at the shipyard since then. In the 1960s the...
, which at its height had almost 1500 employees. But in the 1970s, the Swedish shipbuilding industry suffered a large financial crisis and many shipyards closed down. In Oskarshamn, the shipyard went through a large downsizing which left many people unemployed.
However, at around the same time, two major industries were established in Oskarshamn. In 1966, Scania AB bought the truck
Truck
A truck or lorry is a motor vehicle designed to transport cargo. Trucks vary greatly in size, power, and configuration, with the smallest being mechanically similar to an automobile...
cab factory, which had been building truck cabs since 1948, and started expanding. The Scania factory is today one of the biggest employers in Kalmar county with almost 2000 employees. Liljeholmens Stearinfabriks AB
Liljeholmens Stearinfabriks AB
Liljeholmens Stearinfabriks AB is a Swedish candle manufacturer. The factory is located in Oskarshamn, Sweden.- History :The company was founded in 1839 by Lars Johan Hierta, the same person who founded the Swedish daily newspaper Aftonbladet...
, established in Oskarshamn in 1970, is the world’s largest candle manufacturer, specialized in stearin candles.
There are three BWR units
Boiling water reactor
The boiling water reactor is a type of light water nuclear reactor used for the generation of electrical power. It is the second most common type of electricity-generating nuclear reactor after the pressurized water reactor , also a type of light water nuclear reactor...
in a nuclear power plant
Oskarshamn Nuclear Power Plant
The Nuclear power station Oskarshamn is one of three active nuclear power stations in Sweden. The plant is about 30 kilometers north of Oskarshamn directly at the Kalmarsund at the Baltic Sea coast and with three reactors producing about 10% of the electricity needs of Sweden...
near Oskarshamn. There is also a laboratory for research concerning long-time storage of spent nuclear fuel. The Aspo Hard Rock Laboratory
Aspo Hard Rock Laboratory
Äspö Hard Rock Laboratory is a research site located outside Oskarshamn in Sweden.-General information:The Äspö Hard Rock Laboratory is a research facility for future geological disposal of spent nuclear fuel. At the laboratory a series of experiments are performed at depths of 500 meters into the...
is open to the public to visit.
Sights
In the port of OskarshamnPort of Oskarshamn
-Cargo handling:The port handles most types of goods; containers, dry bulk cargo and wet bulk cargo. The facilities are: Total quay-length of 2.7 km, maximum depth 11 m, Roro-facilities, cranes, warehouses, oil and chemical storage.-Shipyard:...
there are tourist boats which take visitors to the island and national park Blå Jungfrun
Blå Jungfrun
Blå Jungfrun, or "Blåkulla", is a Swedish island in the Baltic Sea. More precisely, it is situated in Kalmar Strait, between the provinces Småland and Öland. Administratively, it belongs to the municipality Oskarshamn. It is uninhabited and has an area of only about 0.7 km², though it rises 86...
. There are also boats that cruise the coastal waters closer to Oskarshamn. Within the municipality there is the Oskarshamn archipelago
Oskarshamn archipelago
Oskarshamn archipelago is a cluster of island and islets in the Baltic Sea, located in the south-east of Sweden within the borders of Oskarshamn municipality.-General description:...
which consists of over 5 000 islands and small islets.
In the harbor area there are restaurants, pubs and cafés. There are also viewpoints over the harbor. On the south side of the port there is a 72 meters long wooden bench called Långa soffan. It was built in 1867 and it is believed to be the longest of its kind in Europe. From the bench there is a panorama view over the harbor and the quite lively shipping activity going on there.
Another panorama-view of Oskarshamn and the sea outside is obtained from the top of the town’s northern water-tower which is open to the public.
The older part of Oskarshamn is preserved fairly well. In one particular part of town there are older wooden houses originating from the 19th century. The area is called Besväret and Fnyket.
Fredriksbergs Herrgård is a manor-house built in 1784 situated just outside the city center of Oskarshamn. It is open for the public to visit and houses a restaurant, café and a small museum.
Culture
Oskarshamn was the home of the famous woodcarver Axel Petersson DöderhultarnAxel Petersson Döderhultarn
Axel Petersson Döderhultarn, formerly Axel Petersson, Woodcarver, was one of the recognized masters of wood carving, most famous for Scandinavian flat-plane style of woodcarving.-Early years:...
. His studio as well as the Döderhultarn Museum
Döderhultarn Museum
-General information:Axel Petersson "Döderhultarn" , was a famous Swedish woodcarver. In the Döderhultarn Museum there is a collection of his work, with more than 200 wooden sculptures...
, containing more than 200 of his carvings are located here. There is also a maritime museum in Oskarshamn.
At the release of The Simpsons film, Swedish newspaper Sydsvenska Dagbladet concluded that Oskarshamn is the Swedish equivalent to Springfield, the Simpsons' hometown
Springfield (The Simpsons)
Springfield is the fictional town in which the American animated sitcom The Simpsons is set. A mid-sized town in an undetermined state of the United States, Springfield acts as a complete universe in which characters can explore the issues faced by modern society. The geography of the town and its...
.
Each summer there is a music festival located to the harbor area. The festival, named Latitud 57, is taking place simultaneously as the annual Oskarshamn Offshore Race which is a popular competition for powerboats. The world championship in Offshore was held here 2011.
Transport
The rail traffic is today limited to freight trains to and from the harbour; the passenger trains have been replaced by buses. There is also a ferry line between the town and VisbyVisby
-See also:* Battle of Visby* Gotland University College* List of governors of Gotland County-External links:* - Visby*...
on the Swedish island of Gotland
Gotland
Gotland is a county, province, municipality and diocese of Sweden; it is Sweden's largest island and the largest island in the Baltic Sea. At 3,140 square kilometers in area, the region makes up less than one percent of Sweden's total land area...
. Oskarshamn also has its own airport
Oskarshamn Airport
- External links :* - Webpage with information about Oskarshamns airport...
, situated some 11 km to the north of the city centre.
Sport
IK OskarshamnIK Oskarshamn
IK Oskarshamn is an ice hockey club from Oskarshamn in Sweden. The team is currently playing in the second highest league in Sweden, HockeyAllsvenskan. Head coach is Fredrik Söderström.-History:...
is the name of the local ice hockey
Ice hockey
Ice hockey, often referred to as hockey, is a team sport played on ice, in which skaters use wooden or composite sticks to shoot a hard rubber puck into their opponent's net. The game is played between two teams of six players each. Five members of each team skate up and down the ice trying to take...
team. Between 5th to 10th of July 2011, Oskarshamn will host the world championship in offshore powerboat racing
Offshore powerboat racing
Offshore powerboat racing is racing by large, specially designed ocean-going powerboats, typically point-to-point racing.Probably one of the largest, most dangerous, and most powerful racing machines of all, the extreme expense of the boats and the fuel required to participate make it an expensive...
.
External links
- Oskarshamn.info - Webpage with information about Oskarshamn