Oskarshamn

Oskarshamn
Besvärsgränd in Oskarshamn
Coat of arms
Oskarshamn
Coordinates: 57°16′N 16°27′E / 57.267°N 16.45°E / 57.267; 16.45Coordinates: 57°16′N 16°27′E / 57.267°N 16.45°E / 57.267; 16.45
Country	Sweden
Province	Småland
County	Kalmar County
Municipality	Oskarshamn Municipality
Area[1]
– Total	13.06 km2 (5 sq mi)
Population (2010-12-31)[1]
– Total	17,258
– Density	1,313/km2 (3,400.7/sq mi)
Time zone	CET (UTC+1)
– Summer (DST)	CEST (UTC+2)

Oskarshamn is a coastal city and the seat of Oskarshamn Municipality, Kalmar County, Sweden with 17,258 inhabitants in 2010.^[1]

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 köping. 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.

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 Shipyard, 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.

Sights

In the port of Oskarshamn 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.^[2]

Culture

Oskarshamn was the home of the famous woodcarver Axel Petersson Döderhultarn. 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.^[3]

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 Visby on the Swedish island of Gotland. Oskarshamn also has its own airport, situated some 11 km to the north of the city centre.

Sport

IK Oskarshamn 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.^[4]

References

1. ^ ^{a b c} "Tätorternas landareal, folkmängd och invånare per km² 2010" (in Swedish) (xls). Statistics Sweden. http://www.scb.se/Statistik/MI/MI0810/2010A01B/Landarealtatortmi0810.xls. Retrieved 2011-09-08. 
2. ^ http://www.smaland-oland.se/en/worth-seeing/fredriksbergs-herrgard
3. ^ http://sydsvenskan.se/sverige/article253293.ece
4. ^ http://www.oskarshamnsmotorbatklubb.se/

External links

• Oskarshamn.info - Webpage with information about Oskarshamn

Oskarshamn is one of 133 places with the historical city status in Sweden.