Sandefjord
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| Sandefjord kommune | |||
| — Municipality — | |||
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| Coordinates: | |||
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| Country | Norway | ||
| County | Vestfold | ||
| Municipality ID | NO-0706 | ||
| Administrative centre | Sandefjord | ||
| Government | |||
| - Mayor (2004) | Bjørn Ole Gleditsch (H) | ||
| Area (Nr. 370 in Norway) | |||
| - Total | 121 km² (46.7 sq mi) | ||
| - Land | 119 km² (45.9 sq mi) | ||
| Population (2008) | |||
| - Total | 42,333 | ||
| - Density | 338.8/km² (877.5/sq mi) | ||
| - Change (10 years) | 11.5 % | ||
| - Rank in Norway | 16 | ||
| Time zone | CET (UTC+1) | ||
| - Summer (DST) | CEST (UTC+2) | ||
| Official language form | Bokmål | ||
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| Website: www.sandefjord.kommune.no | |||
Sandefjord is a town and municipality in the county of Vestfold, Norway.
Sandefjord was established as a municipality January 1, 1838 (see formannskapsdistrikt). The rural municipality of Sandar was merged with Sandefjord January 1, 1968.
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[edit] Geography
The two peninsulas called Østerøya ("Eastern Island") and Vesterøya("Western Island") contribute to a total coastline of 146 km, and form the Sandefjordsfjord and Mefjord. The coastline offers a wide variety of sandy beaches, skerries and islets (116 in total), bays and sloping rocks.
Of Sandefjord's total area, 37.7 km² is agricultural and 36.2 km² is forest. Neighbouring towns are Tønsberg and Larvik. A small part of Sandefjord (the farm Himberg) is lying as a exclave inside the borders of the municipality of Larvik.
[edit] History
The name originally belonged to the fjord (now the Sandefjordsfjord). The first element is the genitive case of the name of the parish and former municipality Sandar. The coat-of-arms is from 1914. It shows a whale (whale hunting used to be important for the economy of the town) and a viking ship (to represent the Gokstad ship found in the municipality).
[edit] Gokstad viking ship
One of the most important remains from the Viking age was found at the grave site Gokstadhaugen in Sandefjord. The Gokstad ship was found in 1880, and is now in the Viking Ship Museum in Oslo. A replica of Gokstad ship, called Gaia currently has Sandefjord as home port.
[edit] Health resort
Sandefjord was formerly a famous health resort, with various kinds of baths for health improvement. Amongst these were salt water sea baths, mud and sulfur baths. Visitors included royalty, a prime minister and some of Norway’s foremost cultural personalities. Around 50,000 people, mostly Norwegians, visited the bath from 1837 to 1939. Today the bath's building has been restored and now hosts cultural events and various activities.
| Historical populations | ||
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| Census | Pop. | %± |
| 1845 | 749 | |
| 1951 | 6,717 | 797% |
| 1960 | 6,984 | 4% |
| 1970 | * 31,752 | 355% |
| 1980 | 34,758 | 9% |
| 1990 | 35,888 | 3% |
| 2000 | 39,317 | 10% |
| * Sandefjord and Sandar were merged in 1970. Source: SSB | ||
[edit] Whaling and ships
From 1850, a number of ships from Sandefjord were whaling and sealing in the Arctic Ocean and along the coast of Finnmark. The first whaling expedition from Sandefjord to the Antarctic Ocean was sent in 1905. Towards the end of the 1920s, Sandefjord had a fleet of 15 factory ships and more than 90 whalers. In 1954, more than 2,800 men from the district were hired as crew on the whalers, but from the mid 1950s whaling was gradually reduced. The number of southbound expeditions rapidly decreased during the 1960s, and the 1967/68 season became the last for Sandefjord. The shipping industry was gradually readjusted from whaling to other ship types during this period. The local Framnæs shipyard and Jotun had major roles in this business.
Today, the memories from this important period of the city's history are kept alive through the whaling museum (Hvalfangstmuseet). This museum is the only museum in Europe specializing in whales and the history of whaling. The history of the whalers can also be explored at the Museum's Wharf with a visit aboard the whale-catcher Southern Actor.
Sandefjord also has shipping traditions from tall sailing ships and steam ships. The full rigged sailing ship Christian Radich, three-masted barquentine Endurance, whale catcher Jason and Viking ship Viking were a few of the many ships built in the local Framnæs shipyard.
[edit] Townscape
Sandefjord has a good selection of restaurants and cafés. What is possibly Norway’s best gourmet restaurant is located here in a modern building near the harbour. Also located at the harbour, is the fishmonger well known for the excellent quality of its goods and delicacies. Sandefjord has a charming city centre, consisting of a mixture of old and modern buildings and a wide selection of shops.
The whaling monument is located at the end of the city’s main street, Jernbanealléen, in the harbour area. Nearby is a restaurant called Kokeriet, one of the relatively few places where whale meat is regularly served.
[edit] Economy
Sandefjord is home to the paint producer Jotun, the brewery Grans Bryggeri, the chocolate factory Hval Sjokoladefabrikk, the engineering company Ramboll Oil & Gas, as well as three of Norway's largest online shops, Komplett.no, mpx.no and netshop.no.
[edit] Transportation
Sandefjord Airport, Torp is located in the municipality. The ferries Bohus and Viking connect the town to Strömstad in Sweden. Sandefjord railway station is part of Vestfoldbanen. European route E18 traverses the municipality.
[edit] Culture and sports
The local football club, Sandefjord Fotball, plays in the Norwegian Premier League. Sandefjord handball won the men's elite series in 2005-06. Marius Bakken is successful as a middle distance runner.
[edit] Local sport clubs
- Fevang F.K.
- Sandefjord TIF
- Sandefjord Fotball
[edit] Notable natives
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[edit] See also
- List of schools in Sandefjord
- Sandefjords Blad (local newspaper)
- Skiringssal
- Larvik and Sandefjord metropolitan region
- Sang til Sandefjord
[edit] External links
- Visit Sandefjord
- Cruise Sandefjord
- Whaling Museum
- Gaia, the viking ship copy
- Kokeriet - restaurant serving e.g. whale meat
- Sandefjord Public Library
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