Sørvær

Sørvær
Copyright © 2003, Anne Olsen-Ryum

Sørvær is situated about 40 kilometres from the place Hasvik and it's about 300 inhabitants in the little fishing village. At the first census in Finnmark in 1520, there were 31 families living in Sørvær. In 1697 it's said to be only 2 surviving men left at the place, while in 1875 ten families (about 45 persons) were living there and in 1888 the population was increased to 11 families. Then it was also 16 fishermen's shacks with rooms for 192 men. The trading-place Sørvær was established by Henrich Cristian Floer on June 5th. 1818.

From 1880 until 1899 the whaling-company "Finnmarken" led by Svein Foyn had a whaling-station on Sørvær. All of the workers came from the Norwegian town Tønsberg - it was seasonal work - the whalers came in the spring and left in the autumn.

Sørvær was like the rest of Finnmark burned by the Germans in 1944. When people went back to the the place just after the war was over , the only building left was a pit privy . Hamar was the first town that startet a large action to help re-building the North of Norway after the war. The regional commissioner Gabrielsen in Finnmark suggested that Sørvær should get help from Hamar, and the help consisted among other things of houses, contribution to waterworks, a community centre and education of the youth from Sørvær. It was bought 120 ares of land for building sites in 1946 , and it was build 11 houses that got the name "Hamar-houses".

In the last years sports anglers have discovered that Sørvær is also an angling paradise. The Sørøy-festival, Sørøya's annual deep-sea fishing festival is arranged at Sørvær in July every year. This festival is not only known for the biggest catches per participant, but also the largest fish of all Nordic festivals. During the festival weekend many people from around the world visit the little place Sørvær.