The charming, well-preserved old wooden house district along Sjøgata is Mosjøen's main tourist attraction. The district houses a bustling life with dining, trade, museums, galleries, art exhibitions, antiques, festivals and much more. Several of the houses in Sjøgata are inhabited by ordinary "Mosjøværinger" (residents of Mosjøen), who are not entirely unfamiliar with tourists walking through their garden or looking in through the windows (without us recommending doing exactly those things ...)
Historical Sjøgata
The history of Sjøgata in Mosjøen
When the large sawmill "Engelskbruket" was established in Mosjøen in 1866, it was just like a Klondike atmosphere broke loose in the idyllic small town. Mosjøen became a meeting place for foresters from Odalen, English plank barons, Sami floaters, Swedish mountain farmers on barter and tailors with impulses from London and Paris.
The English plank barons and Swedish mountain farmers have long since disappeared. But piers, warehouses, boathouses, business estates, residential houses and outbuildings, with sheds and extensions in between, make up Sjøgata to this day - a vibrant and very picturesque part of Mosjøen center. This has not always been the case.
Near destruction of Sjøgata
"Demolish everything" was one of the sentences from a zoning plan that Vefsn municipality put forward 50 years ago. It was about the first urban settlement in Mosjøen which received city status in 1875. The proposal to demolish the old and dilapidated settlement in Sjøgata, however, created a storm of protests. Fortunately, the forces that wanted to preserve and develop the area won, so instead of demolition, extensive work was initiated to restore old buildings to their original style. Today, it is many years since the proposals to demolish Sjøgata in favor of parking spots(!) were silenced ...
Sjøgata is Mosjøen's biggest tourist attraction
Today, Sjøgata is Mosjøen's indisputable parade street and - with Northern Norway's longest continuous wooden building from the 19th century. In the historic urban environment there are restaurants, galleries, museums and various shops, as well as homes, so that Sjøgata is not just a museum or a nostalgic setting, but a very lively part of Mosjøen center.
The inhabitants of the small town and the town's guests all gets drawn to Sjøgata. Often just to walk in the charming, picturesque street or along the shore, or to go to a café, which has been the tradition in Mosjøen since the 19th century. Sjøgata has especially been known for its large number of coffee shops.
The street is narrow and without sidewalks, with houses all the way to the edge of the gutter. The protected wooden house area extends from Torolfs street in the south, where it borders Fru Haugan's Hotel, and north to Jürgensens street, where Sjøgata changes its name to Skjervgata, which later crosses Strandgata and continues to Kinoplassen.
The shoreline by Sjøgata is suitable for pleasant walks.
