Official Name: | Kragerø |
Settlement Type: | Town[1] |
Pushpin Map: | Norway Telemark#Norway |
Pushpin Label Position: | top |
Pushpin Map Caption: | Location of the town |
Subdivision Type: | Country |
Subdivision Name: | Norway |
Subdivision Name1: | Eastern Norway |
Subdivision Name2: | Telemark |
Subdivision Type3: | District |
Subdivision Name3: | Vestmar |
Subdivision Type4: | Municipality |
Subdivision Name4: | Kragerø Municipality |
Utc Offset1: | +01:00 |
Utc Offset1 Dst: | +02:00 |
Established Title: | Established as |
Established Date: | |
Established Title1: | Ladested |
Established Title2: | Kjøpstad |
Established Date2: | 1666 |
Established Title3: | Town (Norwegian: By) |
Area Total Km2: | 3.32 |
Population As Of: | 2022 |
Population Total: | 5366 |
Population Density Km2: | 1617 |
Postal Code Type: | Post Code |
Postal Code: | 3770 Kragerø |
Coordinates: | 58.8693°N 9.4149°W |
Elevation M: | 1 |
Elevation Footnotes: | [2] |
Kragerø is a town that is the administrative centre of Kragerø Municipality in Telemark county, Norway. The town is located on the shore of the Kilsfjord, about to the southeast of the villages of Vadfoss and Helle.[3] Kragerø Church is located in the town centre.
The 3.32km2 town has a population (2022) of 5,366 and a population density of .[4]
Kragerø is located at the end of a peninsula between the Kilsfjorden and Hellefjorden. The peninsula to the south, the island of Skåtøy, and several other large islands provide for a sheltered harbor for the town. By the 1500, this area began to grow up as an important harbour for shipping timber from the vast forests of Telemark. In 1666, the village was established as a kjøpstad, giving it "town" rights. The town's business life was characterized by timber exports, shipping, and shipbuilding from then until the end of the First World War. Kragerø was one of Norway's largest shipping towns in the latter half of the 19th century. In addition to timber, later came shipping of wood pulp and products from quarries in the upland.
On 17 August 1694, Christian Hansen Ernst was killed at the present-day Knivstikkersmauet ("knife stabber alley"). He was an employee of the postal service, and a former servant of Ulrik Fredrik Gyldenløve. He was one of few Africans of the time living in Norway, whose identity is known.[5]