Dombås

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The village of Dombås lies in the Dovre municipality and serves as an administrative center in the upper Gudbrandsdal, Norway. It lies at an important junction of roads: south leading to the current capital of Norway, Oslo, west via Lesja leading to Åndalsnes on the sea and north to the old capital, Trondheim.

1 History
- 1.1 19th Century
- 1.2 Twentieth century
2 What to see
3 Famous residents

[edit] History

[edit] 19th Century

1895 - “At Dombås, where there is a telegraph station, the scene had entirely changed, and fields of waving barley and potatoes greeted the eye.... Here, at a height of 2,000 feet above the sea, the crops were not quite ripe, the season being backward. Barley required a few more days of sunshine, and the potatoes were still in bloom. The evenings became cold, and the farmers' faces showed their anxiety. The wind was from the N.N.W., and for two consecutive nights black frost appeared. The potato-vines turned black, and the grain crop was seriously injured. After the first frost everybody was at work in the fields, women and men sheaving the barley, and every available hand digging the potatoes. There was sorrow in many a farmer's heart, for the people were now greatly distressed, and I detected tears on many a mother's cheek during these two days. After this sudden cold spell the weather became cloudy, a violent storm set in, and the ground was covered with eighteen inches of wet snow, though it was only the 20th of September.” Source: The Land Of The Midnight Sun, by Paul B. Du Chaillu; Publisher: George Newnes, Limited; London; 1899. Page 164

[edit] Twentieth century

1913 - Dombås was connected by rail (the Eidsvol-Dombåsbanen) to Oslo, capital of Norway.

1921 - The Eidsvol-Dombåsbanen line was extended to Støren where it connected to the Rørosbanen.

1924 - The Raumabanen between Dombås and Åndalsnes was opened and from that day on the station is a junction between the Raumabanen and Dovrebanen.

1939 - The Dombås church was completed in 1939. Prior to that time, residents of Dombås worshiped at Dovre center.

1940 - During the German invasion of Norway, they recognized this rail, roadway and telegraph junction was strategically significant. German paratroopers were dropped at Dombås, ultimately contriburing to the defeat of both Hans Majestet Kongens Garde (His Majesties Kings Guard) and the Norwegian Møre Regiment. Source: Norway 1940, François Kersaudy, St. Martin's Press, 1987.

1940 - While fleeing Norway after the German invasion in 1940, King Håkon was turned back at Drevsø on the Swedish border. He was forced to pass across Hedmark and Oppland to Åndalsnes. While attempting to pass through Dombås, he was almost captured by the German paratroopers on April 15th. The King bypassed Dombås, going south to Otta, then west to Vågå and over the mountains to Lesja before escaping to Åndalsnes, where he was taken off by the British fleet. Source: Norway 1940, François Kersaudy, St. Martin's Press, 1987.