Sundsvall

Sundsvall
Main street
Sundsvall
Coordinates:
Country Sweden
Province Medelpad
County Västernorrland County
Municipality Sundsvall Municipality
Area[1]
 • City 27.39 km2 (10.6 sq mi)
Population (2005-12-31)[1]
 • Density 1,801/km2 (4,664.6/sq mi)
 • Urban 49,339
Time zone CET (UTC+1)
 • Summer (DST) CEST (UTC+2)

Sundsvall (Swedish pronunciation: [ˈsɵn(d)sˈvalː]) is a city and the seat of Sundsvall Municipality in Västernorrland County, Sweden. It has a population of approximately 50,000 as of 2009; more than 95,000 live in the surrounding municipal area.

Contents

History

The town was chartered in 1621, and a first urban plan for Sundsvall was probably created by Olof Bure in 1642, less likely in 1623.[2] It has a port by the Gulf of Bothnia, and is located 395 km north of Stockholm. The city has burned down and been rebuilt four times.[3] The first time, in 1721, it was set on fire by the Russian army during the Great Northern War. The last fire, in 1888, was the largest in Sweden's history. It is presumed that the fire was caused by a spark from a steamship. After that fire, the city centre was rebuilt only with stone buildings. Sundsvall's centre is therefore nicknamed Stenstaden (the stone city).

According to one historian, Swedish industrialism started in Sundsvall when the Tunadal sawmill bought a steam-engine driven saw in 1849. In the early 20th century Sundsvall was an even greater centre of forestry industry in Sweden than it is today. The first large Swedish strike was the "Sundsvall strike" in 1879.[4] The industrial heritage makes social democrat and socialist sympathies more prevalent in the Sundsvall region than in Sweden as a whole.

Today Sundsvall is not only dominated by the pulp and paper industry, and the aluminium production, but also by banks, insurance companies, telecommunications administration and a number of large public data-processing centres such as the national social insurance board. The main campus of the newly established Mid Sweden University is also located in the city.

Transport

Its airport is Sundsvall-Härnösand Airport.

Sport

Notable people

Sister communities and adopted cities

Gallery

Sundsvall viewed from above Sundsvall City Centre Gustav Adolfskyrkan

Climate

Sundsvall has a climate which is on the border between subarctic and cold continental. Temperatures are made significantly milder and regulated by the influence from the Gulf Stream.

Climate data for Sundsvall
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Average high °C (°F) −5
(23)
−3
(27)
2
(36)
7
(45)
14
(57)
19
(66)
21
(70)
19
(66)
14
(57)
9
(48)
2
(36)
−2
(28)
8.1
(46.6)
Average low °C (°F) −15
(5)
−13
(9)
−8
(18)
−2
(28)
2
(36)
8
(46)
10
(50)
9
(48)
5
(41)
1
(34)
−5
(23)
−11
(12)
−1.6
(29.1)
Rainfall mm (inches) 38
(1.5)
28
(1.1)
30
(1.18)
32
(1.26)
35
(1.38)
41
(1.61)
58
(2.28)
64
(2.52)
64
(2.52)
52
(2.05)
53
(2.09)
46
(1.81)
541
(21.3)
Avg. precipitation days 16 13 13 11 11 11 14 14 15 15 15 16 164
Source: World Meteorogical Organization[5]

References

External links

Sundsvall is one of 133 places with the historical city status in Sweden.