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Post office from Svartdal

This post office, measuring only 4 x 4 meters, was one of Norway’s smallest. Built by the carpenter Olav G. Aase, it served about 40 local households before being closed down in 1979.

Its interior dates to about 1960 when the post office savings bank was estab­lished. The last owner, Harald Svartdal, saved the materials after the building was torn down and gave them to the museum.

The postal service

The postal service was established in 1647 and became state-run in 1719. Until the early 1800s, only public officials were allowed to send mail, and that by selected farmers who were com­manded out to carry post. This was a heavy duty for those involved, but these farmers were at least relieved of other public duties. Deliveries were slow as long as they were carried by horse or boat. Main routes were traveled once a week. The use of steamships by 1827 and the railroad by 1854 made deliver­ies much faster. Stamps were taken into use in 1855.

Museum24:Portal - 2024.11.12
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