Kategori: City hiking

The city walk «Along the river in Fredrikstad» winds along the Glomma in the center of Fredrikstad, on the west side of the river. The walk consists of 16 stops, where you can get to know more about historical and central places in Fredrikstad. Here you can read about the Main Square, the Library and the Cicignon district.

1. The Main Square

Stortorvet has been the main town square from its inception around 1870. Stortorvet was the main market for the entire region. Meat, flour, fruit and groceries was the main commodities.

2. Fish market

The oldest marketplace was established in 1850, where fishing boats could sell fresh fish directly from the vessels and later from sales boots and bazaars. The red wooden building and Haans-husgården is built after the city fire in 1837 and 1908.

3. Flower market

From 1933 the square was used mainly for flower trade, where in earlier days it was used for processing timber for export. Ferries to the surrounding islands had their base here. When Litteraturhuset opened its doors in 2013, the area once again became a public square.

4. Damskipsbrygga (Steam boat pier)

Dampskipsbrygga was the port of call for several local steam-boat companies and their onshore offices. The pier was also used for trading hay for a period of time. The old fire station was located at Damp-skipsbrygga until it was moved in 1962.

5. The Kråkerøy bridge & Coal storage

The Kråkerøy bridge and Fredrikstad bridge were open in 1957.  The area was formerly inhabited by workshops, piers, sheds and a huge coal storage locally known as «Kølatomta». The area is today home for the apartment complex Nygaard Brygge

6. The Library

The main library was opened in 1926, prior to a sawmilled, named Bingesaga, went bankruptcy. FFK played its first matches here in the early 1900. The building, planned by architects Haral Sund and August Nilsen, is protected by the government.

7. Cicignon

The Cicignon district is named after Johan Caspar von Cicignon, and a small fortress was constructed at the west side in 1677. The fortress was demolished in 1912 to make room for the new customs house. Cicignon is among the best conserved districts in Fredrikstad.

8. The Fortresses

Fredrikstad was fortified in 1663. Ramparts, walls and bastions were built around the town, on the island of Isegran, and on Cicignon, on the river’s west bank. On Isegran we see the mill wheel, a copy of one of the wheels from the mill built in the 17th Century.

9. Ferry and The Kings Road

Since the 16th century the ferry has transported bikes and people across the river. The Kings Road went from the ferry moving north, all the way to Christiania (Oslo). On the east side, the main road went to Halden and Sweden. The ferries stopped transporting cars in 1957.

10. Østfold Centre of Arts (ØKS)

The mansion that houses the Østfold Centre of Arts was originally the private luxury home of 19th century businessman Halvor Bjørnebye. The beautiful park that is landscaped on the old Cicignon fortress glacis was created by the city gardener Moen and city engineer Hofstad in 1918.

11. Church Park

The Church Park is the most stately and historically significant park in Fredrikstad. The park consists of beautiful flowerbeds, hedges, running water and from 1886 a music pavilion.

12. Fredrikstad Domkirke (Cathedral)

The largest church in Fredrikstad was inaugurated as Vestre Fredrikstad Church in 1880. It became Fredrikstad Cathedral with the creation of Borg diocese in 1969. The Cathedral is the only church in the country with a light tower attached.

13. Lykkeberg Mansion

The stately mansion, from 1875, that resides on the hilltop carries the name Lykkeberg (The Hill of Good Fortune). The farm was bought by wealthy timber merchant Julius Nicolai Jacobsen and build to his wife. The house was sold to Fredrikstad municipality in 1932.

14. Town Hall

The New Town Hall was completed in 2002, and contains the local administration, municipality service centre, the great city hall and the cinema. The city council still meets in the old town hall, from 1864, in the Old Town.

15. Kråkerøygaten/Nygaardsgaten

The tiny strip of City Street that is Kråkerøygaten meets the main street Nygaardsgaten in what we can call the «cultural pivot point of Fredrikstad». The city cinema, the Blå Grotte art scene and several coffee houses is located here.

16. Modernism in Fredrikstad

Little is left of the original, small wooden buildings that defined the area, after the city fire in the 1950 and 1960’s. New and modern buildings of glass and concrete were erected in their place, represented by buildings as Bankgården, Hotel City and the Brage-Fram building.