The buildings in the working-class neighbourhood of ‘Gata’ (the Street) were built in the 18th and 19th centuries, as the ironworks’ need for labour grew. It was one of three working-class neighbourhoods. The others were Bråtagata and Hauane. On the left is the Grøterud Villa, which was the home of office manager Olaus Grøterud and his family from 1923. When Per Ove Kultorp became office manager and moved in in 1954, the house became known as the Kultorp Villa. All the houses on Gata, with the exception of Slottet, are now privately owned year-round residences.
The workers’ houses in Gata are timber-framed and clad with panelling on the outside. They were often painted red, as red pigment is a by-product of iron production and therefore an affordable alternative to other colours. White paint was particularly expensive, and thus a luxury reserved for the better-off. That is why the small, whitewashed building in Gata came to be known locally as ‘Slottet’ (the Castle). The building is mainly constructed of slag stone, another by-product of the production process. It served as workers’ accommodation from the mid-1700s until a communal laundry was established for the residents here in the 1920s. Bråtagata got its own laundry at around the same time.
Behind ‘Slottet’, you find the old Eidsfoss square, which to a certain degree of trading found Place. People sold home-crafted Products and home grown produce, but politics could also have been dicussed, as the square was a gathering point for the locals. In 1909, the first time Labor day was celebrated at Eidsfoss, the parade started from here, as it was every following year. Just as is the case in this Picture, which was taken by the old mill.
The picture at the top of this page was taken in the early 20th Century, and shows the view towards the workers area Hauane and the lake Bergsvannet. Gata is in the foreground.
Photographer unknowned. Hand colored by Bjørn Vangen.
