Kehra

Kehra is a town in Anija Parish, Harju County, Estonia, best known for its pulp and paper mill. The town stands on the banks of the Jägala River, and it has a station on the Tallinn–Narva railway. As of January 1, 2023, the town had a population of 2,694.

Etymology The village of Kehra, the town's namesake, was first mentioned in the Danish Census Book as Ketheræ in 1241. Before 1688, the village had also been referred to as Kecere, Kecnere, Kedere, Kederikull, Kedder, Keyher, Kether, Kädder(e) and Keddar. The village was known as both Kehrakyla and Käihra in 1688, and as Kehra in 1732

Kehra Manor, the town's predecessor, was first established sometime between 1624 and 1637, one kilometer south of the village. Initially it was known as Karrock Manor (), later as Jaunack Manor (), and by 1688 as Kedder Manor. The name stuck around until Estonia first became independent and place names were estonianized.

The following Estonian words are speculated to be the origins of the name Kehra:

keder or kehr (local dialect) () jõekäär, also compared to Käära farm in Kohatu, Estonia () veekeeris, compared to Kehro in Finland ()

History

Early history In 1940, excavations on the Andevei property in the village of Kehra uncovered a treasure containing 421 silver coins, most recent of which was minted in 978 AD. Out of the 421 coins, 411 were Samanid, 5 Byzantine, 3 German, 1 Anglo-Saxon, and 1 Bohemian. Remains of iron tools and pieces of earthenware were also found nearby. Based on this, it is speculated that the village of Kehra was settled at latest by the 11th century.

The village of Kehra was first mentioned in the Danish Census Book in 1241. According to the book, the village was a part of the Repel parish () and had a size of 10 oxgangs (, ). Half of the village belonged to Lambertus and the other half to Stenhackær. The village was baptized either in 1219 or 1220, likely at the same time as the villages of Saunja, Soodla, Aavere, Anija, Kõlu, Pirsu, Kihmla, and Parila. In 1249, Kehra and Paasiku villages were given to the bishop of Tallinn, whose successors later founded Fegefyr Manor ().

According to the Swedish land audit of 1564–1565, the village of Kehra was part of Kiviloo Manor and had a size of 13 oxgangs. The village of Jaunack (Janakas, Jannikkas) was first mentioned in the same audit. It was near the mouth of the Aavoja river and had a size of two oxgangs. Kehra and Karrock mills were also first mentioned in the same audit. Kehra mill (Kedder quarn) was located 100 meters upstream from the current car bridge, in the north-eastern corner of the current pulp and paper mill. For some time around the end of the 17th century, the mill was temporarily located 100 meters upstream from the mouth of the Aavoja river, near the village of Jaunack. The mill in its original location was demolished in 1936 to make room for the pulp mill that was going to be built. Karukse mill (Karockas quarn) was likely located around 20–50 meters upstream from the current medical center, near the mouth of the hypothetical Karukse stream and was demolished at an undetermined time.

Manor

The fief on which Kehra Manor would be built was granted to Euphemia Kriedt in 1624. In 1637, the recently built manor was owned by Kriedt's son-in-law, Heinrich Bade. Kriedt's grandson-in-law, Gabriel von Elvering, gained ownership of even more fiefs in the 1660s and according to a 1692 map, the manor's lands stretched as far east as Maapaju border point near the current Mustjõe train station. Reitevahe (Arudevahe) inn, which was near the current Lahinguvälja train station, was also a part of the manor.

Von Elverings regained ownership of the manor after the Great Northern War, but were forced to sell it in 1760 to cover debts. Von Breverns, the new owners, lent the manor to Friedrich August von Maydell in the spring of 1820, who subsequently bought it. The manor was rebuilt in the 1820s and is still standing. In 1847, the manor was sold to Dietrich Johann Georg von Tiesenhausen, who sold it to Alexander Georg Matthias von Essen in 1855. In 1864, he gifted the manor to his daughter, Margarethe Gertrude Henriette von Ulrich. Her daughter, Marie Jeanette Katharina von Ulrich, inherited the manor in 1904, when her mother died.

Marie Ulrich gave control of the manor's economic side to the Estonian Agricultural Society () at the end of the 19th century. The manor started expanding westwards, to the other side of the current Kreutzwaldi street. The manor's granary was built in 1876, the grain dryer in 1912, and the stables in 1914. Currently, Kehra ait, the cultural center, and sewing factory are located in these buildings, respectively. The agricultural society gained full ownership of the manor in 1914. Marie Ulrich continued to live in the manor until she died on June 27, 1926. The manor was nationalized on May 7, 1926.

The state manor drained the nearby wetlands and distributed the land to people for building and farming. The manor was sold to the pulp mill in 1937. On August 3, 1940, Kehra sovkhoz was formed to replace the state manor. When German forces occupied Kehra, the sovkhoz became the state manor again. On April 18, 1945, the state manor was converted back into a sovkhoz one last time. Now under the Soviet rule, the manor building was used as a nursery until 1956, and as a hospital between 1956 and 1994. The sovkhoz ceased operations on July 17, 1995. The manor is currently privately owned.

Education

School

The first school in Harju-Jaani parish started operating in 1717 in Raasiku. The graduates subsequently spread their knowledge to others in the parish, including people from the Kehra area. The first school in the village of Kehra was established in 1738, and it operated inconsistently. It is claimed that in 1785, Kehra school was the worst school in Harju-Jaani parish, and by 1787, it had ceased operations, as had several other schools in the parish. The first school that started operating consistently was opened in fall 1850, a few days before St. Martin's Day, according to a first-hand account. According to the official list of schools in the Estonian Governorate in 1886, the school was founded in 1848. The school was located on the land of the current Koolitoa property in the village of Kehra. A new building was built for the school on the same property in 1878, because the previous building was in a bad state. According to Gustav Vilbaste, the school's teacher between 1904 and 1913, the school had three grades and around 30-50 students. The school became a four grade school in 1918 due to a nation-wide school reform.

On November 1, 1919, the school moved and started operating just north of the current train station, on the current property of Anija maantee 2. The building was made out of wood and had two stories. It was built in 1914 and destroyed during the second world war. Since 1928, the school had five grades, and six grades since 1930.

On October 8, 1939, the school started operating in the newly built property on Kreutzwaldi street, where the elementary school currently operates. The school became an incomplete middle school () in 1944, and a middle school in 1946. Russian grades were opened in 1947.

On October 8, 1961, the school started operating in the new, four-story building on Kooli street. The previous school building became a dormitory for the students. A new dormitory was built in 1975, and the elementary school started operating in the now free rooms. Since 1988, the school has had 12 grades. The dormitory was closed in 1998, and its rooms are currently occupied by the local government. The school became a gymnasium in 2007. The gymnasium building was renovated in 2012, and the elementary school building was renovated sporadically between 2013 and 2018. The surroundings of the gymnasium were thoroughly renovated in 2020.

Agricultural school There were plans to establish an agricultural school in Kehra in 1914. For a short amount of time in 1921, the school operated in Kehra. Keila agricultural school was transferred to Kehra Manor in 1934, where it operated until 1937, when the manor was sold to the pulp mill. Kehra agricultural specialty school () was opened in 1939.

Harjumaa Folk University Harjumaa Folk University (), headed by Johan Ümarik, started operating in Kehra Manor on February 26, 1930. The curriculum was diverse, some lectures had over 100 spectators, most of them locals. The university moved to Ravila in fall 1932, due to better conditions.

Arts school The school was established as a music school () on August 16, 1962. It operated in the gymnasium building. In 1970, one part of the arts school was moved to the pulp mill club and the other part to the basement of the Spordi 3 property. The school gained three rooms in the current elementary school in 1975. The school started teaching visual arts in 1989. In 1990, the entire school moved to Kose maantee 22. In 1991, the school was renamed to Kehra School of Fine Arts (). The whole school started operating in the same building as the elementary school in 2013.

Kindergartens

The first kindergarten started operating in Kehra Manor in 1946. It was operated by the pulp mill. A new building for the kindergarten was built on Laste street in 1954. The kindergarten and the local nursery were merged in 1972, the resulting establishment became known as Kehra Tselluloosi- ja Paberikombinaadi lastepäevakodu. The local sovkhoz opened kindergarten Lepatriinu on March 1, 1980, in Lehtmetsa village. The pulp mill's kindergarten was temporarily closed in 1992 because the pulp mill went bankrupt. The pulp mill's kindergarten became known as Lastetare in 1995. Currently both kindergartens are operated by Anija parish.

Railway

The route of the St. Petersburg-Tallinn-Paldiski railway was agreed upon by 1862, and it was built between 1869 and 1870. Kehra station was opened in 1872. The railway approximately divided the lands of the manor and the village, and roughly followed the old winter road between Kehra and Aegviidu. The initial station building was located closer to the river than the current one. It was demolished in the first half of the 20th century.

The current train station building was first alleged to have been built between 1876 and 1878, after Kehra became a class V railway station in 1876, but newer data suggests that the train station was built in 1896 instead. It is a single-story historistic red brick building with a half-hip roof. Similar buildings used to exist in Kohtla-Nõmme and Auvere, one still exists in Lehtse. Kehra became a class IV railway station in 1922 and a class III station in 1927.

First Estonian Division used the station as their headquarters in late 1918 and early 1919, during the Estonian War of Independence. The Battle of Kehra took place in the nearby village of Vikipalu on January 4, 1919, being one of the decisive battles of the war of independence. In fall 1936, a railway branch was built to connect the future Kehra pulp mill to the main railway. On March 25, 1949, 801 people were deported to Siberia from the station, of whom 108 were from the former Anija Parish.