Holla Municipality

Holla (; ) is a former municipality in Telemark county, Norway. The municipality existed from 1838 until its dissolution in 1964. The area is now divided between Nome Municipality and Skien Municipality. The municipality was historically considered part of the traditional district of Grenland, but in 1964 after becoming part of the new Nome Municipality, it has been considered to be part of the Midt-Telemark district. The administrative centre was the village of Ulefoss.

Prior to its dissolution in 1964, the municipality was the 318th largest by area out of the 689 municipalities in Norway. Holla Municipality was the 203rd most populous municipality in Norway with a population of about . The municipality's population density was and its population had increased by 1.6% over the previous 10-year period.

General information

Administrative history The formannskapsdistrikt law of 1837 created a system of local government in Norway by establishing each town (ladested or kjøpstad) and each Church of Norway prestegjeld as a civil municipality. On 1 January 1838, Hollen prestegjeld was established as Holden Municipality (later spelled Hollen, then Holla). On 1 January 1866, an unpopulated area of Bø Municipality was transferred into Hollen Municipality.

During the 1960s, there were many municipal mergers across Norway due to the work of the Schei Committee. On 1 January 1964, the Valebø area (population: ) was transferred to the neighboring Skien Municipality. On the same date, the rest of Holla Municipality was dissolved and the following areas were merged to form the new Nome Municipality:

the rest of Holla Municipality (population: ) all of Lunde Municipality (population: )

Name The municipality is named after the old Hollen prestegjeld. The prestegjeld was named after the old Hollen farm () since the first Holla Church was built there. The first element is derived from the word which means "sloping" or "leaning". The last element is derived from the word which means "meadow" or "pasture".

Historically, the name of the municipality was spelled Holden. In 1889, the spelling was changed to Hollen. On 3 November 1917, a royal resolution changed the spelling of the name of the municipality to Holla.

Churches The Church of Norway had one parish () within Holla Municipality. At the time of the municipal dissolution, it was part of the Holla prestegjeld and the Nedre Telemark prosti (deanery) in the Diocese of Agder.

Churches in Holla MunicipalityParish ()Church nameLocation of the churchYear builtHelgenHelgen ChurchHelgja1735HollaHolla ChurchUlefoss1867Valebø ChurchValebø1903

Holla Church ruins The Old Holla Church was a medieval stone church that was situated near the Holla gård in today's Ulefoss. The church had a view over lake Norsjø. Today only the ruins (Holla kyrkjeruin) are left.

Holla Church Holla Church () is a Gothic Revival-style church which dates from 1867. The church was donated to the community by Severin Diderik Cappelen (1820-1881) who was the owner of Ulefos Jernværk and served as mayor in Holla. The structure is made of brick and has about 600 seats. The architect was Peter Høier Holtermann (1820-1865). The church was restored during 1916.

Geography The highest point in the municipality was the tall mountain Austre Nuke. Sauherad Municipality was located to the north, Gjerpen Municipality was located to the east, Solum Municipality was located to the south, Drangedal Municipality was located to the southwest, and Lunde Municipality was located to the west.

Government While it existed, Holla Municipality was responsible for primary education (through 10th grade), outpatient health services, senior citizen services, welfare and other social services, zoning, economic development, and municipal roads and utilities. The municipality was governed by a municipal council of directly elected representatives. The mayor was indirectly elected by a vote of the municipal council. The municipality was under the jurisdiction of the Nedre Telemark District Court and the Agder Court of Appeal.

Municipal council The municipal council of Holla Municipality was made up of 25 representatives that were elected to four year terms. The tables below show the historical composition of the council by political party.

Mayors The mayor () of Holla Municipality was the political leader of the municipality and the chairperson of the municipal council. The following people have held this position:

1838–1841: Fr. Rolsted 1841–1845: Rev. W.L. Beylegaard 1845–1847: Fr. Rolsted 1847–1859: F.K. Dahl 1860–1867: S.D. Cappelen 1868–1871: Nils Aall 1872–1875: John Bentsen Vale 1876–1883: Isak Abrahamsen Bjerva 1884–1885: P. Pedersen Ytterbøe 1886–1887: John Bentsen Vale 1888–1889: Ole Nilsen Namlaus 1890–1895: P. Pedersen Ytterbøe 1896–1898: Halvor H. Susaas 1899–1901: Ole A. Melteig 1902–1904: Peder Helgen 1905–1910: Peder Thorvald Tveten 1911–1916: Peder Helgen 1917–1925: Herman Halvorsen 1926–1930: Steinar Aarhus 1930–1931: Halvor Øygarden 1932–1937: Olav Mæland 1938–1941: Knut Dukane (Ap) 1941–1941: H. Haukvik (NS) 1941–1943: Jonas Vale (NS) 1943–1945: John Haugerud (NS) 1945–1946: Knut Dukane (Ap) 1946–1959: Ingolf Solvold (Ap) 1960–1963: Johannes Kabbe (Ap)

See also List of former municipalities of Norway

References

Holla Municipality

Bron en licentie