Ålesund Museum

The Museum of Aalesund on the top of Museumshaugen gives you a genuine insight into the history of Ålesund. Through different exhibitions, the museum exhibits the growth of the city around the narrow straight, as well as events such as the city fire and the German occupation. The exhibitions are spread over four floors in the museum, with both permanent and temporary exhibitions. The museum owns a variety of special collections from prehistoric treasures to a large collection of illegal newspapers form WW II. The Museum of Aalesund was established in 1903. After only one year of existence, in January 1904, all of the collections in the museum burned, together with most of the city. During one night, both the museum collection and most of the other material cultural heritage in Ålesund was gone. However, the museum was quickly re-established, and items would now be collected from all of Sunnmøre. One thing, however, was missing: a suitable building for the museum. After having temporary solutions and moving several times, the museum finally got its own building when Rønnebergs villa and land on Østre Korsahaug was bought in 1930. The next year, the doors of the Museum of Aalesund were opened to the public.