Northern Europe’s first electric streetlights

«The impressive lighting naturally gives a great happiness to the town’s people, who of an evening are coming out to admire the beautiful lights” wrote the Finnmarksposten on the 10th of February 1891. Referring to when Hammerfest became the first town in Northern Europe to get electric streetlights. In Hammerfest the interest for using electricity for lighting began early. Representatives from Hammerfest municipality visited the world fair in Paris in 1878, where the first attempt to light up a street was being made. Hammerfest were able to obtain the same type of generator, financed with money from arctic fishing and the pomor trade. Several years later the municipality obtained access to the local co-operatives electric lighting fund, which at the end of 1890 had amounted to 17 000 kroner. This stretched to building a dam and a turbine over Storvannet which generated enough power for 18 streetlights and 300 incandescent bulbs for the houses. It could be claimed that the lights were financed by the town’s thirsty inhabitants. The co-operative was responsible for the sale of all liquor in the town and the profits were used for good causes, amongst them the streetlights. Here next to the pavilion, you can see a replica of the old street lighting!