Ulla is situated northwest on the island Haramsøy, near Ålesund. Throughout hundreds of years the peasants there have subsisted by the well-organized farming, with fishing as a secondary nourishment. In Ullahammaren there was an old trade relation and fishing station.

U L L A H A M M A R E N
From the end of the 18th century until the last decades of the 19th century Ullahammeren was a well-known trade relation and a place of meeting for fishermen from the islands and fjords in Sunnmøre and Romsdal. It was a natural thing for a small centre to take place here, firstly because it was short way out to the fishing areas, but also the harbour conditions were good, even if it was too shallow to come alongside with larger boats next to the big warehouses along the waterside. In its golden age there was much activity in Ullahammaren; fish trade, fish oil distillery, stores, brandy shop, shoemaker, bakery, forge and pilot station.

The model of Ullahammaren shows us the area as it was in 1880. The model is made by the dentist Per G. Ulla and is based on the well-known drawing by Sevrin Løeg in 1882.

The pilot masters had their act in Ulla from about 1770 till 1939, when the last pilot quit. The pilots watched out to know if the ships were waiting for assistance. Often there was competition between the pilot masters from Flem and the ones from Vigra in order to gain the pilot tasks; therefore they had their permanent look-out posts where they scouted the incoming ships. The pilot masters had a lot of tough jobs assisting ships safely, often under bad weather, during long distances, both southwards to Bergen and northwards, all the way to Trondheim.

The old pilot warehouse, which was a part of the centre of the trade relation, has now been restored and contents two apartments of high standard. The old part of the warehouse lies between the two apartments. The old part, containing old solid tools, is used as a general room with an historical atmosphere. This warehouse has now been named Ulla Havsportsenter and is brilliant for people who seek peace and quiet surroundings, combined with fishing, diving, lobster/crab catching, excursions in the mountains and bike rides around the islands Haramsøy and Flemsøy which are connected with a bridge.

T H E  F A R M S
The old farms in Ulla lay all close together. All in all 40 buildings were gathered in an area of 7200 square meters. The houses here lay so closely, therefore, several houses measured just one meter between each other. The model of the old country courtyard shows how the houses lay in 1880. The model was made by Johan G. Ulla. The houses lay close to the sea and only few meters from the river, in which fish used to live. The river served the people with water to the food making, washing of clothes and houses. People had to walk only a few hundred meters to the boat-houses. This way made the everyday life easier for the peasants, with short distance to the fields, the river, the mill houses, which lay next to the mountain, and the sea with fishing as a secondary nourishment.

In April 1849 a disastrous fire haunted the farms in Ulla. All houses were burned down, except a couple of buildings. The local farmers didn’t give up, but a lot of energy, courage and collaboration made them eager to build it all up again. It was difficult to accieve material, therefore some houses were imported. They were shipped to Ulla and rebuilt there.

The replacement of the soil in Ulla happened approximately in 1880. Four of the eight farms were moved out from the group-farm area from 1892 till 1898, one farm in 1926, one in 1957, while the two last farms stayed. Today many of the farm workings are closed.

T H E  B O A T - H O U S E S
Because the farms in Ulla lay close to the sea, it was a matter of course that the ocean resources were utilized. Therefore fishing was the secondary business. The boathouses are built on the eastside of Naustneset, sheltered from the sea, all closely located to each other. Twice has the storm broken this line of boathouses, in 1972 and in 1992. Both times they were rebuilt. Today there are 9 boathouses left in Ulla. The eldest ones are presumably 350 years old. In addition to that every farm had its one boathouse, they also had a stall, in which the fish were salted, fixed and stored. Today only one of these stalls is left. One of the original boathouses is gone. The big boat-houses were 19 x 6,5 yards and made space for two boats (each with 4 pairs of oars), and the small boat-houses made room for two boats (each with 2 pairs of oars). The model shows how the boat-houses and the houses, where people salted the fish, lay in 1880. The model was made by Knut Hallvard Ulla. When the fishermen came home from the sea with their boats full of fish, the first priority was to bring the fish to the houses in order to salt them. The fish was salted and stored. This was specific women’s work. When the fish was finished, it was carried out on the rocks outside Naustneset. There the fish was laid to dry. Klipfish, which was dried naturally in sun and wind, was a quality product.

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The strongest expansion of lighthouses in Norway took place in the last half of the 19th century, and it was exactly during this time the ideas to build a lighthouse in Ulla were thought. One of the reasons for these ideas was this huge accident that happened near the arrival of Ullasundet the 2nd March 1869. 18 men perished this day.

Ulla lighthouse on Kvernholmen was opened 15th January 1874. This was a so-called family station, where the lighthouse keeper and his family lived. 24th October 1944 Ulla lighthouse was bombed and totally devastated. There was a temporary light on Kvernholmen till 1949, when a new lighthouse was built, at this time of concrete, so that it would handle any weather conditions. Greatness, strength and equipment were still as Ulla lighthouse before the bombing. A new farmhouse was built. The house had two shelters, enough space for both the lighthouse keeper and his assistant. In 1965 a walking bridge was built from Haramsøy over to Kvernholmen. Ulla lighthouse became automatic in 1975, and has been out of supervision since 1995. Ulla lighthouse was in the year 2000 scheduled as an ancient monument together with 83 other lighthouses in Norway. It is a popular tourist magnet and a fine walk from Ulla. From the lighthouse you can see the Norwegian Ocean, far south and north. This is a special nature experience in good and bad weather.

For more information (Norwegian): www.ullanett.com