History of Old Hunting and

Trapping Methods - Sweden

Introduction

Hunting involves searching for, tracking, pursuing, capturing, and killing game. Originally, hunting was used to obtain food, clothing, and footwear. The hunting methods used varied greatly depending on the terrain, prey, and technological factors. The title picture above shows "Wolf hunting in Westergötland" by Fritz von Dardel in 1847. A sled with three men and a pig is pursued by two wolves. Image: Wikipedia. Fishing is the catching of animals in the water, such as fish, shellfish, etc., either professionally or as recreational fishing (i.e. either subsistence fishing with professional gear or sport fishing). A person who engages in fishing on a professional basis is called a fisherman.

Related Links

• Old hunting and trapping methods, page 1 • Old hunting and trapping methods, page 2 • The Old Agricultural Society and its People • The conceptions of croft (torp) and crofters (torpare) • The Concept of Nobility • Summer Pasture - Fäbodar • The subdivisions of Sweden into Lands, Provinces and Counties • Map, Swedish provinces • Map, Swedish counties

Source References

• Det gamla Ytterlännäs, Sten Berglund, 1974. Published by Ytterlännäs Hembygdsförening. Chapter 41 (page 395). • Jaktens historia i Sverige : vilt - människa - samhälle - kultur, Kjell Danell; Roger Bergström; Leif Mattsson; Sverker Sörlin. 2016. • Vilt i Sverige och Europa – igår, idag och imorgon, Daniel Ligné, Svenska Jägarförbundet • Is the fear of Wolves justified? A Fennoscandian perspective, 2002. John D.C. Linnell, Erling J. Solberg, Scott Brainerd, Olof Liberg, Håkan Sand, Petter Wabakken, Ilpo Kojola. • Makten över jakten, article in Populär Historia by Gunnar Brusewitz 2001. • Om fiskfångst med snara. Edvard Wibeck. 1915. • Fisket i stockholms skärgård under historisk tid. Havsmiljöinstitutets rapport nr 2021:3. Henrik Svedäng och Carl Rolff. • Björn i Nordisk familjebok (andra upplagan, 1905) • Nordisk familjebok / Uggleupplagan. 12. Hyperemi - Johan / 1203-1204 • Wikipedia • Swedish church books Top of page

Fishing Rights in former Days

Already in the Middle Ages, fishing on the coast and in the rivers was considered to belong to the Crown or the King, water regalia. In the 16th century, King Gustav Vasa extended the Crown's right to include lake fishing, the tax revenue from which went to the Crown. In other words, it was not only the productive salmon fishing in the rivers that were taxed but also the fishing in the lakes. Preserved tax documents from the time of Gustav Vasa and his sons bear witness to this.

Baltic Herring Fishing along the Coast of

Norrland - The Gävle fishermen

Gustav Vasa thus strengthened the Crown's legal claim - called the King's rightful commons - and extended the tax obligation also to the Baltic herring fishing in Norrland, which had previously not been a taxable commons and available to all and sundry. In 1557, Gustav Vasa granted a royal privilege to fishing citizens from the City of Gävle, who now had the exclusive right to Baltic herring fishing along the coast of Norrland in return for paying every tenth barrel of fish to the Crown. Gävle was then the only city (with town rights) in Norrland. This exclusive right was loosened up somewhat by subsequent rulers in the latter part of the 16th and 17th centuries, so that fishing citizens from towns on Lake Mälaren, such as Enköping, Torshälla, Strängnäs, and Västerås, were also allowed to fish along the coast of northern Sweden. But in time these more southerly fishermen abandoned the area and the Gävle citizens were left alone. Gävle fishermen established fishing villages (Swe: fiskelägen) from Gävle all the way up to northern Ångermanland. These fishing villages came to be known as Gävle fishermen’s ports. When new towns were founded along the Norrland coast, the situation became more complicated. After Hudiksvall and Härnösand were granted city rights in the 1580s, their burghers tried to take over Gävle's fishing villages. After two more towns were added in the 1620s, Söderhamn, and Sundsvall, the burghers there also tried to take over nearby fishing grounds. On Brämö Island south of Sundsvall in Njurunda parish, there are two communities, Sanna on the mainland side of the island where the pilot station was located, and Norrhamn on the northern side of the island. Norrhamn consists of the old fishing villages Hamn and Viken. Norrhamn became a fishing village for the Gävle fishermen. In Norrhamn is the Brämö chapel from the early 17th century, and to the east is the Brämö lighthouse, which was built in 1859. The oldest of the current fishing cottages date from the early 18th century. The image shows the fishing village Norrhamn on Brämö Island, Njurunda parish, south of Sundsvall, around 1910 - 1914. Image: Sundsvall museum, ID: SuM-foto019118. In 1623, the citizens of Sundsvall wrote to the Councillor of the Realm Johan Skytte, stating that the new town needed additional privileges, especially fishing grounds, to develop. The town was then allowed to take over the Gävle fishermen’s old fishing grounds of Lörudden and Brämön in Njurunda parish and Rödviken in Tynderö parish. The Gävle fishermen remained, but from then on as tenants. As Sundsvall grew, however, the demand for fishing grounds from the citizens increased, and in 1701 the city simply decided to turn the Gävle inhabitants away. As a result, some of the Gävle fishermen became residents of the area. Soon the old long-distance fishing in Medelpad province was a thing of the past, while several fishing villages were established around the city of Gävle. In Härnösand in 1652, the mayors decreed that "no stranger" would henceforth be allowed to fish closer than 20 km from the town. This meant that the Gävle fishermen had to leave Storön and Hemsön. In 1707, the Gävle fishermen agreed with the citizens of Härnösand that they would jointly use the fishing grounds, except those located less than 20 km from the town. In 1766, the Crown's water regalia was abolished by a new fishing charter, which meant that anyone who owned a coastal strip also had the right to fish. This led to the final abolition of the Gävle fishing privileges in 1773. The burghers of Härnösand and Sundsvall bought the fishing rights. From around 1740, the Gävle fishermen were organized in a so-called society (guild), known as the “fiskarsocieteten”, i.e. the fishermen's society. The town fishermen of Gävle sailed north in May. At the beginning of the 18th century, they mainly used covered yachts and uncovered or half-covered ketches known as “haxar” (haxe in the singular), but also a type of boat that was known as “skötbåtar”. In the middle of the 18th century, the members of the Gävle Fishermen's Society (guild) had about 60 “haxar”. These freighters were used to transport the families of the town fishermen to the fishing grounds, where sons and farmhands were left to do the fishing. The father of the house himself would then leave the port to sail along the coast to do freight service, sometimes as far as Pomerania or Danzig. In September or October, the family would be picked up again. The ships carried all kinds of small pets such as chickens, goats, pigs, and ducks, as well as the food needed for the stay at the fishing grounds. Throughout the summer, fish was preserved in the form of salted Baltic herring, fermented Baltic herring (Swe: surströmming), and “krampsill” (sun-dried herring). In the autumn, this was transported back to Gävle for sale. In 1742, 6,500 barrels of salted herring were taken home, and in 1816 no less than 10,000 barrels. A "haxe" is a small, flat-bottomed coastal working vessel (ketch), rigged as a galleass, used in the 18th and 19th centuries. The name “haxe” comes from “haaksi” in Finnish, an archaic word for a small cargo boat, or small vessel (ketch). The haxe was used mainly for shipping, but also for fishing, along the Norrland coast. The image to the right shows the ketch (haxe) “Anna” moored at a fishing village in Höga kusten, Ångermanland. It was owned by the fisherman Erik August Grellson. The boat was built in 1817 in Gävle. Image: Sjöhistoriska museet, ID: Fo24936AB. The Nordic “skötbåt” boat is essentially a gig boat built in the past from wood, mainly used for fishing with “skötar” for Baltic herring. The boat was usually an open and wide boat with one or two pairs of oars and a spritsail. “Skötar” are nets used on the Baltic coast for herring fishing. The length of these boats was just over 7 m. The image to the left shows a sketch of a Finnish “skötbåt”. Image: SLS, Folkkultursarkivet, signum: sls410b_1. More information on fishing and fishing methods

Gistvall - Net-Drying Racks

At the fishing villages, each fisherman had net-drying racks known as “gistvall”, with fixed wooden racks, on which the nets could be hung up to dry. A “gistvall” is an open flat area of ground provided with a rack for hanging fishing nets to their full extent for drying, to make it easier to clear the nets of seaweed and to check for damage that may need repairing. The “gist” was a standard piece of equipment on the shore adjacent to the jetties where fishing nets were taken ashore after fishing was completed and was usually erected on a flat larger grassy area so that the nets could not catch on anything on the ground. To “gista” nets means to hang and dry the nets. In the picture of the ketch Anna above, you can see a “gistvall” on land behind the boat. “Vall” means grassland.

Who fished

On the Baltic coast, fishing was largely a sideline to farming but also to various urban industries (urban citizens). Fishermen used to be divided into the categories of "professional fishermen" and "sideline fishermen". The latter group is made up of those who regularly fish for sale but whose main income is derived from other occupations and of those who are purely subsistence fishermen. However, there is no clear dividing line between pure professional fishermen and typical sideline fishermen. A large number of farmers were regularly engaged in fishing for sale to a greater or lesser extent, and it may depend on the circumstances whether their main source of income is fishing or farming. More information on fishing and fishing methods