Vang fishing village

Facts

Klondyke" on Bornholm "

By Ann Vibeke Knudsen , Museumsleder emeritus, arkitekt MAA (4 stories)

South of Hammershus, on a small strip of land near the sea, is the fishing village of Vang. It was first mentioned in 1570. Catches of herring, cod and salmon from Vang were sold at Hammershus, which was deserted and abandoned as the island's administrative centre in the late 1600s. In the early 1800s, 16 families in Vang could make a living from fishing. It was a modest fishing village – the large fishing villages were on the east coast of Bornholm. In the 1870s, the fishermen built a harbour basin and 20 years later, 21 families lived in Vang - half living off fishing and the rest off cottage industries.

Public place

Selected entry

From fishing to quarrying

Story written by Ann Vibeke Knudsen

Time / Periode 1600 1974

2 Comments 1 recommendations

Fishing in Vang stagnated from the 1890s. This was because sculptor Jacob Mogensen from Rønne bought a plot of land south of the fishing village in 1891 and opened a quarry five years later. This provided the fishermen with stable jobs and attracted more people. Vang became a town and the locals nicknamed it Klondyke". Mogensen had ambition. With the fishermen's help and a state loan, he extended the harbour and built a railway for tipper wagons along the cliffs. About 50 men were employed: granite quarrymen, cobblestone makers and workmen. In 1911, Mogensen sold the quarry but it continued under other owners until 1974. The harbour has examples of the granite work done at the quarry. "