Österskog
Österskog is a village belonging to the municipality of Mörbylånga on the Swedish island of Öland in the Baltic Sea . The history of the village is an example of the poor and miserable conditions of the 19th and 20th centuries in some Öland areas.
location
The village with significantly fewer than 50 inhabitants is surrounded by forests in the center of the island. It can only be reached via an approximately three kilometer long cul-de-sac that branches off to the north from the Glömminge and Spjutterum road.
Today the place only consists of a few scattered houses and various overgrown ruins. Some of the old cottages have been converted into summer homes.
history
Nursery wood
In 1801 the Swedish state abandoned the hunting and forestry regulations that had been very restrictive for Öland. The previously completely royal forest was given to other users. However, the eastern forest in Central Öland initially remained in state ownership. Because of the large oak trees standing here, the forest was important for the Swedish navy for building ships. This area, which was declared a tree nursery , was surrounded by a high wall to protect the forest. Young oak seedlings were planted. Possibly the wall was comparable to Karl X. Gustafs mur in the south of Öland. A forest ranger lived on site. The ruins of the apartment can still be seen.
Foundation of Österskogs
However, the company did not prove successful. At least the oak plantation was restricted again in 1814. The forest area was transformed into new farms, the village of Österskog. The yards were all three-eighth hooves in size . The village was assigned to the municipality of Högsrum , which Österskog was not adjacent to. In 1869 Österskog came to the municipality of Glömminge. The population of Österskog at that time was about 50 people.
The area comprised 100 hectares with the walled area and another 25 hectares outside the wall.
In April 1815, the Borgholm merchant Anders Råberg became the leaseholder of the Kronenhof Österskog . In 1816 the land became the private property of Råberg for 1768 Reichstaler . Extreme depletion of the area's natural resources set in. Shortly after acquiring the land, Råberg was already selling wood worth 30,000 Reichstalers. The expectation that privately owned forests would be better cared for proved false.
In 1841 Österskog was sold to Johan Magnus Rylander from Stora Rör for 2,330 Reichstaler . The rest of the original forest that had been preserved until then disappeared within a few years. The originally wooded area had completely changed its appearance. Its previous economic basis, which was based on forestry use, had also disappeared.
Economic decline
Rylander divided the area into eleven parcels, each one eighth of a hoof. He asked for a purchase price of only 200 Reichstalers per plot. There was great interest in buying because of the low purchase price. For the buyers, however, the acquisition turned out to be a financial fiasco. The soil was so bad that the yields were poor. The soil could only be used for one year and then had to lie fallow, which, however, was also due to insufficient fertilization. The soil layer in the field was only 20 cm in part. In some cases soil depths of less than 10 cm were found. The western parcels were slightly better than the others.
The meadows necessary for the success of farms were also insufficient. The yields were so bad that it was not worth mowing the meadows. Law enforcement officials discovered in August 1869 that a farmer was harvesting only one cart full of hay in an area of 24 acres . The quality of the meadows was only better in areas where a few trees and bushes had been preserved.
It was similar with the livestock industry. Of eight farmers listed in 1869, three did not keep any animals because they had been seized by creditors. Two kept a cow, two more a horse. A farmer owned a cow and a horse. Equally large farms in other areas of Öland kept around six cows, a few oxen and horses, four to five young cattle and six to seven sheep.
Overall, it was found that the poor soil and the small size of the farm were not enough to give the farmers a means of livelihood. The taxes to be paid were based on the value of the area when it was densely covered with forest. The originally valuable land was, however, economically worthless due to the deforestation. Efforts by those affected to have lower income-appropriate taxes imposed, however, failed over long periods of time.
There were no other employment opportunities. Fishing, which is otherwise obvious on Öland, was not possible for the Österskogers due to the central location of the place on the island, and the fishing rights would also have been missing. Another frequent extra income on Öland was stone grinding. The limestone in the Österskogs area was unsuitable for this, at least in relation to the limestone deposits in the north of the island. The farmers and their families therefore often hired themselves out as day laborers on other farms outside Österskog, which made it even more difficult to manage their own farm.
In times of need, the farmers also sold the wall surrounding the area as building material. In view of the abundance of stones in Öland, the price obtained is likely to have been only marginal.
As a result of this overall situation, the new farmers became impoverished and then had to leave their farms. The same fate awaited the subsequent buyers. The residents of Österskog were often dependent on the charity of others and were a heavy burden. The children in particular were sent to beg . Foolishly, the Österskog farmers, who claimed they were free farmers, also had to pay contributions to the welfare of the community.
The living conditions of the Österskog farmers were described as miserable. In addition to the storage of the harvest, often the only cow was kept in the crates used for living. Also the threshing should be done in the living room often. Tuberculosis was common. There was also a high child mortality rate .
The poor living conditions persisted into the 20th century.
literature
- Anders Johansson, Öland, Hain und Heide , self-published, Kalmar 1999, ISBN 91-973285-6-1 , page 67 ff.
Coordinates: 56 ° 44 ' N , 16 ° 38' E