Photographer Nils Olsson Reppen was born in 1856 on the farm Reppen in Sogndal in western Norway. His pictures from the Sognefjord area from around year 1900 is a treasure that needs to be shared.
In 1882, Nils Olsson Reppen immigrated to America and worked as a photographer in Browns Valley and Morris in Minnesota. He returned to Norway in the late 1800´s and continued to work as a photographer in Sogndal, the village where he was born. Nils lived until 1925.
Visit Sognefjord
Visit Sognefjord is the official destination company for the Sognefjord area.
Pictures from the Sognefjord area by Nils Olsson Reppen
Nils Olsson Reppen is said to have had two periods where he lived in the USA. The first time he moved to USA was in 1882. The second time was in 1895. In 1898, he moved back to Sogndal and lived in Tårnhuset in Sogndalsfjøra.
In 1965, Tårnhuset burned down to the ground and most of his glass plate negatives were lost. There are 424 negatives left from Reppen, they are stored at Fylkesarkivet in Vestland. Vik Lokalhistoriske Arkiv also have some of Nils Olsson Reppen´s photographies.
The pictures which is presented below is mainly from the nature, the farms, the mountain farms, the fjords and the villages in the Sognefjord area around year 1900.
Press the “i” on the pictures for more information. All the pictures are downloaded from Fylkesarkivet in Vestland´s album about Nils Olsson Reppen at Flickr. Thanks to Fylkesarkivet for digitalizing, archiving and sharing the pictures.
Reference/Author/Photo: Nils O. Reppen / Fylkesarkivet in Vestland
Copyright: Creative Commons
Self Portraits – Photographer Nils Olsson Reppen´s archive
The Sognefjord Area – Photographer Nils Olsson Reppen´s archive
Reference/Author/Photo: Nils O. Reppen / Fylkesarkivet in Vestland.
Sogndal and the Sogndalsfjord – in the heart of the Sognefjord
Sogndal is the very heart of the Sognefjord, and is a great area for activities and experiences in beautiful and wild nature. From Sogndal there is a short way to all the sidefjords of the Sognefjord. In addition, it is a great area for hiking along the fjord, kayaking, fjord cruises, mountain biking, climbing and bouldering, mountain hikes and skiing.
Some of the side fjords are the Lustrafjord, Årdalsfjord, Aurlandsfjord and Nærøyfjord and the Fjærlandsfjord.
Sogndal is surrounded by some of the most famous mountains for skiing and mountaineering in western Norway. The mountains in the Sogndal Area are well known for it´s powder snow, and many of the mountains have great fjord view. Hodlekve Ski Resort in the Sogndalsdalen valley is great for skiing in well prepared slopes and also for it´s crosscountry skiing.
Sognefjord – What to See and Do
The Sognefjord, the king of the fjords, is the longest fjord adventure in Norway. The Sognefjord is 204 kilometres long and 1308 metres deep at its deepest.
Join a guided glacier walk on the Nigardsbreen glacier. Take a short hike to Mt Molden in Luster and you will get a fantastic view down towards the Lustrafjord. See the beautiful stave churches around the Sognefjord. Urnes Stave Church is one of them, it is located at Ornes by the Lustrafjord and is part of our common world heritage.
Join a fjord safari or a fjord cruise on the Aurlandsfjord and Nærøyfjord. Experience the view from Stegastein viewpoint above the Aurlandsfjord. Flåm Railway has been named one of the ten most beautiful railways in the world. This is the train journey from mountain to fjord, and many people take the train ride both ways.
In the middle of the Sognefjord, where the fjord is at its widest and the mountains starts to rise, you’ll find Balestrand, an idyllic village down by the fjord. The fjord village of Fjærland is located deep in the Fjærlandsfjord. It is so beautiful there that it is almost unreal. Fjærland is also called The Norwegian Book Town because of all the book sales in the tiny village.
Borgund Stave Church was built around year 1181 AD. and is the most visited stave church in Norway. Close by is the old Vindhellavegen Road that runs between Borgund and Husum in the Lærdalen valley in Lærdal. The old Vindhellavegen Road is part of the old King´s Road between east and west in Norway.
The Fjærlandsfjord, Aurlandsfjord and Nærøyfjord, the Årdalsfjord and the Lustrafjord are all branches of the Sognefjord. These side fjords are perhaps even more famous than the Sognefjord itself, which is located in the middle of Western Norway. The Sognefjord is so long that it almost divides Norway in two.
References
Nils O. Reppen / Fylkesarkivet in Vestland – Copyright: Creative Commons