The story behind Falkängen
A hundred years ago, the streets were bustling with life. Up to 300 people lived on Falkängen, the majority of whom were large families with six to ten children each. The living space for each family was only one room and kitchen. Here is a brief overview of Falkängen, the people and Kinnekulle.
Take a few minutes and join us on a little journey through time.
The alum mill became the first industry in 1768
The first real industry in the area was established in 1768, this was Hönsäters Alunbruk. Alum is a salt that during the 17th and 18th centuries began to be used in medicine and as a mordant in dyeing textiles. The salt is obtained as a precipitate from alum slate with such simple processes as roasting and leaching. During the early 19th century, the most alum was produced; 772 barrels (one barrel = 145 liters), at that time about 80 people worked at the mill.
Cooper Falk and his cow in the meadow
In 1800, a cooper named Johan Olsson-Falk also worked at Hönsäter Alunbruk. He was born in 1769, married in 1800, his wife and Johan had ten children, five of whom did not reach adulthood. To help support his family, he had a cow that grazed on the forest meadow below Hönsäter, the meadow was where Falkängen is now, and the name Falkängen is believed to have arisen from this combination; Falks äng, Falkängen.
The alum mill became a lime mill in 1873
The alum mill was closed down in 1873 and transferred to the lime mill, which of course took over the workers. In 1892 the cement factory was started, which in turn took over the workers from the lime mill. Many workers were needed, and workers' housing was forced to be built to get people to settle in Hällekis. During the years 1896-1898, the first three houses along Falkängsgatan were built by a builder from Skara. The first families moved in in 1899. A total of 8 houses were built. The foremen's salary included free accommodation in a room and kitchen. The workers paid 28:-/year for the same area. This amount was to be paid in advance at 7:-/quarter.
The union brought better working conditions
In 1906, the workers wanted to start their own union. The first meeting was held on the company premises, as the company believed that in this way they could prevent the formation of the union. However, the union was formed and became part of the Mining and Factory Workers' Union. 120 members joined at the first meeting. The subsequent meetings were held at the families' homes, as the company could not ban the meetings. Gradually, working conditions for the members improved with increased basic wages, overtime pay, medical care and sickness compensation. The basic hourly wage, which had previously been 15 öre, was now increased to 25 öre.
The lime industry is going into decline
The closure of Cementa's factory in Hällekis started in 1973 when Cementa acquired Gullhögen's factory in Skövde, then the only competitor in cement manufacturing in Sweden. In 1974, a structural investigation was carried out by Cementa which led to the conclusion that the cement factories in Hällekis and Köping would be closed down in 1978. This was the start of intensive work to bring one or more replacement industries to Hällekis. A working group was formed with County Governor Karl Frittiofsson at the head to try to make this happen.
Rockwool becomes the replacement industry
There were some industries that were interested, the state promised location support for establishment in Hällekis, this had also been done in Norrland. One of the industries; Rockwool, which manufactured insulation materials, was in need of expansion so they decided to build a factory with two production lines in Hällekis. Construction started in 1977 and was to be completed with one line in the autumn of 1978, the next line was to be ready in the spring of 1979.
Utbildning av Rockwoolarbetare i Skövde
Under 1977 lånade Rockwool personal från Cementa för att utbilda dessa så att övergången till den nya fabriken skulle ske så smidigt som möjligt. Det var ca 200 personer i grupper om 20 som åkte till Skövde och Rockwoolfabriken för teoretisk och praktisk utbildning. Detta gjorde att starten av Fabriken i Hällekis gick relativt smärtfritt. Rockwool heter numera Paroc, här har många sin försörjning nu, fabriken har också byggts ut under senare år.
Elsa's home becomes an apartment museum
In the Apartment Museum you can get a glimpse into a home from the past. The apartment shows Elsa Vestberg's home. Elsa was born at Falkängen in 1901, where her parents moved when the houses were newly built. Her mother, Hedda Elisabeth Vestberg, died when Elsa was very young. Her father, Alfred Vestberg, worked at Cementa, Elsa herself worked as a cleaner in the mill's staff canteen, she had no siblings, and the home was probably considered a little nicer than the well-furnished homes with many children.
Elsa herself had no children. She and her father did not live in what is now the museum apartment, but the apartment that has been used to display Elsa's home was not renovated in connection with the other renovations that began in the early 1980s. The wallpaper in the room is probably from the 1950s, the kitchen wallpaper from the 1960s, while the painting in the kitchen is considerably older.
Miss Elsa left her home to the county's diabetes association, which in turn sold everything to Götene Municipality, which, by agreement, donated the entire home to Skaraborg County Museum, which undertook to furnish the apartment. During the summer season, the apartment is open for visitors.
Moving out and moving in
The last residents; Einar and Svea Persson, moved out of here in 1982. In the same year it was decided that a Craft Center would be established at Falkängen, which was inaugurated on June 4, 1983. Falkängens Hantverksförening rents out nine of the premises on the ground floors facing Falkängsvägen during the summer season and Christmas market; about 60 craftsmen and artisans sell, and show the production of, their products. For a few weeks after midsummer we also have Summer Exhibitors in our exhibition and party venue Gallerian. The Christmas market also offers an extra number of exhibitors in our premises Gallerian and Smedjan.
Falkängsgatan was popularly called Blängaregatan (maybe that's a legend, maybe not...)
Falkängsgatan was perhaps popularly called Blängaregatan. This was because the street was the only way to the shop for those who lived on the islands in Lake Vänern. They arrived in their boats, docked in the harbor in Hällekis and walked up the street to the shop. When they were on their way back to their boats, the residents stood along the street and stared at what the islanders had brought with them in their baskets from the shop.
The family children shared the clothes
The red huts, with gray doors, that are lined up inside the residential buildings were the outhouses. At most, 63 families lived here, a total of up to 300 people. Often, there was not enough money in the families to buy enough clothes for all the children. When the older children went to school, the younger children were allowed to stay inside and play. When the siblings came home from school, the younger children were allowed to take their clothes so they could go outside and play.
Families stuck together through thick and thin
There was a great deal of cohesion between the families. There was a signaling system that, for example, told if a family had real coffee in the grinder. Each family also had a pet pig. One Sunday morning, the gentlemen met on the street and formed a Pig Insurance by everyone paying 1:- each into a common fund to be able to help anyone who might have lost their pig.
Kinnekulle's interesting nature and geology
Kinnekulle has long attracted nature and geology enthusiasts. Every year, Falkängen is visited by geology students from universities in Sweden, Germany and Denmark. If you don't want to delve into fossils, there are several nice hiking trails and nature conservation areas with varied nature. Here and there along the hiking trails, and at the nature conservation areas, there is a description of the local flora and fauna. Along the still untouched pebble beach below the step edge, you can walk, have a picnic, enjoy the sunset and Lake Vänern, and of course - take a swim!
Linnaeus called Kinnekulle “More lovely than any other…”
The vegetation is unique with several orchid species, e.g. guckusko. Orchids like calcareous soil, so it is understandable that they thrive here! Much of the animal and plant life is protected. Ramsons grow in large quantities here, especially in Munkängarna. The tender, green leaves begin to emerge as soon as the sun starts to warm. The leaves form a beautiful green carpet before the trees have their green, then you really feel that spring is coming! Then the greenery of the ground is filled with the beautiful flowers of the ramsons with their white balls. In Munkängarna, most of Sweden's deciduous tree species are said to be represented.
The old quarry shows that octopus lived here
An absolute must on your first visit to Kinnekulle is a look at the large quarry located above Munkängarna. You can drive almost all the way into the quarry, you can also stop above and see the quarry with Lake Vänern in the background, very beautiful! This is where the stone was quarried, this is where the inhabitants got their livelihood. Here you can also see a few million years of deposits in the 30 meter high edges of the mountain, at the small parking lot above the quarry there is an interesting description of a time when there were octopuses here!
Falkängens hus från slutet av 1800-talet
De vackra putsade husen på Falkängen började alltså byggas 1896 i syfte att tjäna som bostäder för de många människor som arbetade inom cementindustrin. Numera hyser bruksgatan logi och konferensanläggning april-november, samt hantverksbutiker maj-aug, höstrundan i september och Vintergatan i november. Kaffestugan har öppet under sommarsäsongen och september månad ut samt under Vintergatan.