Gräsö is an island in

Östhammar Municipality Östhammar Municipality (''Östhammars kommun'') is a municipality in Uppsala County in east central Sweden. Its seat is located in the city of Östhammar. The present municipality was created during the local government reform in the late sixti ...

, off the coast of

Uppland Uppland () is a historical province or ' on the eastern coast of Sweden, just north of Stockholm, the capital. It borders Södermanland, Västmanland and Gästrikland. It is also bounded by lake Mälaren and the Baltic Sea. On the small uninhab ...

province on the eastern coast of Sweden. It is also the name of a village on the island which lies at the southern end of the Gulf of Bothnia. The island has an area of and a population of about 800. The island has a mixture of fields and woodland. It is a popular summer resort.

Location

Gräsö and the smaller island of

Örskär Örskär, is a Swedish island and lighthouse station located north of Gräsö on the Uppland coastline. A large part of the island is a nature reserve and it is rich of unusual flowers such as wild orchids. The island is also noted to be a goo ...

to the north are the most northerly of the

Roslagen Roslagen is the name of the coastal areas of Uppland province in Sweden, which also constitutes the northern part of the Stockholm archipelago. Historically, it was the name for all the coastal areas of the Baltic Sea, including the eastern p ...

islands, the northern part of the Stockholm archipelago. Gräsö may be reached by ferry from

Öregrund Öregrund is a locality situated in Östhammar Municipality, Uppsala County, Sweden. As of 2010, it had 1,555 inhabitants. It is located by the Baltic Sea, on the coast of Uppland. Despite its small population, Öregrund is still commonly referred ...

on the mainland to the west. The island has a gently rolling terrain with woods mixed with cultivated fields and pasture. There is abundant wildlife including

fox Foxes are small to medium-sized, omnivorous mammals belonging to several genera of the family Canidae. They have a flattened skull, upright, triangular ears, a pointed, slightly upturned snout, and a long bushy tail (or ''brush''). Twelve sp ...

badger Badgers are short-legged omnivores in the family Mustelidae (which also includes the otters, wolverines, martens, minks, polecats, weasels, and ferrets). Badgers are a polyphyletic rather than a natural taxonomic grouping, being united by ...

deer Deer or true deer are hoofed ruminant mammals forming the family Cervidae. The two main groups of deer are the Cervinae, including the muntjac, the elk (wapiti), the red deer, and the fallow deer; and the Capreolinae, including the re ...

and elk.

Sea eagle A sea eagle or fish eagle (also called erne or ern, mostly in reference to the white-tailed eagle) is any of the birds of prey in the genus ''Haliaeetus'' in the bird of prey family Accipitridae. Taxonomy and evolution The genus ''Haliaeetus'' ...

s nest on the island.

History

In the past the people lived mainly on fishing, hunting and farming. There is a graveyard from the

Viking Age The Viking Age () was the period during the Middle Ages when Norsemen known as Vikings undertook large-scale raiding, colonizing, conquest, and trading throughout Europe and reached North America. It followed the Migration Period and the Germ ...

in the grazed pasture to the east of Gräsö gård, with 55 graves. This was probably beside a trading post that later gained a more settled farming population practicing arable farming and raising cattle. In 1548

Gustav Vasa Gustav I, born Gustav Eriksson of the Vasa noble family and later known as Gustav Vasa (12 May 1496 – 29 September 1560), was King of Sweden from 1523 until his death in 1560, previously self-recognised Protector of the Realm ('' Riksför ...

evicted the farmers from the region and founded a new estate at Gräsö gård. In the early 1600s the farmstead was converted into a manor.

Gräsö Church Gräsö is an island in Östhammar Municipality, off the coast of Uppland province on the eastern coast of Sweden. It is also the name of a village on the island which lies at the southern end of the Gulf of Bothnia. The island has an area of an ...

was founded in 1695 and consecrated in 1697. In 1719 the Russians raided the island, looting and burning all the farm buildings. A relic from that time is an altar in Klockarhagen where the Russians held their religious services. The church sacristy was built in 1753 as part of the reconstruction after Russian raids of 1719. The church was restored in 1997 for its 300th anniversary.

Today

there were about 800 permanent residents, but in the summer the population rises as many visitors come to stay for their holidays. The island has a kindergarten and an elementary school for students up to grade 3. There are many small businesses in the agriculture and handicraft industries. Visitor facilities include hostels and camping. There is a family campground with a restaurant and miniature golf, craft and curio shops and a small market. Gräsö gård is now a nature reserve owned by the municipality, near to the ferry landing. It includes hiking trails, meadows with many flowers, rocks and woods, and picnic areas. Some of the meadows are fenced off, and cows graze in others. There is a 28-bed hostel. The main building was built at the turn of the century after a fire in 1890.

Gallery

File:Djurstens fyr 2.jpg,

Djursten Djursten is a Swedish lighthouse located at Västerbyn on the west side of the island of Gräsö in the northern Roslagens archipelago. The nearest community is Öregrund. History The location has had a lighthouse since 1767. The first lighthou ...

lighthouse at Västerbyn on the west side of Gräsö File:Djurstens fyrplats fyren.jpg, Another view of the lighthouse File:Höst på Gräsö.jpg, West side of the island in evening (4 April 2012, 18:06:26)

References

Citations Sources * * * *

External links

Gräsö.nu
{{DEFAULTSORT:Graso Islands of Uppsala County