Sør-Aukra Municipality
Sør-Aukra is a former municipality in Møre og Romsdal county, Norway. The municipality existed from 1924 until its dissolution in 1965. The area is now part of Molde Municipality in the traditional district of Romsdal. The municipality consisted of the entire island of Otrøya, the eastern part of Midøya island, and some small surrounding islands at the entrance to the large Romsdal Fjord. The administrative centre was the village of Midsund.
Prior to its dissolution in 1965, the municipality was the 436th largest by area out of the 525 municipalities in Norway. Sør-Aukra Municipality was the 404th most populous municipality in Norway with a population of about 1,920. The municipality's population density was and its population had decreased by 0.8% over the previous 10-year period.
General information
The municipality of Sør-Aukra was established on 1 January 1924 when the old Aukra Municipality was divided into Sør-Aukra Municipality in the south and Nord-Aukra Municipality in the north.During the 1960s, there were many municipal mergers across Norway due to the work of the Schei Committee. On 1 January 1965, Sør-Aukra Municipality was merged with the island of Dryna and the rest of the island of Midøya, both from Vatne Municipality. Together, these areas formed the new Midsund Municipality. At the same time, Nord-Aukra Municipality changed its name back to Aukra Municipality.
Name
The municipality was created when the old Aukra municipality was divided into two: Nord-Aukra and Sør-Aukra. The prefix means "southern". The main part of the name comes from the old Aukra farm since the first Aukra Church was built there. The first element is which means "field" or "acre". The last element is which means "meadow" or "pasture".Churches
The Church of Norway had one parish within Sør-Aukra Municipality. At the time of the municipal dissolution, it was part of the Aukra prestegjeld and the Ytre Romsdal prosti in the Diocese of Nidaros.| Parish | Church name | Location of the church | Year built |
| Sør-Aukra | Otrøy Church | Uglvik, Otrøya | 1878 |
Geography
The island municipality consisted of the entire island of Otrøya, the eastern part of Midøya island, and some small surrounding islands at the entrance to the large Romsdal Fjord. It was surrounded by Nord-Aukra Municipality to the north and east, Vestnes Municipality and Vatne Municipality to the south, and Sandøy Municipality to the northwest. The highest point in the municipality was the tall mountain Opstadhornet, on the southern part of the island of Otrøya.Government
While it existed, Sør-Aukra Municipality was responsible for primary education, outpatient health services, senior citizen services, welfare and other social services, zoning, economic development, and municipal roads and utilities. The municipality was governed by a municipal council of directly elected representatives. The mayor was indirectly elected by a vote of the municipal council. The municipality was under the jurisdiction of the Frostating Court of Appeal.Municipal council
The municipal council of Sør-Aukra Municipality was made up of representatives that were elected to four year terms. The tables below show the historical composition of the council by political party.Mayors
The mayor of Sør-Aukra Municipality was the political leader of the municipality and the chairperson of the municipal council. The following people have held this position:- 1924-1939: Bendik Misund
- 1939-1941: Ivar Tangen
- 1942-1944: Nils K. Rakvåg
- 1945-1948: Peder I. Ræstad
- 1948-1951: Toralf Orvik
- 1951-1959: Alfred Dyrset
- 1959-1964: Knut K. Sjøvik