Vartdal Municipality


Vartdal is a former municipality in Møre og Romsdal county, Norway. The municipality existed from 1895 until its dissolution in 1964. The area is now part of Ørsta Municipality in the traditional district of Sunnmøre. The administrative centre was the village of Sætre. Other villages in the municipality included Flåskjer and Nordre Vartdal. The main church for Vartdal was Vartdal Church, located in the village of Nordre Vartdal.
Prior to its dissolution in 1964, the municipality was the 473rd largest by area out of the 689 municipalities in Norway. Vartdal Municipality was the 563rd most populous municipality in Norway with a population of about 1,315. The municipality's population density was and its population had increased by 14% over the previous 10-year period.

General information

The municipality was established on 1 January 1895 when Ulstein Municipality was divided into two municipalities. The part of Ulstein Municipality located north of the Vartdalsfjorden remained as a smaller Ulstein Municipality and the part of the old Ulstein Municipality located south of the Vartdalsfjorden became the new Vartdalsstrand Municipality. The name was officially shortened to Vartdal Municipality in 1918.
During the 1960s, there were many municipal mergers across Norway due to the work of the Schei Committee. On 1 January 1964, Vartdal Municipality was merged with Hjørundfjord Municipality and Ørsta Municipality to form a new, larger Ørsta Municipality.

Name

The municipality is named after the old Vartdal farm since the first Vartdal Church was built there. The first element comes from the old name for a local river. The name of the river comes from the word, or its past tense form, which means "to cast" or "to throw" a fishing net. The last element is which means "valley" or "dale". Historically, the municipal name was Vartdalsstranden. The suffix -stranden is the definite singular form of the Old Norse word which means "beach" or "shore". Historically, the name of the municipality was spelled Vartdalsstranden. On 3 November 1917, a royal resolution changed the spelling of the name of the municipality to Vartdal.

Churches

The Church of Norway had one parish within Vartdal Municipality. At the time of the municipal dissolution, it was part of the Ørsta prestegjeld and the Søre Sunnmøre prosti in the Diocese of Bjørgvin.
Parish Church nameLocation of the churchYear built
VartdalVartdal ChurchNordre Vartdal1876

Geography

Vartdal Municipality was located on the southern shore of the Vartdalsfjorden, in the Sunnmørsalpane mountains. The highest point in the municipality was the tall mountain Jønshornet, located on the border with Hjørundfjord Municipality. Ørsta Municipality was located to the south, Hjørundfjord Municipality was located to the east, Hareid Municipality was located to the northwest, and Ålesund Municipality was located to the north.

Government

While it existed, Vartdal 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 Vartdal Municipality was made up of 17 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 Vartdal Municipality was the political leader of the municipality and the chairperson of the municipal council. The following people have held this position:
  • 1895–1911: Hans O. Vartdal
  • 1911–1912: Olav O. Myklebust
  • 1912–1922: Laurits K. Grønnevet
  • 1923–1925: Ola Erdal
  • 1926–1928: Laurits K. Grønnevet
  • 1929–1937: Steinar Buset
  • 1937–1942: Knut Vartdal
  • 1942–1945: Bernt R. Festøy
  • 1945–1947: Knut Vartdal
  • 1947–1951: Bergsvein Aarset
  • 1951–1955: Olav Myklebust
  • 1955–1957: Bergsvein Aarset
  • 1957–1961: Pål Myklebust
  • 1961–1963: Olav Myklebust

    Notable people

  • Helge Barstad, a politician
  • Eldar Westre, a baker