the Norwegian crofter system Husmannsvesenet var et fenomen som fantes over hele Norge, i forskjellige varianter. Eiker og de andre flatbygdene på Østlandet var nok det området der husmannsvesenet fikk aller størst utbredelse, og innenfor Eikers grenser finner vi mange varianter – det var husmenn med jord og jordløse strandsittere, bygselshusmenn og arbeidshusmenn. Siste halvdel av 1600-tallet og første halvdel av 1700-tallet var en periode med store omveltninger i bondesamfunnet på Eiker. Krongodset og adelsgodsene gikk i oppløsning, mange bønder ble selveiere, men også rike trelasthandlere fra byene kjøpte seg gård og grunn på Eiker. Folketallet økte, og mange nye husmannsplasser ble ryddet. Forarbeidet til ny matrikkel i 1723 er vel den første kilden som gir en samlet oversikt over husmenn på Eiker. Den viser at husmannsvesenet på dette tidspunktet var en institusjon som var veletablert i alle deler av bygda. Hele 116 av gårdene på Eiker hadde husmenn på dette tidspunktet. De aller fleste bare en eller to husmenn, men gårder som Nedre Hoen, Vestre Lo og Skjelbred hadde hele seks stykker, Stenshorne hadde hele ni husmenn, under Fossesholm er det oppgitt 13 og under Haug prestegård 14 husmenn. På så å si alle disse plassene ble det dyrket havre, som regel mellom en halv og en hel tønne. Det betyr at dette var husmenn med jord, mens husmenn uten jord ikke er tatt med – rimelig nok, siden dette var en skattematrikkel og det var jorda en betrakte skatt for. Dersom en tar med alle husmennene som ikke hadde jord, ville nok antallet vært betydelig større enn de 246 husmannsplassene som er oppgitt i 1723. Det neste årstallet vi finner en samlet oversikt over husmenn på Eiker, er 1765, da det ble tatt opp et manntall i forbindelse med innkreving av en ekstraskatt. Her var alle personer over 15 år med, og 252 av dem er ført opp som husmenn. Det er altså bare ubetydelig flere enn i 1723. Men skatten i 1765 var en såkalt koppskatt, slik at også husmenn som ikke hadde jord ble tatt med. Disse blir ikke kalt husmenn i manntallet, men føres i samme skatteklasse som husmennene. av dem var det hele 413 stykker. Ut ifra dette kan vi slutte at nærmere 20% av Eikers befolkningen på midten av 1700-tallet var husmenn.Men mer interessant enn antallet er det kanskje å se nærmere på hva slags husmenn en hadde på Eiker. Dessverre sier ikke manntallet i 1765 stort sett ingen ting om hva folk arbeidet med. Unntakene er åtte hammersmeder ved Hassel jernverk og fjorten stykker på Nøstetangen som «arbeider ved Fabriquen». Men ut ifra bosted er det også mulig å si en hel del om hva husmennene på Eiker livnærte seg av., Ikke overraskende finner vi flest husmenn der det var sagbruk og annen industri. Det var i Vestfossen og Skotselv, langs Hoenselva og i Mjøndalen. Det er vel neppe noen tvil om at mange av disse var sagbruksarbeidere. Under gårder som Solberg og Krokstad var det store møllebruk, og her finner vi også en konsentrasjon av husmenn. Det samme gjelder sundstedet ved Haug – både under Prestegården og på østsiden av Drammenselva under gårdene Lerberg og Hobbelstad. Husmennene her kan ha vært knyttet til tømmerfløting og laksefiske, men også det at Haugsund var et viktig knutepunkt for samferdselen hadde nok sin betydning. Blant husmennene her finner vi nok både vertshusholdere, skysskarer og håndverkere. Likevel er det bare en nokså beskjeden andel av husmennene på 1700-tallet som bodde på slike tettsteder. Under alle de større gårdene i bygda var det vanlig med både fire og fem husmannsplasser eller enda flere. Det gjaldt både gårder sentralt i bygda og de som lå i utkanten. Etableringen av slike husmannsplasser må ha sammenheng med behovet for arbeidskraft på gården, spesielt i onnene. Gårdbrukerne kunne sikre seg arbeidshjelp ved å leie ut jord og ta betaling i form av pliktarbeid. Uten å ha studert husmaannskontraktene nærmere, må en kunne anta at husmennene på slike gårder var såkalte «arbeidshusmenn», mens de som hadde fast arbeid på sager eller i annen industri var «bygselshusmenn», det vil si at de betalte for leie av plassen med penger istedenfor pliktarbeid. På en del steder kan det nok ha vært en kombinasjon – det gjelder for eksempel på gårder som Fossesholm, Ulleland og Hoen, som både hadde en betydelig jordvei og samtidig en stor sagbruksvirksomhet. Mange husmenn var nok også tømmerfløtere. Dem finner vi sikkert langs hele Drammenselva, men det var spesielt mange plasser i nærheten av de store tømmerhengslene ved Kverk og Stenberg. En annen næringsvei som la grunnlag for rydding av husmannsplasser, var bergverksdriften. Når det var så vidt mange husmenn under gårder som Berg og Stenshorne, har nok det sammenheng med at det var drift både i Bergsgruvene og Krambudalsgruvene på 1760-tallet.

Eikerminne is now available at the National Library Spokes Archive The National Archives - Genealogy Research Terra Buskerud-Historieboka

The community above Hellefossen The exhibition "Society under Hellefossen" was presented in the new exhibition areas of the Nøstetangen Center in the summer of 2023. Here, a fantastic exhibition and a historical journey about life on and along the river under Hellefossen were presented. 3D presentation from the 2023 exhibition Hilmar Olsen Old Hokksund Laundry in Drammenselva

Who are we? "Eikerhistorie 2025-2027" is a project under the auspices of the association EIKERHISTORIE, which is a umbrella organization where other voluntary organizations in Eiker can be members. Members as of today are Eiker History Society, Eiker Archives/Sameia Cultural Heritage Society, Nøstetangen Center, Hellefoss River Owners Association and Østsiden Hunters and Fishermen's Association. It may be appropriate to invite more participants during the project period. This project is a continuation of the collaboration around the exhibition "Society under Hellefossen", which was shown at the Nøsteangen Norwegian Glass Museum in the summer of 2023. In In connection with this project, the website “eikerhistorie.no” was established as a joint platform for storing and exchanging historical sources and documentation. This is a cloud storage solution based on Microsoft O365 (Sharepoint), with backup on local servers. The purpose of the project is to develop eikerhistorie.no into a general knowledge base for everyone who works with Eiker's history, but at the same time point out some special focus areas in the period 2025-2027. Spoke history Main Street 7 3303 Hokksund Org. no.: 933550028 E-mail: Arkiv@eikerhistorie.no

Fossesholm Manor Written by Bent Ek In the mid-18th century, the estate economy at Eiker was in complete disarray. The large Sems estate had been divided up after Lieutenant Colonel Richelieu went bankrupt in 1719, and in 1743 the main farm itself was bought by the farmer's widow Olaug Pedersdatter on the neighboring farm Berg and divided into two farms. Skjelbred at Fiskum was divided up after the death of the mining councillor Niels Mechlenbourg in 1713, and the division of the Ulleland estate at Skotselv began when the county magistrate Vilhelm de Tonsberg died in 1731. The exception to this development was the manor house Fossesholm at Vestfossen. This estate was also divided, in the sense that it was divided between a number of owners belonging to the same family. However, one of these owners – Gabriel von Cappelen – pursued a determined acquisition of farm shares, and in 1762/63 his son – Jørgen von Cappelen – was able to buy out the last co-owners, so that he became the sole owner. While the other estates on Eiker had disintegrated, Fossesholm still had a significant land and forest estate, with underlying farms between Vestfossen and Fiskumvannet and stretches of forest on both sides of the Eikeren. One half of the settlement of Vestfossen, with five large sawmills, also belonged to the estate. The Cappelen family had been involved in the timber trade for several generations, based in Bragernes, but Jørgen had become a wealthy man as a supplier to Kongsberg Sølvverk. In 1763, he was 58 years old, and he retired to the old manor house at Eiker with his wife, Magdalena Darjes. There they began a large-scale building project, which resulted in the manor house that we largely find on Fossesholm today. Here, the refined lifestyle of the merchant patriciate continued for another couple of generations – until it ended with a forced auction in 1822.

County magistrate, bailiff, magistrate and sheriff Throughout most of the 17th century, Eiker was a separate fief, but with its own lord and bailiff. From 1679, however, it was part of the newly established Buskerud county, and in 1708 Sigdal, Modum, Eiker, Lier, Røyken and Hurum were merged into one bailiff's office. Both the county governor and bailiff resided in or near Drammen, and they often sent deputies to the local assemblies. They were high-ranking officials, with whom the common people of Eiker only rarely came into contact. During the years that the Nøstetangen glassworks was in operation, Buskerud had only two county governors - Just Must, who held office from 1719 to 1760, and Andreas Fjeldsted, who was county governor from 1760 to 1788. The county governor's immediate subordinate was the bailiff, who was both a public prosecutor and responsible for collecting taxes and fees. Throughout most of this period - from 1749 to 1765 - Eggert Madsen Fischer was bailiff in the lower part of Buskerud. The bailiff was divided into two magistrates' offices, and the northernmost half includes Eiker, Modum and Sigdal. The magistrate did not live in Eiker either in the latter half of the 18th century. Both Giert Falch, who was magistrate from 1730 to 1753, and his successor Otto Laurentii Darjes, who held the office until 1780, both resided on the Mælum farm in Modum. However, when there was a court session at Eiker, they usually appeared there, unless they had a valid reason to do so. Such sessions were held three times a year, but "Extra-court sessions" could also be scheduled outside of this. The court sessions were held in Haugsund, but their own courtroom did not get its own location until around 1840. In the 18th century, the court was held in privately owned houses - Lieutenant Winther's house and later Madame Braun's house are constantly mentioned as "Eger's arranged courtroom". Alongside the parish priest, the sheriff was the public official who was present in the local community on a daily basis. Ever since the Middle Ages, the "farmer sheriff" had been the extended arm of the sheriff and bailiff at the local level – but at the same time the common people's spokesman towards the authorities. In the 18th century, the sheriff probably still had some of this role, but formally he was the county governor's subordinate, but responsible for maintaining law and order, collecting fines and a number of other tasks. The sheriff was no longer one of the village's large farmers, but an immigrant with roots in the bourgeoisie. In 1741, the same year that the glassworks at Nøstetangen were built, Eiker got a new sheriff - Peder Eliasen Søboholm. However, he died the following year. Then Søren Hiermind was sheriff from 1743 to 1751, Ole Høyland (hardly a relative of the famous master thief of the same name) from to 1761 and Stephanus Bagge until 1771. None of these four were born in Eiker, but all lived in Haugsund and were homeowners there. Between 1769 and 1775, Anders Høyland is also mentioned as sheriff at Eiker. He was a native of Eikværing and the son of the previous sheriff, Ole Høyland.

THE EIKER SONG FROM 1756 Notification from the Eiker Parnassus (Translated from Danish) From Eiker’s lofty Muses' choir, A stern decree resounds entire: "A warning now to all the town: No verses here with shameful frown! No poetry of such disgrace Shall dare pollute our sacred place. Beware! If someone pens such trash, They’ll feel our wrath descend in flash! No mean-spirited rhymes or jaded tone Shall ever reach Apollo’s throne. Though Grubler's pen might stir the street, Or Skildrer’s jest the folk repeat, No sulky soul nor grumpy song Will mingle in our artful throng. We seek no lines of wrinkled spite, Nor joyless scribes who dread the light. The world is dark and grim enough— Why spread more shade with solemn stuff? But let the breeze through birches play, Let sunlight cheer the hills of May. Let happiness in verses dwell, Where warmth and friendship rise and swell!" Thus speaks the Muse, her word is law— A cheerful tone must strike with awe. So bend your rhyme with joy and grace, Let kindness fill the metered space. Then you may knock upon our gate— A smile will be your welcome fate.

The absolute monarchs and their officials The Danish-Norwegian monarchy was governed from Copenhagen, and the civil servants were the king's representatives in the local community. The highest civil servant was the county magistrate of the fairly recently established Buskerud county. It was divided into bailiffs, and Eiker was subordinate to the Buskerud county bailiff, with a bailiff residing in Lier. Eiker, Modum and Sigdal constituted a separate magistrate's office, where the magistrate during this period lived in Modum. The state's only local representative in Eiker, besides the parish priest, was thus the sheriff, who lived in Hokksund. The autocratic kings bailiff, magistrate and sheriff County officials and bailiffs Magistrates and judiciary The sheriffs at Eiker

Photo registration 2025 During 2025, we will arrange a number of photo evenings in Nøstetangen Café at Sorenskrivergården. Here the public can help with information about the images, but everyone is welcome, whether they can contribute information or not. Thursday 27/3 at 7:00 PM Thursday 24/4 at 7:00 PM Thursday 25/9 at 7:00 PM Thursday 23/10 at 7:00 PM Thursday 20/11 at 7:00 PM

Setre og boplasser Rogndalsbråtan Arne Thorkildsens store registrering av boplasser, som ble gjennomført på 1980-tallet, har blitt fulgt opp av andre frivillige og koordinert av Eiker Arkiv. En oversikt er lagt ut på lokalhistoriewiki og oppdateres etter hvert som nye opplysninger kommer inn: Boplasser på Eiker .