Museum of Reconstruction for Finnmark and Nord-Troms
Gjenreisningsmuseet
A museum telling the story of the German scorched-earth retreat of 1944, which burned Finnmark, and of residents returning after the war to rebuild their homes.
In autumn and winter of 1944, German forces retreating from northern Finland and Finnmark carried out a scorched-earth policy. Residents were forcibly evacuated, and nearly every house, quay and bridge was burned, leaving only a single chapel standing in all of Hammerfest. The Museum of Reconstruction, opened in 1998, uses photographs, artefacts, oral testimony and reconstructed temporary huts to tell the story of the war, the forced evacuations, the people who hid in caves through the winter, and the hard work of rebuilding after the war. It is the best place to understand the modern history of northern Norway, and English descriptions are provided. It is in the town centre, about five minutes' walk from the quay. It is generally open daily in summer. In winter, opening hours are shorter and it closes on some days. Admission is roughly 100 to 150 Norwegian kroner, but check the official website for current details.
Opening hours
Summer about 10:00–16:00; shorter in winter (check official website)
Nearby sights
- Hammerfest Church
- Royal and Ancient Polar Bear Society
- Salen Viewpoint
- Mikkelgammen
- Meridian Column
- Fuglenes Peninsula & Lighthouse
- Tyven
- Kvaløya Reindeer Summer Pastures