Stortorget - where prisoners escaped, streams flowed and Winnerbäck sings
Stortorget in Östersund is not just an open space in the middle of the city - it's a square with more layers than a sandwich cake from Wedemarks. Here people have gathered, shopped, demonstrated, danced, frozen, sweated, lost strollers and sometimes found love, or at least a decent cup of coffee.
But let's reverse the tape. The year is 1786 and Gustav III, Sweden's answer to a city-planning influencer, decides to found a city in the middle of Jämtland. He points to an area consisting mostly of marshland, cabbage farms and mosquitoes - and says: "Here." With that, Östersund is born, and with that, a grid is drawn with a large, generous square placed smack in the middle. The ground is filled in, drained and tamped down. The result: a square so spacious that it could accommodate markets, crowds - and the occasional prison.
Yes, you read that right. On plot number 7 at Stortorget was the city's first jail. A timber-framed building with room for both criminals and ants, and about as safe as a party tent in a storm. In 1810 and 1811, it held a total of twelve prisoners - including four women - and the guards themselves had to sit on bread and water if they were careless with the keys. In 1826, it went poof - the whole prison burned down. The solution? They crammed the prisoners into the city's first hospital. Multitasking, Östersund-style.
But Stortorget was not just a place for criminals. It quickly became the commercial hub of Jämtland. When the Gregorie Market moved from Frösön to the square in 1798, it was like starting Black Friday - but with farmers, bikers, cartwheels and folding knives. People traveled far to buy, sell and maybe make out behind a market stall. The market continued until 1914, when it was banned - probably because of too much noise or too many runaway buyers.
In the middle of the square used to run the Stadsbäcken, a meandering little stream that now sleeps underground. But its name lives on in the neighborhood, echoing the days when children dropped wooden boats into the water and adults dropped boots.
During the 20th century, Stortorget became the scene of everyday life. Vegetables, hats, fish and homemade candles were sold here every week. Cars and buses jostled for space. Many older people in Östersund can still close their eyes and hear the buzz of market trading mixed with the sound of a Volvo 240 starting reluctantly.
Today, the square is once again an open space for everything from Christmas markets to summer hangouts. During Storsjöyran, it explodes with music, food and crowds - and artists like Lars Winnerbäck have attracted thousands to concerts where the shoes dance by themselves. It's also where the President of the Republic of Jamtland delivers his annual speech, complete with satire, banners and a folk festival.
And sure, some people might find the square empty on a Tuesday in November - but for the people of Östersund, it's the heart of the city. A place where history, everyday life and madness meet - and where you can always count on something happening, or at least that someone is trying to sell you wool crafts.
Photos provided by Föreningen Gamla Östersund
Stortorget in Östersund was built in 1786 in connection with the founding of the city by Gustav III and was originally marshland and cabbage fields that were drained and filled in. The square soon became a trading place and from 1798 the Gregorie market was held here after being moved from Frösön, making the square a center for regional trade in the 19th century. The square was also the site of the city's first prison between 1800 and 1826. During the 20th century, the square was used for market trading, bus traffic and parking. Today, Stortorget serves as an open space for events, concerts and markets and is a central feature of the city's public life.