# Solum, Norway

Solum is a former municipality in Telemark county, Norway. The 318-square-kilometre (123 sq mi) municipality existed from 1838 until its dissolution in 1964. The area is now part of Skien Municipality. The administrative centre was the village of Solum, just south of Klovholt. Solum Church was the main church for the municipality.

## History

The parish of Solum was established as a municipality on 1 January 1838 (see formannskapsdistrikt law). According to the 1835 census, the municipality had a population of 3,557. Solum is located west of the town of Skien, and encompassed districts such as Nenset, Tollnes, Flakvarp, Skotfoss, and Klyve. On 1 July 1916, an area of Solum Municipality (population: 1,042) was annexed by the growing town of Skien. Then on 1 July 1920, a different area of Solum (population 1,614) was annexed by the growing town of Porsgrunn. During the 1960s, there were many municipal mergers across Norway due to the work of the Schei Committee. On 1 January 1964, Solum Municipality (population: 13,706) was merged with the neighboring Gjerpen Municipality (population: 15,300) and the town of Skien (population: 15,805) plus the Valebø area of Holla Municipality (population: 259). These areas became the new Skien Municipality.

### Name

The municipality (originally the parish) is named after the old Solum farm (Old Norse: Sólheimar) since the first Solum Church was built there. The first element is sól which means "sun" or "sunny". The last element is derived from the word heimr which means "village" or "abode".

## Government

During its existence, this municipality was governed by a municipal council of directly elected representatives. The mayor was indirectly elected by a vote of the municipal council.

### Mayors

The mayors (Norwegian: ordfører) of Solum (incomplete list):
* 1838-1839: Hans Blom Cappelen, Sr.
* 1839-1847: Hans Nicolai Ørn
* 1847-1858: Hans Wilhelm Christopher Huitfeldt Wessel

### Municipal council

The municipal council (Herredsstyre) of Solum 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.
Solum herredsstyre 1960–1963 :
| Party name (in Norwegian) | Party name (in Norwegian) | Number of representatives |
| | Labour Party (Arbeiderpartiet) | 28 |
| | Conservative Party (Høyre) | 2 |
| | Communist Party (Kommunistiske Parti) | 5 |
| | Christian Democratic Party (Kristelig Folkeparti) | 4 |
| | Centre Party (Senterpartiet) | 2 |
| | Liberal Party (Venstre) | 7 |
| | Norwegian Social Democratic Party (Norsk sosialdemokratisk parti) | 1 |
| Total number of members: | Total number of members: | 49 |
Solum herredsstyre 1956–1959 :
| Party name (in Norwegian) | Party name (in Norwegian) | Number of representatives |
| | Labour Party (Arbeiderpartiet) | 27 |
| | Conservative Party (Høyre) | 2 |
| | Communist Party (Kommunistiske Parti) | 8 |
| | Christian Democratic Party (Kristelig Folkeparti) | 4 |
| | Farmers' Party (Bondepartiet) | 2 |
| | Liberal Party (Venstre) | 6 |
| Total number of members: | Total number of members: | 49 |
Solum herredsstyre 1952–1955 :
| Party name (in Norwegian) | Party name (in Norwegian) | Number of representatives |
| | Labour Party (Arbeiderpartiet) | 26 |
| | Conservative Party (Høyre) | 1 |
| | Communist Party (Kommunistiske Parti) | 7 |
| | Christian Democratic Party (Kristelig Folkeparti) | 4 |
| | Farmers' Party (Bondepartiet) | 2 |
| | Liberal Party (Venstre) | 8 |
| Total number of members: | Total number of members: | 48 |
Solum herredsstyre 1948–1951 :
| Party name (in Norwegian) | Party name (in Norwegian) | Number of representatives |
| | Labour Party (Arbeiderpartiet) | 19 |
| | Communist Party (Kommunistiske Parti) | 12 |
| | Christian Democratic Party (Kristelig Folkeparti) | 5 |
| | Farmers' Party (Bondepartiet) | 1 |
| | Joint list of the Liberal Party (Venstre) and the Radical People's Party (Radikale Folkepartiet) | 8 |
| | Joint List(s) of Non-Socialist Parties (Borgerlige Felleslister) | 3 |
| Total number of members: | Total number of members: | 48 |
Solum herredsstyre 1945–1947 :
| Party name (in Norwegian) | Party name (in Norwegian) | Number of representatives |
| | Labour Party (Arbeiderpartiet) | 18 |
| | Communist Party (Kommunistiske Parti) | 17 |
| | Christian Democratic Party (Kristelig Folkeparti) | 5 |
| | Joint list of the Liberal Party (Venstre) and the Radical People's Party (Radikale Folkepartiet) | 5 |
| | Joint List(s) of Non-Socialist Parties (Borgerlige Felleslister) | 2 |
| | Local List(s) (Lokale lister) | 1 |
| Total number of members: | Total number of members: | 48 |
Solum herredsstyre 1938–1941* :
| Party name (in Norwegian) | Party name (in Norwegian) | Number of representatives |
| | Labour Party (Arbeiderpartiet) | 25 |
| | Liberal Party (Venstre) | 12 |
| | Joint list of the Conservative Party (Høyre) and the Farmers' Party (Bondepartiet) | 7 |
| | List of workers, fishermen, and small farmholders (Arbeidere, fiskere, småbrukere liste) | 2 |
| | Joint List(s) of Non-Socialist Parties (Borgerlige Felleslister) | 2 |
| Total number of members: | Total number of members: | 48 |
| Note: Due to the German occupation of Norway during World War II, no elections were held for new municipal councils until after the war ended in 1945. |||