Bredsjö Herrgårdar

A completely new concept is hereby offered at Bredsjö Herrgårdar. Sweden's only manor in the form of tenant-owned apartments. The idea is that as many people as possible can make use of this unique form of living. Possibility of 100% financing! Live in a magical Bergslagen environment with a fairytale nature surrounding the Manors, with a most interesting history. Buy the manor building or a part of the manors and enjoy true manor spirit at a fraction of what a manor costs. In addition to the interesting price tag, you avoid the operation and maintenance of an entire manor, which tends to escalate. Prices range between 250,000 and 1,800,000. Sizes are 35 sqm up to 250 sqm. Take the chance to buy the best of Bergslagen with fantastic swimming and fishing opportunities. Both mushrooms and beautiful hiking trails are around the corner. Contact Lejon for more info!

A Bergslagen story

Welcome to Bredsjö Herrgårdar!

From the 15th century to 1860

Yes, you have arrived at a district steeped in tradition; the history of Bredsjö begins as early as the 15th century. There were then one or two settlers and some slash-and-burn farmers, but at that time the beautiful Bergslagen was mostly unknown wilderness.

At the beginning of the 17th century, the Finns immigrated from Savonia in northern Finland. They practised slash-and-burn farming at first, but the development of the furnaces and mines made it difficult to continue. The forest became a scarce commodity and in 1640 slash-and-burn farming was banned. It is said that the one who first began iron working in Bredsjö was a Finnish woman named Slapran. She engaged in hammer forging. The iron was taken from surrounding small furnaces. One of her brothers is said to have been the one who built the first furnace in the village.

In 1676, H. J. Hildebrand received a charter of privilege and 3 years' tax exemption for the enterprise that had grown up, and the first blast furnace was also built then. The era of the managers and ironmasters began.

Iron working was a sought-after activity, into which wealthy families invested money. Particularly sought after were ironworks that owned ore, forest and water, and where there was a good supply of capable workers. Bredsjö had all of this. Usually the owners of the ironworks were merely financial stakeholders, who for the management had capable workers and officials. They themselves worked in the Royal Capital, so the ironworks' beautiful manors were more the patrons' summer residences.

In 1740 the ironworks passed to Detlof Heike (the third), who also owned several other ironworks. Heike was well-read and had studied mathematics, law, mining, mineralogy and chemistry; he worked at the Board of Mines and was also elected to the Academy of Sciences. In 1752 he petitioned "at blifva hugnad med adelig sköld" (to be granted a noble shield). This was granted and he became Detlof Heikenskiöld. He was very rich and at his death left an inheritance of 1,381,139 daler copper coins, which today would be worth approximately 127,479,130 Swedish kronor. The ironworks remained in the family's possession until the mid-1850s, when a limited company was formed.

In connection with the formation of the limited company, the ironworks passed into the ownership of Justice of the Supreme Court Knut Olivecrona, grandfather of professor Herbert Olivecrona. Olivecrona's work was positive for both the ironworks and the village, something that benefited not least the workers and their families. Unfortunately, a steward embezzled a large sum of money and at the end of the 19th century Olivecrona was forced to sell the ironworks.

The Lars Larsson era 1860 - 1909

So we come to the month of May 1860. A young man, the son of a miner, had begun his walk early one morning in Nordmarkshyttan outside Filipstad. When the sun began to sink in the west, he arrived in Hjulsjö and, hungry as he was, he went into the trading post to buy something to eat. The merchant Åkergren was greatly taken with the young man from Värmland, and before the evening was over, Lars Larsson, born in April 1842, had been employed as a shop assistant. Lars early showed proof of business sense and diligence, which in the future would lead to great success.

Next to the trading post lay Nämndemansgården. There were 14 children there, one of whom was the sweet and lovely Erika, born in 1836. She now often began making her way to the trading post. What she saw in Larsson is hard to understand, for handsome he was not, but he knew what he wanted, and soon the young two were both engaged and married. As newlyweds they lived very frugally, in a dilapidated old cottage, and owned only the bare necessities. But as said, Larsson knew what he wanted, and soon he had been employed as inspector in Lesjöfors.

At the age of 30, Larsson was ready to start something of his own, and by then he had also purchased Stora Gården in Hjulsjö, to which the family moved. Larsson was fearless and enterprising, and the district flourished. Without either technical or book education, he nevertheless accomplished a great deal. He saw, for example, to it that a power line was installed to the mines, the country's first magnetic ore separator was taken into use, Sweden's first ropeway, which was 7 km long, was built for the transport of iron ore, as well as horse-drawn railways for ore transport. The money flowed in and he was quick to invest in improvements.

In 1892, the year Lars Larsson turned 50, he bought Bredsjö Bruk, formed a limited company, and the family moved from Hjulsjö to the Manor in Bredsjö. The furnace was rebuilt, a 3.5 km long canal was dug from a forest lake north of the village, and at the end of the canal there was a turbine that drove a cable winch for the furnace. Later a power station was built on the south-eastern shore of Stora Bredsjön, he established an ore-dressing plant and Sweden's first briquette factory. Larsson held all the threads in his hands and followed his great enterprise in the smallest detail. At the beginning of the 20th century, the ironworks employed just over 400 people, and 15,000 tonnes of pig iron were produced per year. The ore came exclusively from the company's own mines.

Larsson had also, alongside his work with the ironworks, become an important person. He was a county council member, sat on the bank board, fire insurance company and mortgage association. Since hospitality at the Larssons' was great, the Manor soon was not enough. In 1902, the same year Larsson turned 60, the new Manor was completed. It was built in Norwegian style and had both a dumbwaiter and water toilets. The new home was often visited by the county governor and bishop, ironmasters from surrounding ironworks, professors from the Royal Institute of Technology, as well as colleagues from the Riksdag, for by this time Larsson had also become a member of parliament. On major holidays and festive days, the whole family gathered in Bredsjö.

In connection with his 60th birthday, Larsson donated 20,000 kr to the Workers' Sickness Fund, which had been established earlier with a foundation of 10,000 kr. He built a beautiful and well-constructed poorhouse which was donated to Hjulsjö parish, and on Erika Larsson's 70th birthday a donation was made to an orphanage. Patron Larsson enjoyed great esteem and respect in the district.