Älmhults köping 1901 - 1970 : Från räls till IKEA

In the beginning of the 1860s, an important railway was built between Malmö and Stockholm. The railway became one of the most important projects that would influence the entire southern Sweden. The railway line was located to areas outside the ordinary routes and a number of communities were built up along its way. Älmhult was one of the communities that was built up due to the railway. In the beginning there were only a few farms and a station, but a community developed and the village grew. In 1901 the village became a small market town, which was an important event. In 1901 there were only four market towns along the Southern trunk line – Eslöv, Hässleholm, Älmhult and Nässjö. This essay describes the formation of the market town and its development between 1901-1970. In 1971 there was a town district reform which meant that a new district, which included the market town, was created. Previous research about communities and the railway is not extensive. A number of theses have been written about the railway and its development. There are also theses about industrial communities. A project at Växjö University has studied villages around railway stations in Kronoberg County. The essays have described different parts of the communities. The aim of this study is to describe the development of a community. The essay points out the structure of the community and its changes over time. Since it extends over a period of 70 years, this study will not be very deep-going. The material includes publications from the National Statistics Office of Sweden, but also material from the municipal archives. The essay presents the development of the market town in four different domains. Population development, demographic structure, trade and industry structure as well as the constitution of the local government council will be presented. Through all the time periods, the market town has shown a great interest in school issues. As early as the 1920s a local junior secondary school opened and in the mid 1950s the market town had its own grammar school/upper secondary school. The interest in education for the young people is something specific for the history of the market town. More than 20 people have been interviewed about their memories and their views of the market town. The interviews show a small community with social classes, but also a place where people felt at home