Kvinesdal · 600 m above sea level

Knaben– when a small mining community became world history

Film: Spectacular Norway

The mining village of Knaben lies 600 metres above sea level, surrounded by peaks reaching up to 1,000 metres. Once it was a lively mining community, where hard work, house building, a village shop and everyday life with children, dinners and social gatherings grew up for hundreds of people. All of this happened because of the valuable metal molybdenum.

The mine works at Knaben seen from the air: yellow and green concrete buildings with peeling paint, a tall tower and a sloping conveyor up towards the mountainside. A gravel road curves past, and grey rocky peaks rise behind. — The mine works at Knaben today.Photo: Spectacular Norway

The element molybdenum

422615 °C

Molybdenum

Etymology: from Greek molybdaina, ‘lead ball, lump of lead’, derived from molybdos, ‘lead, lead-like’
Symbol: Mo
Atomic number: 42
Melting point: 2615 °C

As early as the 1700s, the farmers at Knaben knew about the pencil-like mineral in the mountain, which they picked out by hand and sold in town. The substance was valuable and could be used for pencils, as grease for cart wheels and to keep stove plates shiny.

The metal molybdenum is used to make steel both stronger and more heat-resistant. That was worth its weight in gold to industry. But it would take time. Knaben Gruver opened in 1885, but the market was small and prices were low. Only in 1897 was it discovered that the metal could be used in steel alloys – and molybdenum gained a new status. But the market was still uncertain.

Black-and-white photograph: wooden mine buildings in deep snow below a mountain peak. A conveyor on wooden trestles runs from the buildings up the mountainside. — Knaben mines during the First World War.Photo: Knaben.no

In 1913, everything pointed upwards for mining at Knaben, because of the looming threat of war. In war, the metal would become important. The British and the Germans outbid each other, and molybdenum from Knaben sold for record prices. There was a Klondike atmosphere in Kvinesdal.

When peace came after the First World War, the need for molybdenum disappeared, and stocks around the world were full to bursting. Hard times followed in the mines. In the 1930s the trend turned, and operations grew once more. At that time, more than 700 people are thought to have lived in the mining community, the children went to school and the mountain village flourished.

Black-and-white photograph: five young men and women in smart clothes stand in front of a large woodpile and mine buildings under construction. A sixth sits on top of the woodpile. — Young people in the mining community.Photo: Knaben.no

When the war came to the mountains

During the Second World War, the remote mining community became part of the history of the war. Knaben was then the only mine in Europe producing molybdenum, which the war industry needed.

The Germans came to Knaben as early as 17 May 1940. Within a short time, the occupying power took control of the mines.

It became important for the Allies to prevent German access to the metal. Twice the mines at Knaben were bombed by Allied aircraft.

Black-and-white photograph: damaged concrete buildings with broken windows and a collapsed roof. The ground is strewn with barrels, beams and rubble. Three men in long coats stand looking on. — The mine buildings after the bombing.Photo: Knaben.no

Black-and-white photograph: many white coffins with wreaths stand in a row in front of a stage with an altar and a cross. People are seated in the foreground. — The coffins of those who were killed.Photo: Knaben.no

Attack I3 March 1943

10Mosquito aircraft

Attack I: 3 March 1943 – ten British Mosquito aircraft dropped bombs low over Knaben. 16 Norwegians and a German mining engineer were killed.

Attack II16 November 1943

~130B-17 bombers

Attack II: 16 November 1943 – about 130 American B-17 bombers attacked Knaben. The difficult light and wind conditions gave the civilians plenty of time to get away and take cover. No Norwegians lost their lives; how many Germans were killed is unknown.

The miners kept the wheels turning. The Knaben community developed its own identity, and families lived side by side. The mines were both working life and everyday life. After the war, however, the workforce changed. It became known that the drilling dust in the mine was bad news for your health. Many moved away, others emigrated to the USA.

Black-and-white photograph: a large group of men in work clothes walking close together along a gravel road. Behind them are low wooden houses and a shed. — Miners at Knaben.Photo: Knaben.no

Instead, many young families came to Knaben from northern Norway. Northern Norwegian dialects gradually became very dominant – even the local southerners picked up the northern way of speaking!

Autumn at Knaben: yellow mine buildings and a pale green headframe on the hillside, with two white houses to the right. In the foreground, birch and rowan glow yellow, orange and red. — Note the headframe – Knaben’s number one landmark. This is where all the ore was hoisted up from the mine before being dropped into the large crusher.Photo: Adam Read, Visit Sørlandet

The news that the Knaben mines would close came as a surprise to the residents. But the hard facts were that the company behind them was no longer making enough money from the operation. On 30 April 1973 the mining adventure was over. And with the removal vans went the foundation of the special community that had grown up around the mines. But the buildings and the landscape remained, as visible witnesses to an important part of Norwegian industrial history.

A bronze sculpture of a miner in a flat cap pushing a heavy ore cart on rails. Behind him stands an old mine tower with a weathervane, and a mountainside in autumn colours. — The monument to the miner.Photo: Adam Read, Visit Sørlandet

Today Knaben is a cabin area. Visitors have taken over Knaben for fresh mountain air and outdoor activities. There is an outdoor school, cabins, ski lifts and a museum with a visitor mine. And the village shop is still open – self-service, from 7 am to 11 pm! History and nature in perfect harmony.

Inside the old mine: a guide in an orange jacket shows a group of children in helmets around a mine tunnel with rough rock walls, concrete foundations and lamps in the ceiling. — A guided tour of the old mine.Photo: Spectacular Norway

Visit

Knaben Gruvemuseum

A long, low concrete building painted ochre and green, photographed from below on a heather-covered slope. Behind it a tall yellow tower rises against a grey sky. — The mine buildings at Knaben.Photo: Spectacular Norway

Experience the history of Knaben

In the mining company’s old administration building lies Knaben Gruvemuseum, the mining museum, where the history of the mining community comes to life. Here you get an insight into the everyday lives of those who lived and worked at Knaben, and what life was like in the little mining town. The museum also tells the story of the dramatic war years. A restored air-raid shelter and a simulated air raid give an impression of how the Second World War left its mark on the community.

Step inside «Den forlatte gruve», the abandoned mine

For many years, visitors have been able to go into parts of the old mine at Knaben. Before the tour starts, participants get a short introduction to the history of the mine and a safety briefing, before the helmets go on.

The tour goes through the mine, where you see the main shaft, the dynamite store and the large crusher, among other things. The way on goes up a steep staircase and out by the monument to the miner. For those who want to, it is also possible to go up into the mine tower.

Note: The mine can only be visited with a guide.