Løten Municipality have approximately 7.500 inhabitants and a area of 369,4 km2. From early days this was a farming area, but nowadays most Norwegians would probably associate the name with the production of jam, juice and perhaps above all – the Norwegian “national strong drink” Akevitt (aqua vita).
In fact, akevitt is no longer distilled in Løten, but memories are revived every summer when visitors are treated to a dramatised re-creation of the distillation process. Visitors can also buy the local speciality – Akevitt jelly – a tasty reminder of their stay in Løten! Today they sell lights from the factory.
Edvard Munch was born at Løten on 12 December 1863. At the time, his father Christian Munch, a qualified doctor, was medical officer to the military garrison there. When visiting his colleague Dr. Munthe at Elverum he became acquainted with the young Laura Cathrine Bjølstad, employed by the family as a maid. The 44-year-old doctor and the tubercular 23-year-old married in 1861.
Munch´s parents came from different backgrounds and different environments. Laura Bjølstad´s father was a successful sea captain and timber merchant who later lost his fortune. Tuberculosis ran in the family. “My mother was from farming stock, a strong-willed family, but rotten to the core with tuberculosis”, Edvard Munch told his personal physician. The Munch family, on the other hand, was dominated by the middle class, priests, scholars and artists: “My father belonged to a family of poets, with signs of genius but also signs of degeneration… The couple, however, shared a strong and sincere belief in God, which came to characterise their life together and the family home. I believe it was the Will of God that we were to have each other”, Christian Munch wrote to his father-in-law. The year after the wedding saw the birth of their first child, Johanne Sophie and in the following year the family´s first-born son entered the world at Engelhaug farm, which the family rented. The child seemed sickly and the priest was called immediately to baptise him at home. It was not until later in the spring that the baptism was confirmed in Løten church. Edvard Munch was only about a year old when the family moved from Løten.
LØITEN LYS
Candle industry at Hedemarken. Artistic hand-made paraffin and wax candles. Located by RV 25, 13 km from Elverum towards Hamar.
KLEVFOSS INDUSTRAL MUSEUM
A museum which is worth while visiting is the Klevfos Industrial Museum, a closed-down chemical pulp and paper mill at Ådalsbruk in the district of Løten. The museum is a division of the Norwegian Forest Museum. The factory is preserved in the state of its closing down in 1976, with machines and equipment in their original places, and with restored apartments from various periods of time in a labourer´s dwelling.
The museum is open for guided tours and offers various arrangements during the summer season, among other things the stage play “Working Days”. The museum has a large outdoor area along the River Svartelva and among its facilities is also a small café. Hand-made paper for sale is also produced, and visitors may by appointment take part in the making of their own paper.
THE WOMAN´S UNIVERSITY
The Women’s University is a unique institution, nationally and internationally. But Løten also has its forests and moors, nature reserves and terrain to explore. Budor Tourist Lodge can offer visitors its own skilift, toboggan hill, snowboard hire, kiosk, cafe, and over nighting in rooms or in cabins.
Nearby Mattisrud caters for guests who want to experience the genuine atmosphere of a small farm. It has a museum, fishing pond and farrn animals, and it produces dairy products for sale.