Smestad is a historically wealthy area in the borough Vestre Aker in

Oslo Oslo ( , , or ; sma, Oslove) is the capital and most populous city of Norway. It constitutes both a county and a municipality. The municipality of Oslo had a population of in 2022, while the city's greater urban area had a population of ...

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and t ...

. It is named after the Smestad Mansion and family, and was parcelled out for residences after the tram line was built in 1912. The district is located between north of Hoff and

Skøyen Skøyen is a neighborhood of Oslo, Norway. It is located in the western part of the city, in the borough of Ullern. The district has an increasing share of business activities, a development started in the 80s. Skøyen is the site of Skøyenpar ...

, east of Montebello in Ullern, west of the

Frogner Park Frogner Park ( no, Frognerparken) is a public park located in the West End borough of Frogner in Oslo, Norway. The park is historically part of Frogner Manor, and the manor house is located in the south of the park, and houses Oslo Museum. Both ...

and south of Heggeli. It is served by Smestad station.

Smestad Elementary School

Smestad Elementary School, was founded on 31 January 1939 and has around 690 students today. The school was temporarily closed on 20. April 1940 when 70 German soldiers occupied the school and erected barbed wire around it. When the school opened on 21. November 1945,

King Olav Olav V (; born Prince Alexander of Denmark; 2 July 1903 – 17 January 1991) was the King of Norway from 1957 until his death in 1991. Olav was the only child of King Haakon VII of Norway and Maud of Wales. He became heir apparent to the Nor ...

gave a speech at the school and enrolled his son. The alumni include King Harald V,

Princess Märtha Louise Princess is a regal rank and the feminine equivalent of prince (from Latin ''princeps'', meaning principal citizen). Most often, the term has been used for the consort of a prince, or for the daughter of a king or prince. Princess as a subst ...

and Crown Prince Haakon.

Smestad station

Smestad is a station shared by the Røa Line (line 5) and the Kolsås Line (line 2) on the

Oslo T-bane The Oslo Metro ( no, Oslo T-bane or or simply ) is the rapid transit system of Oslo, Norway, operated by Sporveien T-banen on contract from the transit authority Ruter. The network consists of five lines that all run through the city centre, wit ...

system. Although the two lines continue to share track some time after Smestad, passing the former station of Sørbyhaugen which was also shared, they diverge before passing another station. The next station to the west is

Makrellbekken Makrellbekken is a neighbourhood in the Oslo borough of Vestre Aker in Norway, bordering the borough of Ullern. It is located between Smestad and Holmen. The main road is Sørkedalsveien, a part of Norwegian National Road 168. The place is serve ...

on Røabanen and the temporary station of Husebybakken on Kolsåsbanen. The next station to the east is Borgen. Smestad is located 4.6 km from Stortinget.

Smestad mansion

Smestad Mansion is the main house of the former Smestad estate, located on Monolitveien 46, and rebuilt in its current "Swiss Villa" stile in the late 1800s by

Carl Smestad Carl Smestad (born ) was a landowner and trader in ice and produce. He owned Smestad Mansion and its surrounding lands, comprising large parts of what is today the Smestad district in Oslo. He was the grandson of Jacob Olssøn Smestad Jacob Olss� ...

. The estate was the largest farm in the Aker district of Oslo and covers the district in Oslo known as Smestad today. It has its origins in the 1100s as Hovedøya Kloster, later crown estate, and got its current name in 1682 after it was changed by Henrich Lachmann who sold the farm to

Jacob Olssøn Smestad Jacob Olssøn Smestad (1673–1728), was a Norwegian farmer and land owner who was the first member of the Smestad family to own the Smestad farm, which became the origin of the district Smestad in Oslo Oslo ( , , or ; sma, Oslove) is ...

in 1706. The estate was split in 1728 into Upper and Lower Smestad, with the former being bought by Aker Municipality in 1922 which parcelled it into residences. Lower Smestad, at 91,3 hectares land and 3,2 hectares ponds, was developed into a residential area by the Smestad family trust primarily during the 1970s and 80's with the last buildings erected in the old driveway in 1989.

Smestad ponds

The Smestad ponds are man made ponds which were dug out during the late 1800s by Carl Smestad to provide the

bourgeoisie The bourgeoisie ( , ) is a social class, equivalent to the middle or upper middle class. They are distinguished from, and traditionally contrasted with, the proletariat by their affluence, and their great cultural and financial capital. They ...

of Oslo with ice for refrigeration throughout much of the year. This was a lucrative trade with notable customers such as the

Grand Hotel A grand hotel is a large and luxurious hotel, especially one housed in a building with traditional architectural style. It began to flourish in the 1800s in Europe and North America. Grand Hotel may refer to: Hotels Africa * Grande Hotel Beir ...

Karl Johans Gate Karl Johans gate is the main street of the city of Oslo, Norway. The street was named in honor of King Charles III John, who was also King of Sweden as Charles XIV John. Karl Johans gate is a composite of several older streets that used to be s ...

, in particular due to the ponds central location. Ice halls were built in the 1880s for storage and export.Rundt Smestaddammene og Ullernåsen: Smestad, Skøyen, Abbediengen. Huse Hoff, Øivind Rødevand

References

{{Reflist Neighbourhoods of Oslo