The Ume River (Swedish: ''Ume älv'' or ''Umeälven'') is one of the main rivers in northern

Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden,The United Nations Group of Experts on Geographical Names states that the country's formal name is the Kingdom of SwedenUNGEGN World Geographical Names, Sweden./ref> is a Nordic country located on ...

. It is around long, and flows in a south-eastern direction from its source, the lake ''Överuman'' by the

Norwegian Norwegian, Norwayan, or Norsk may refer to: *Something of, from, or related to Norway, a country in northwestern Europe * Norwegians, both a nation and an ethnic group native to Norway * Demographics of Norway *The Norwegian language, including ...

border within the

Scandinavian mountain range The Scandinavian Mountains or the Scandes is a mountain range that runs through the Scandinavian Peninsula. The western sides of the mountains drop precipitously into the North Sea and Norwegian Sea, forming the fjords of Norway, whereas to the ...

. For large parts, the

European route E12 European route E12 is a road that is part of the International E-road network. It begins in Mo i Rana, Norway, transverses Sweden and ends in Helsinki, Finland, with a ferry line between Sweden and Finland. The part within Finland is Finnish n ...

, also known as Blå Vägen (Blue Route), follows its path. It passes through

Vindelfjällen Nature Reserve The Nature Reserve ( sv, Vindelfjällens naturreservat) is a nature reserve located in the municipalities of Sorsele and Storuman in Västerbotten County of Swedish Lapland. It is the largest natural reserve in Sweden and one of the largest p ...

and Lake Storuman and drains into the

Gulf of Bothnia The Gulf of Bothnia (; fi, Pohjanlahti; sv, Bottniska viken) is divided into the Bothnian Bay and Bothnian Sea, and it is the northernmost arm of the Baltic Sea, between Finland's west coast ( East Bothnia) and the Sweden's east coast (West ...

on Sweden's east coast at the small town of

Holmsund Holmsund is a locality situated in Umeå Municipality, Västerbotten County, Sweden with 5,489 inhabitants in 2010. It is located 18 km south of the city of Umeå and serves as a port for Umeå. Position Holmsund lies at the mouth of the Um ...

, and adjacent to the city of

Umeå Umeå ( , , , locally ; South Westrobothnian: ;). fi, Uumaja; sju, Ubmeje; sma, Upmeje; se, Ubmi) is a city in northeast Sweden. It is the seat of Umeå Municipality and the capital of Västerbotten County. Situated on the Ume River, Ume� ...

. Its chief

tributary A tributary, or affluent, is a stream or river that flows into a larger stream or main stem (or parent) river or a lake. A tributary does not flow directly into a sea or ocean. Tributaries and the main stem river drain the surrounding drainage ...

is the

Vindel River The Vindel River (Swedish: ''Vindelälven'') is a river in northern Sweden. It is a tributary A tributary, or affluent, is a stream or river that flows into a larger stream or main stem (or parent) river or a lake. A tributary does not flo ...

. In the 1950s, hydroelectricity developments were building reservoirs and dams throughout the country (see also:

energy in Sweden Energy in Sweden describes energy and electricity production, consumption and import in Sweden. Electricity sector in Sweden is the main article of electricity in Sweden. The Swedish climate bill of February 2017 aims to make Sweden carbon neu ...

), but concerns were being raised against the environmental impact of these power plants. In particular, there were heated discussions about the developments on the Ume River and Vindel River. This led in 1961 an agreement called the Peace of Sarek ( sv, Freden i Sarek), which prevented development on some rivers of the Vindel River and in exchange gave freedom to develop the other rivers, including the Ume River. The Ume River has since been extensively cultivated for hydroelectric power.

Timber industry

Development of the river around

Baggböle Baggböle is a small village on the Ume River in northern Sweden, approximately upstream of the city of Umeå. The village was a base for sawing local timber in the nineteenth century, with a sawmill powered by the water of the river rapids close ...

started with the arrival of Scottish immigrants James and Robert Dickson in the 1830s. They had built their timber business in the Värmland province but in the 1820s they constructed two large water-powered sawmills. The sawmill at Baggböle was the largest in Sweden that was powered by water.Baggbole Mansion
Vasterbottens Museum, retrieved 18 May 2014 So infamous were their methods that a new word in Swedish was derived from the name of "Baggböle". The Swedish word ''baggböleri'' is a pejorative term for reckless deforestation. The sawmills worked from May to October each year employing 170 workers.
, Umea.SE, retrieved 18 May 2014 The River Ume water-powered sawmill was under threat when steam power was introduced further south at

Tunadal Tunadal () is a locality situated in Sundsvall Municipality, Västernorrland County Västernorrland County ( sv, Västernorrlands län) is a county ('' län'') in the north of Sweden. It is bordered by the counties of Gävleborg, Jämtland, ...

in Sweden in 1849. Twenty more steam-powered Swedish saw mills were started within a decade. These sawmills were usually placed near ports, and the former saw mills which had been positioned near water power were closed. The water-powered saw mill on the River Ume was one of the last to close in 1884 when

was given a steam-powered mill. In 1914 a power plant was built where the sawmill was. This facility was eventually sold to the city of Umeå in 1947. Today the land used by Baggböle sawmill is

Arboretum Norr Arboretum Norr ( en, Northern Arboretum) is an arboretum in Baggböle, Sweden, on the Ume River, about eight kilometers west of Umeå city centre. History The arboretum is in Baggböle, a settlement known for its water-powered sawmill. So infamou ...

Places named after Ume River

Schiedam Schiedam () is a city and municipality in the west of the Netherlands. It is located in the Rotterdam–The Hague metropolitan area, west of Rotterdam, east of Vlaardingen, and south of Delft. In the south the city is connected with the village ...

in the

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

, Swedish-like houses are built and one of the streets, th
Umefors
is named after this river.

References

External links

Ume River
{{Authority control Rivers of Västerbotten County Umeå Drainage basins of the Baltic Sea

Timber industry

Places named after Ume River

See also

References

External links