Lillehammer

Lillehammer stands near the northern end of Lake Mjøsa, where the route through Gudbrandsdalen approaches the water. The place was known as a market and assembly site in the Middle Ages, and a church served the surrounding district. Its position brought together traffic from the long valley and the lake. In 1827 Lillehammer received market-town rights. The new town had only about fifty inhabitants at the time, but its site was chosen to serve a region without another town and to provide a trading place at the southern end of Gudbrandsdalen. Merchants and craftsmen soon joined the small community by the lakeshore.