Meråker

Meråker lies in the upland valleys east of Trondheim, near the route across the mountains to Sweden. Copper production is documented in the area in the fourteenth century, long before the larger mining ventures of the early modern period. The Selbo copper works obtained mining rights in 1713 and operated a number of mines in the Meråker district. The important Lillefjell deposit was identified in 1751 and mining began there in 1760. Forest use was closely connected with the mining economy, which needed fuel as well as workers and transport. Farming and livestock continued to support households in a landscape where winter weather and mountain terrain shaped travel and work.