Espihóll

Espihóll is a town and old manor in Eyjafjarðarsveit county, Iceland that is part of the rural municipality of Hrafnagilshreppur. To the south of the town is a large hill of the same name.

According to Landnámabók, the first farmer in Espihóll was Þórarinn, the son of Þórir Hámundarson and grandson of Helgi "magri" ("the meager") Eyvindarson. The farm is mentioned in several sources in old Icelandic literature and is featured in Víga-Glúms saga. Espihóll is also named in Sturlunga saga, in which Kolbeinn "grön" ("the mustachioed") Dufgusson was killed by Gissur Þorvaldsson's men in 1254 in retaliation for the Flugumýri Arson.

In Espihóll there was generally a ranch where some of the major Eyfjörður county chiefs lived. The town long served as the residence of the sýslumaður, or sheriff. In the 17th century, Sheriff Björn Pálsson, the grandson of Bishop Guðbrandur Þorláksson lived there and so did his son Magnús after Guðbrandur died. Magnús’ wife was Sigríður the elder, the daughter of Bishop Jón Vigfússon, and together they were blessed with many children. In the latter part of the 18th century, Sheriff Jón Jakobsson lived in Espihóll. He was among the pioneers who ushered in the age of enlightenment and, among other things, conducted some of the first known Icelandic experiments on sheep shearing. His son, Jón Espólín, a sheriff and chronicler who was named after the town, was born in Espihóll in 1769.

Stefán Thorarensen, son of the amtmann Stefán Þórarinson, lived in Espihóll and drowned in the Eyjafjörður river in the spring of 1844. Afterwards, the area was thought to be haunted, especially at Stórholt hill between Espihóll and the Stokkahlaða barn.

Shortly after the beginning of the 19th century, Sheriff Eggert Breim lived in Espihóll for some time. His daughter, Elín Breim, school director and author of Kvennafræðarinn (The Female Teacher), was born there.