Hokksund



Hokksund is a town in the municipality of Øvre Eiker in the county of Buskerud, Norway.

History
Hokksund is the administrative centre, and largest town in Øvre Eiker, with a population of around 8,000. Hokksund is located 18 km west of Drammen. The river Drammenselva flows through the town, 500m from the centre. Hokksund has developed on both sides of the river. Hokksund is located in a rich agricultural district. Forestry has traditionally been the principal industry, but engineering, especially electrical as well as the cement industry, have become important within the past century. There are three hotels in Hokksund and a campsite there, which holds up to 240 caravans.

The Hoen Hoard was found on the farm Nedre Hoen in 1834. It is Norway's largest find of gold jewellery from the Viking Age with a total of approx. 2.5 kg of gold and some silver jewellery. The treasure is on display in the Museum of Cultural History, Oslo.

Transportation
Hokksund Station (Hokksund stasjon) is on the Sørlandet Line. The station is served by local trains (R12) between Kongsberg via Oslo to Eidsvoll operated by Vy. The railway line is part of the Oslo - Bergen, and the Oslo - Kristiansand - Stavanger route. The two nearest international airports are Oslo Airport, Gardermoen and Sandefjord Airport, Torp, but there is a Hokksund Airport, with the ICAO airport code of ENHS. Hokksund is approximately 17 km to the west of Drammen.



Local attractions

 * Haug Church (Haug kirke), originally built in 1152, is a Medieval stone church consisted of the west tower, nave and chancel. The church was extensively repaired and redecorated from 1961 to 1962. The organ was built by the German organ builder Jürgen Ahrend in 2004.


 * Nøstetangen Museum at the old county farm (Sorenskrivergården), shows how glass was made according to ancient tradition. Nøstetangen glassworks operated here from 1741 to 1777. It produced table-glass and chandeliers in the German and English style. Adjacent to the museum's garden is the Skriverparken, a beautiful park area extending down to river.

Sport
The Vinsvollbanen is a motorcycle speedway venue located at Vinsvoldveien 83, in a remote area (59.73972°N, 9.92333°W), south of the town. It hosted the final of the Norwegian Individual Speedway Championship in 1988, 1995, 2005 and 2011.

Notable residents

 * Jonas Lie (1833-1908), novelist, poet, and playwright.
 * Johan Buttedahl, (born 1935) a dentist and politician
 * Arne Nævra, (born 1953) nature photographer, politician and parliamentary representative
 * Tor Håkon Holte, (born 1958) a cross-country skier
 * Geir Holte, (born 1959) a cross-country skier.
 * Ole Bremseth, (born 1961) a former ski jumper.
 * Kate Gulbrandsen, (born 1965) a Norwegian singer at the Eurovision Song Contest 1987
 * Svend Karlsen, (born 1967) a former strongman
 * Stian Hole, (born 1969) graphic designer, illustrator and writer of children's books
 * Sverre Isachsen, (born 1970) a rallycross driver
 * Lucas Braathen, (born 2000), alpine
 * Martinius Stenshorne, (born 2006) a racing driver
 * Broiler (DJs), (formed 2011) Norwegian DJ