Fågelsjö Gammelgård Bortom Åa

About the museum

The farm Bortom Åa in Fågelsjö is one of the seven Hälsingland farms (hälsingegårdar) that were included on UNESCO’s World Heritage List in 2012. It is the northernmost and most remote of the seven, and the only one in a Forest Finn village. The farm dates from the Forest Finn colonisation in the 17th century and consists of thirteen buildings from the 18th and 19th centuries with preserved interiors. An archive of diaries, letters and accounts means that life on the farm can be followed through seven generations of the same family.

The main building was erected around 1816–1819. In the upper-floor hall, the Dala painter Bäck Anders Hansson painted walls and joinery in 1856 in the intense blue colour that became the farm’s trademark. The rifle smithy from 1785 is the building that made the farm rich, and it is one of the few preserved peasant rifle smithies in the country. In 1860 the smith Jonas Olsson built the famous Sjulåsboden, whose locks must be opened in the right order.

When Kristina and Mårten moved to Amerikahuset in 1910, they left everything behind, and time still stands still in the main building today. The farm is run by Fågelsjö hembygdsförening (Fågelsjö Local Heritage Society) on behalf of Ljusdal Municipality. The houses can only be seen on a guided tour, while the farmyard, animals, café and shop are open all day.

Highlights

• UNESCO World Heritage among the seven Hälsingland farms
• Rifle smithy from 1785
• The Sjulåsboden with Jonas Olsson’s locks from 1860
• Painted rooms, including Bäck Anders Hansson’s blue room from 1856
• Guides dressed as the farm’s maids and farmhands
• Café Bortom Åa in the Amerikahuset and a craft shop

Permanent exhibition

• Världsarvsgården Bortom Åa – Guided tour of the main building, the rifle smithy, the farmhands’ cottage (drängstugan) and the Sjulåsboden, with preserved interiors from the farm’s heyday.

Operated by

Fågelsjö hembygdsförening (på uppdrag av Ljusdals kommun)

Admission & discounts

The price applies to guided tours, which are required to enter the houses. Free admission on some open-house days, such as Hälsingegårdarnas dag (Hälsingegård Day).

Accessibility

The museum hasn’t published any information on this.

Kids & families

The museum hasn’t published any information on this.

Getting there & parking

Fågelsjö lies about 3 km west of the E45 (Inlandsvägen), roughly halfway between Orsa and Sveg. Turn off at Fågelsjö vägskäl and follow Fågelsjövägen into the village.

Amenities & dining

• Café
• Museum shop

Café Bortom Åa in the Amerikahuset serves coffee with home-baked bread, open sandwiches and the day’s lunch, around 11:00–14:00. There is a craft shop on the farm. Canoe and bicycle hire next to the farm.

Events & venue rental

The museum hasn’t published any information on this.

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