Vaasa and the sea

The last ice age in Vaasa area ended about 9000 years ago. When the weight of the ice was gone the ground began to rise. At first the sea level sank more than 10 meters in a hundred years. The ground surface uplift is slowing down continuously, but it is still going on. At the moment the speed is 8 mm per year. So far the ground has risen 250 meters in Vaasa area. After the ice age, the coastline has moved tens of kilometres to the sea. The ground surface uplift is expected to continue still for about 180 meters. After about 2600 years there is a solid ground connection between Vaasa area and Sweden and the northern part of the Gulf of Bothnia becomes a lake. (Piispala et al. 1986).

Vaasa was established in 1606. The city developed into a significant trade and shipping centre. Gradually the surface ground uplift started to create problems: the passages became shallower and it was more and more difficult for the ships to get to the harbour. In 1838 the tradesmen in Vaasa established a company that dredged the harbour and dug the passage into town deeper. In fact the passage became a channel. When it was completed in 1845, smaller ships could sail all the way to the city. However, the channel began to get blocked already after a few years. (Piispala et al. 1986).

In this situation, destiny decided the future of Vaasa. In 1852, a violent fire broke out in the city and almost the whole town was destroyed. In 1862, the new city of Vaasa was decided to be built on the seashore, seven kilometres from the original location. The main reason for this was the aim to secure the future of Vaasa as a shipping and trading centre. (Piispala et al. 1986).

In the new location, Vaasa started to flourish. Several industrial plants were established in Vaasa in the end of 19th Century. Industrial activities were concentrated around the city on the seashore. Anticipating the ground surface uplift, also an outer harbour was built almost three kilometres from the city. (Hoving 1956). This harbour is still being used. From the 17th to the 19th centuries big cargoes of tar were transported through Vaasa harbour to the markets in Central Europe. In those centuries the area around Vaasa was one of Europe's most important tar producing regions. A lot of tar was needed in treating wooden ships and their rigs.

The tar dealers in Vaasa started to build ocean-going sailing ships when they became wealthy. In the 19th century Vaasa was also a city of shipping and navigation. Tar trade and shipping brought in capital and made it possible to develop industry. In the first decades of the 20th century Vaasa developed into a significant industrial city. Cotton, milling, metal and electrotechnical industries became large-scale industries.

Due to the industrial revolution in the 1960s, milling and cotton industries do not exist in the city anymore. Metal and electrotechnical industries have remained and developed. The present Vaasa is connected to global mainstreams of economy e.g. through the production plants of the large multinational company Asea Brown Boveri (ABB).

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