Esbensengården

Esbensengården was built in 1848–49 by the merchant Rasmus Galberg Esbensen (1827–1914) and his wife Mathilde Henriette Brammer (1826–1896), in a part of town that was growing fast because of the large wave of Kven immigration.

The farmhouse is built in a style common among merchants and officials along the Norwegian coast in the mid-1800s — a log house of Siberian larch, known as «russetømmer» (Russian timber), which was widely used in Vadsø at the time. The property included a quay with four warehouses and a shop on the south side, a reindeer paddock west of the house, and a garden with a summerhouse to the north.

Rasmus Esbensen traded in fish and groceries and was active in the Pomor trade — he sold salted fish and bought flour and other goods from Russian Pomor skippers. His son Hans Fredrik Esbensen (1855–1930) took over the house and the business, and concentrated more on the grocery trade. Around 1870 the main house was extended, and an outbuilding with a stable, cowshed, farmhands’ quarters and a carriage shed was added.

Walk one street further up and you come to Tuomainengården — a farm that the people of Vadsø still make active use of today.

Part of Vadsø museum

Esbensengården is run by Vadsø museum – Ruija kvenmuseum, together with Tuomainengården in the same part of town. The museum’s combined ticket for its sites in Vadsø is valid here.