The Little House on the Little Island in Lötsjön

2015-12-19

Next to Hallonbergen is Lötsjön, a little lake that I remember going to (or being taken to, more likely) as a kid. When the Random Walk generator picked Hallonbergen, I decided to read up on the place before going there. It turns out that the lake itself is home to a rich animal and plant life, and also - there's a little house on one of the islands. I didn't know that.

While trying to figure out if anybody lived there, I found out that back in the late 19th century, when this whole area was farmland, there was a hermit living next to the lake. "Lötgubben", as he was called, had built a little dugout next to the lake in 1867 (or 1873, there are two conflicting dates) where he lived there until his death in 1898. The newspaper Tidning för Wenersborgs stad och län had an article about him in 1885, and I would like to quote a little from the end of it:

One would think that the hermit by Lötsjön would be a misanthropic creature. Quite the opposite, it's a happy man, who always has a merry answer to every question. (...) He is from Närke, and had a small farm there in the past, after which he went to sea. After many fortunes he retired back to the solitude of the woods. He lives by fishing, in Lötsjön and elsewhere. In the summers he also trades in waterlilies from the lake. One might also add that he doesn't mind a drink.

And is very happy if one visits him in his dugout.

— Tidning för Wenersborgs stad och län, July 23, 1885 [a]

A second article appeared ten years later in the same newspaper: Tidning för Wenersborgs stad och län, December 13, 1895 [b].

Looking at this map from 1861 [c], we can guess that his little hut was situated near the edge of today's Ör, as this is the only direction from the lake with meadows.

So what is the house on the island? I have no idea. But it looks nice in the night, with its light on.