Haugesund

Haugesund, a seaport of Norway in Stavanger amt (county), on the west coast, 34 m. N. by W. of Stavanger. Pop. (1900), 7935. It is an important fishing centre. Herrings are exported to the annual value of £100,000 to £200,000, also mackerel and lobsters. The principal imports are coal and salt. There are factories for woollen goods and a margarine factory. Haugesund is the reputed death-place of Harald Haarfager, to whom an obelisk of red granite was erected in 1872 on the thousandth anniversary of his victory at the Hafsfjord (near Stavanger) whereby he won the sovereignty of Norway. The memorial stands 1¼ m. north of the town, on the Haraldshaug, where the hero’s supposed tombstone is shown.