Stillingsön lies on the eastern side of Orust and is one of Bohuslän’s smaller seaside resorts. At the same time, it is a well-preserved example of the 19th-century seaside resorts on Sweden’s west coast. The resort was established in 1865 and was the first independent tourism initiative on Orust. This combination of a small seaside resort and an early start in tourism offers a distinctive regional history perspective for planning your trip.
The historic setting is also part of the picture. Lushly vegetated areas and calmer waters shaped Stillingsön during its time as a seaside resort. This landscape adds another perspective to the town’s history, beyond dates and buildings: it describes the setting in which the resort took shape.
Before the seaside resort
The town’s history goes back further than the seaside resort. Stillingsön was originally common land belonging to the Kåröd estate; Bishop Jens Nilsson’s visitation books from 1574 to 1597 record this association. In 1688, Stillingsön is mentioned as a croft site. These early milestones concern land use and settlement status, while 1865 marks the beginning of the independent tourism initiative. This makes it possible to distinguish between the town’s earlier history and its later development as a seaside resort.
A year later, in 1866, the steamer “Uddevalla” called at Stillingsön four times a week on its route between Gothenburg and Uddevalla. This stop adds a concrete transport connection to the history of the resort’s early years. The two consecutive years describe different aspects: 1865 marks the beginning of the tourism initiative, and 1866 the steamer’s stop on the route at that time.
Buildings and bathing history
The Sjöhult boarding house was built in 1868, three years after the seaside resort was founded. The history of the former Myckleby vicarage took a different course: the building was reconstructed on the shore at Stillingsön and given the name Sjövik. This places a boarding house from the resort’s early years alongside a rebuilt vicarage from Myckleby. The difference lies in how they were built: Sjöhult was constructed as a boarding house, while Sjövik came to the shore through the reconstruction of the former vicarage. In relation to the town’s earlier history, the founding, steamer stop, and construction of the boarding house came close together: the years 1865 to 1868 form a clearly defined early phase in the history of Stillingsön as a seaside resort.
Bathing culture included a bathhouse, later referred to as a warm bathhouse, as well as a bathing pool. The later name refers to the same bathhouse. Stillingsön is also included in a current listing of smaller cold-water bathhouses on Sweden’s west coast. Thus, alongside the resort’s history, historic bathing facilities are also in focus, while the boarding house and former vicarage show another side of the town’s history.
Discover more destinations: Käringön, Hälleviksstrand, Svanesund, Gullholmen, Mollösund, Henån, Svanvik, Nosund
For the main travel overview: Orust.
