Dokken Open air museum - Haugalandmuseet

The Dokken museum on Hasseløy takes us to the very start of the great herring era and gives us a rich insight into the everyday life in Haugesund a 150 years ago.

Just across the bridge to Hasseløy ("Bakarøy") you will find Dokken, the open air museum - a green area surrounded by a number of smaller buildings that tells the historic stories of old Haugesund.

The museum represents an important part of the urban environment in Haugesund during the herring times and shows how people lived between 1850 and 1950. The first houses of Dokken were built almost 200 years ago. Back then there was a small, closed harbor for the herring boats, called a "dock". It is from here the name "Dokken" originates. Since then, the dock itself has been filled with stone, concrete and earth, but the area is still known for its old name.

The buildings include furnished living rooms, a herring saltery, a barrel workshop and a colonial shop. The boathouse has an extensive boat display, and through the photo exhibition "Life between the houses" we get a historic insight into an everyday life quite unlike our own. In the summer, the buildings in the Dokken Open air museum are open to the public. Tickets are available in the information building. The ticket includes a tour of the houses. In the information building you will also find a museum shop with a small café.

The Dokken museum is children friendly and has several activities that engage children of all ages. The grassy gardens at Dokken is a pleasant play area and a great place to take your family.

In the winter months, the Dokken museum is closed, but the courtyard is open and is a beautiful hiking destination.