Homewood is a property in Sandvika

Sandvika

is the administrative centre of the municipality of Bærum in Norway. It was declared a city by the municipal council in Bærum on 4 June 2003.Sandvika is situated approximately west of Oslo. It is the main transportation hub for Western Bærum, and has a combined bus and railway station. Sandvika is...

, Bærum

Bærum

is a municipality in Akershus county, Norway. The administrative centre of the municipality is the town of Sandvika. Bærum was established as a municipality on 1 January 1838. A suburb of Oslo, Bærum is located on the west coast of the city....

, Norway

Norway

Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...

. It is known historically as the home of Otto Sverdrup

Otto Sverdrup

Otto Neumann Knoph Sverdrup was a Norwegian sailor and Arctic explorer.-Early and personal life:...

, and has been municipal-owned since 1962.

History

The property, located on the hill Sandviksåsen, was originally a part of the cotter's farm Sandviksgrunnene, which is in turn considered as the foundation of the modern town Sandvika

Sandvika

is the administrative centre of the municipality of Bærum in Norway. It was declared a city by the municipal council in Bærum on 4 June 2003.Sandvika is situated approximately west of Oslo. It is the main transportation hub for Western Bærum, and has a combined bus and railway station. Sandvika is...

. Sandviksgrunnene has various owners until bought by the Walle family in 1842. Anthon Walle took over in 1881, and during his time Homewood was separated from Sandviksgrunnene. The road in which Homewood is located is named after Anthon Walle. The origin of the name Homewood is uncertain.

Homewood was owned by ship-owner Chr. Klaveness around 1889, when the Swiss-style

Swiss chalet style

Swiss chalet style is an architectural style inspired by the chalets of Switzerland. The style originated in Germany in the early 19th century and was popular in parts of Europe and North America, notably in the architecture of Norway, the country house architecture of Sweden, Cincinnati, Ohio,...

 villa was built. The Swiss style had been spread to Sandvika as Sandvika Station

Sandvika Station

Sandvika Station is a railway station located in downtown Sandvika in Bærum, Akershus, Norway. The station serves as a local public transport hub and is located on the Asker Line and the Drammen Line. The station was opened with the Drammen Line in 1872. In 2005 the Asker Line opened allowing...

 was built in this style in 1872.

Otto Sverdrup

Otto Sverdrup

Otto Neumann Knoph Sverdrup was a Norwegian sailor and Arctic explorer.-Early and personal life:...

 lived here from 1908 to his death in 1930. He was considered among the Big Three of Norwegian polar exploration, together with Fridtjof Nansen

Fridtjof Nansen

Fridtjof Wedel-Jarlsberg Nansen was a Norwegian explorer, scientist, diplomat, humanitarian and Nobel Peace Prize laureate. In his youth a champion skier and ice skater, he led the team that made the first crossing of the Greenland interior in 1888, and won international fame after reaching a...

 and Roald Amundsen

Roald Amundsen

Roald Engelbregt Gravning Amundsen was a Norwegian explorer of polar regions. He led the first Antarctic expedition to reach the South Pole between 1910 and 1912 and he was the first person to reach both the North and South Poles. He is also known as the first to traverse the Northwest Passage....

.

Later use

In 1937 the property was bought by Bjarne Walle. In 1962 he bequeathed the property to Bærum municipality, on the condition that it be used for nervous patients. It was originally used as an office building, but in 2005 the villa was opened as a cultural centre for people with moderate mental disorders, under the name Villa Walle.