Editing Mo i Rana (section)

==History==
[[File:Jernverket i Mo I Rana - no-nb digifoto 20150129 00075 NB MIT FNR 15564.jpg|left|thumb|280x280px|Norsk Jernverk, "Jernverket", Mo i Rana 15 September 1954]]
Mining, building boats ([[Nordland (boat)|Nordlands boats]]), and hunting/fishing used to be the main ways of life in Rana. Starting in the summer of 1730, there was a [[Sámi people|Sámi]] market in Mo. The market was held on the main church grounds until 1810. In 1860, wholesale merchant L.A. Meyer started a trade center, licensed by royal authority. Meyer traded flour, herring and tobacco, [[reindeer]] meat, skins and venison with the Swedes. The trade with Sweden increased especially during Sweden's difficult economic years from 1892 to the start of the [[First World War]]. Many paths now used as hiking trails were originally trade paths for mountain dwellers from Sweden to Mo i Rana. One example is a path that starts in the [[Vindelfjällens Nature Reserve]] at Ammarnäs and follows the Vindel River valley, then joins Vindelkroken and eventually crosses the Norwegian border to Mo i Rana.

The municipality is rich on iron ores and water to produce power. This was very important for industrial development. The Dunderland Iron Ore Company (1902–1947), owned by [[Thomas Edison]],<ref>{{Cite web |title=Dunderland Iron Ore Company, Ltd |url=https://edison.rutgers.edu/life-of-edison/companies/company-details/mining/dunderland-iron-ore-company-ltd |access-date=2024-04-05 |website=Rutgers-New Brunswick School of Art and Sciences}}</ref> established the first mines in [[Storforshei]] ({{convert|27|km|disp=or}} north of Mo i Rana). The mining company [[Rana Gruber]] was also established in 1937, and in 1946, the [[Norwegian Parliament]] approved plans for the construction of an [[Iron mill]] in Norway. [[A/S Norwegian Iron Work Company]] was established.

In 1955, the first steel was produced for Norway and other countries. The construction of the iron works took nine years.

During this period the village of Mo i Rana became an industrial city. People from all over Norway moved to Mo i Rana for work. The community needed homes for thousands of new residents and, the construction of houses and residential blocks started immediately. Infrastructure such as electricity and water were established for the city. In 1930, the population was only 1300 people, but had increased to 7,000 by 1955. In 1978 The Iron Mill employed approximately 4,500 of the municipality's 25,000 inhabitants.<ref>[[:no:Norsk Jernverk]]</ref>

The Norwegian Parliament resolved in June 1988 to phase out state ownership of the company. Today there are 119 industrial companies located at the [[industrial estate]] ([[Mo Industrial Park]]). The companies mainly support the iron and steel industry, the engineering industry, the research and development service industry and the [[information technology]] industry. In total, the companies employ approximately 1900 people.

From the end of the [[Second World War]] until the early 1990s, Mo i Rana, with the town's steel mill as its cornerstone, was dependent upon heavy industry. Following the decline of heavy industry, new service industries have now grown in the town.

==="Graveyard War" in 1951===
During the autumn of 1951, around "700 or 800" protesters showed up at the local graveyard as a result of a "night-time mobilisation"<ref name="Mobilization">{{Cite news |date=4 July 2013 |title=60 års taushet og tristesse |work=Dagbladet |url=http://www.dagbladet.no/2013/07/04/kultur/meninger/hovedkronikk/kronikk/krigsfanger/28032175/}}</ref> to oppose the government's attempt to remove Soviet corpses from graves. Some 93,000 Soviet prisoners-of-war had been brought to Norway between 1941 and 1945 by the Germans to work on improvements to infrastructure in Norway. A 2013 article in ''[[Dagbladet]]'' noted that "the protests were so powerful that [then minister of defence] [[Jens Chr. Hauge]] personally stopped the [government's] action".<ref name="Mobilization" />

It was only in this locality the government's Operation Asphalt stopped by civilians. More than 8000 Soviet corpses were removed from other graveyards in Northern Norway although the government had not decided the location of a new graveyard for these corpses.<ref name="Mobilization" /> The protests in Mo i Rana were not mentioned in national media during the [[Cold War]].

===Municipal self-governance (1923–1964)===
[[Rana Municipality|Ranen Municipality]] was established on 1 January 1838, under the old [[formannskapsdistrikt]] law. Shortly afterwards, in 1839, the municipality was divided into ''[[Nord-Rana Municipality|Nord-Ranen Municipality]]'' (in the north) and ''[[Sør-Rana Municipality|Sør-Ranen Municipality]]'' (in the south).<ref name="snl">{{Cite encyclopedia |title=Nord-Rana |encyclopedia=[[Store norske leksikon]] |publisher=[[Kunnskapsforlaget]] |url=https://snl.no/Nord-Rana |access-date=16 September 2018 |date=18 September 2016 |editor-last=Thorsnæs |editor-first=Geir |language=no}}</ref> In 1844, ''Nord-Ranen Municipality'' was renamed ''Mo Municipality'' ({{langx|no|Mo herred}}). On 1 January 1923, the village of Mo was designated as a [[ladested]] and so it was separated from the rest of the municipality to become a town-municipality of its own. The new town of Mo (population: 1,305) kept the name ''Mo'' and the rest of the old municipality became known as Nord-Rana Municipality (bringing back the old name for the area).

During the 1960s, there were many municipal mergers across Norway due to the work of the [[Schei Committee]]. On 1 January 1964, [[Nord-Rana Municipality]] (population: 11,636) was merged with the town of ''Mo i Rana'' (population: 9,616), the part of [[Sør-Rana Municipality]] located north of the [[Ranfjorden]] (population: 697), and the Sjona area of [[Nesna Municipality]] (population: 543) to create the large, new [[Rana Municipality]].<ref>{{Cite book |last=Jukvam |first=Dag |year=1999 |title=Historisk oversikt over endringer i kommune- og fylkesinndelingen |url=http://www.ssb.no/emner/00/90/rapp_9913/rapp_9913.pdf |publisher=[[Statistics Norway|Statistisk sentralbyrå]] |language=no |isbn= 9788253746845 }}</ref>

Mo was a self-governing municipality from 1923 until 1964. During that time, this municipality was responsible for [[primary education]] (through 10th grade), outpatient [[Health care|health services]], [[old age|senior citizen]] services, [[unemployment]], [[Social work|social services]], [[zoning]], [[economic development]], and municipal [[road]]s. During its existence, this municipality was governed by a [[Municipal council (Norway)|municipal council]] of [[Direct election|elected]] representatives, which [[Indirect election|in turn elected]] a [[mayor]].<ref name="ks">{{Cite encyclopedia |title=kommunestyre |encyclopedia=[[Store norske leksikon]] |publisher=[[Kunnskapsforlaget]] |url=https://snl.no/kommunestyre |date=2022-09-20 |editor-last=Hansen |editor-first=Tore |editor2-last=Vabo |editor2-first=Signy Irene |language=no |access-date=2023-01-01}}</ref>

====Municipal council====
The [[Municipal council (Norway)|municipal council]] {{lang|no|(Bystyre)}} of Mo was made up of 29 representatives that were elected to four year terms. The tables below show the current and historical composition of the council by political [[Political party|party]]. 
{{div col}}
{{Kommunestyre table
|name                      = Mo
|city                      = yes
|start                     = 1960
|end                       = 1963
|reference                 = <ref>{{Cite web |date=1960 |title=Kommunevalgene og Ordførervalgene 1959 |url=https://www.ssb.no/a/histstat/nos/nos_xii_022.pdf |access-date=2020-03-18 |publisher=Statistisk sentralbyrå |location=Oslo |language=no}}</ref>
|note = On 1 January 1964, the town of Mo became part of [[Rana Municipality]].
|Total                     = 29
|Arbeiderpartiet           = 18
|Høyre                     = 4
|NKP                       = 4
|Kristelig_Folkeparti      = 1
|Venstre                   = 2
|}}
{{Kommunestyre table
|name                      = Mo
|city                      = yes
|start                     = 1956
|end                       = 1959
|reference                 = <ref>{{Cite web |date=1957 |title=Kommunevalgene og Ordførervalgene 1955 |url=https://www.ssb.no/a/histstat/nos/nos_xi_252.pdf |access-date=2020-03-18 |publisher=Statistisk sentralbyrå |location=Oslo |language=no}}</ref>
|collapsed                 = yes
|Total                     = 29
|Arbeiderpartiet           = 15
|NKP                       = 6
|Høyre                     = 4
|Venstre                   = 3
|Local_Lists               = 1
|}}
{{Kommunestyre table
|name                      = Mo
|city                      = yes
|start                     = 1952
|end                       = 1955
|reference                 = <ref>{{Cite web |date=1952 |title=Kommunevalgene og Ordførervalgene 1951 |url=https://www.ssb.no/a/histstat/nos/nos_xi_120.pdf |access-date=2020-03-18 |publisher=Statistisk sentralbyrå |location=Oslo |language=no}}</ref>
|collapsed                 = yes
|Total                     = 28
|Arbeiderpartiet           = 15
|NKP                       = 6
|Høyre                     = 3
|Venstre                   = 3
|Local_Lists               = 1
|}}
{{Kommunestyre table
|name                      = Mo
|city                      = yes
|start                     = 1948
|end                       = 1951
|reference                 = <ref>{{Cite web |date=1948 |title=Kommunevalgene og Ordførervalgene 1947 |url=https://www.ssb.no/a/histstat/nos/nos_x_165.pdf |access-date=2020-03-18 |publisher=Statistisk sentralbyrå |location=Oslo |language=no}}</ref>
|collapsed                 = yes
|Total                     = 20
|Arbeiderpartiet           = 9
|NKP                       = 6
|Høyre                     = 3
|Venstre                   = 2 
|}}
{{Kommunestyre table
|name                      = Mo
|city                      = yes
|start                     = 1945
|end                       = 1947
|reference                 = <ref>{{Cite web |date=1947 |title=Kommunevalgene og Ordførervalgene 1945 |url=https://www.ssb.no/a/histstat/nos/nos_x_133.pdf |access-date=2020-03-18 |publisher=Statistisk sentralbyrå |location=Oslo |language=no}}</ref>
|collapsed                 = yes
|Total                     = 20
|Arbeiderpartiet           = 7
|NKP                       = 7
|Borgerlige_Felleslister   = 3
|Local_Lists               = 3
|}}
{{Kommunestyre table
|name                      = Mo
|city                      = yes
|start                     = 1938
|end                       = 1941* 
|reference                 = <ref>{{Cite web |date=1938 |title=Kommunevalgene og Ordførervalgene 1937 |url=https://www.ssb.no/a/histstat/nos/nos_ix_133.pdf |access-date=2020-03-18 |publisher=Statistisk sentralbyrå |location=Oslo |language=no}}</ref>
|collapsed                 = yes
|Total                     = 20
|Borgerlige_Felleslister   = 8
|Arbeiderpartiet           = 11
|Local_Lists               = 1
|}}
{{Kommunestyre table
|name                      = Mo
|city                      = yes
|start                     = 1935
|end                       = 1937 
|reference                 = <ref>{{Cite web |date=1935 |title=Kommunevalgene og Ordførervalgene 1934 |url=https://www.ssb.no/a/histstat/nos/nos_ix_057.pdf |access-date=2020-03-18 |publisher=Statistisk sentralbyrå |location=Oslo |language=no}}</ref>
|collapsed                 = yes
|Total                     = 20
|Venstre                   = 3
|otherparty                = Non-Socialist Group
|otherparty_no             = Borgerlig Samling
|otherparty_number         = 6
|Arbeiderpartiet           = 9
|NKP                       = 1
|Local_Lists               = 1
|}}
{{div col end}}

====Mayors====
The [[Mayor#Scandinavia|mayor]] ({{langx|no|ordfører}}) of Mo was the political leader of the municipality and the chairperson of the municipal council. Here is a list of people who held this position:<ref>{{Cite book |last=Coldevin |first=Axel |title=Rana Bygdebok. Mo Prestegjeld etter 1850 |publisher=Mo Sparebank, Grøndahl & Søn Boktrykkeri |location=Oslo |language=no}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Alstadhaug |first=Leif |title=Årbok for Rana 1986 |publisher=Rana Blads trykkeri |year=1986 |language=no |chapter=150 år med lokalt sjølstyre}}</ref>
{{div col|colwidth=20em}}
* 1923-1923: Einar Nilsen 
* 1924-1924: C. N. Jacobsen
* 1925-1925: Einar Nilsen 
* 1926–1929: Kristian P. Evjen
* 1930–1931: Alf Ljones
* 1931–1932: Carsten Venes
* 1932–1935: Per Kristian Rygh
* 1936–1937: Anton Getz
* 1937–1940: Alf Ljones
* 1945–1947: Sigurd Marsten
* 1947–1948: Alf Ljones
* 1948–1955: Erling Lange
* 1956–1963: Eilif Granhaug ([[Labour Party (Norway)|Ap]])
{{div col end}}