Vatne is a former municipality in Møre og Romsdal county, Norway. The municipality existed from 1902 until its dissolution in 1965. The municipality included land and islands surrounding the Midfjorden and Vatnefjorden in what is now part of Haram Municipality and Molde Municipality. The administrative centre was the village of Vatne where Vatne Church is located.
Prior to its dissolution in 1965, the municipality was the 387th largest by area out of the 525 municipalities in Norway. Vatne Municipality was the 340th most populous municipality in Norway with a population of about 2,558. The municipality's population density was and its population had increased by 11.8% over the previous 10-year period.
General information On 1 January 1902, the large Skodje Municipality was divided. The northern part became the new Vatne Municipality (population: 1,547) and the southern part remained as Skodje Municipality (population: 1,551).
During the 1960s, there were many municipal mergers across Norway due to the work of the Schei Committee. On 1 January 1965, Vatne Municipality was dissolved. The island of Dryna and the western part of the island of Midøya (population: 334) were merged with Sør-Aukra Municipality to create the new Midsund Municipality. The remainder of Vatne Municipality (population: 2,260) was incorporated into the neighboring Haram Municipality. (In 2020, Midsund Municipality became a part of Molde Municipality.)
Name The municipality (originally the parish) is named after the old Vatne farm () since the first Vatne Church was built there. The name is the plural form of which means "water" or "lake" since the farm is located next to a lake.
Churches The Church of Norway had one parish () within Vatne Municipality. At the time of the municipal dissolution, it was part of the Skodje prestegjeld and the Nordre Sunnmøre prosti (deanery) in the Diocese of Bjørgvin.
Churches in Vatne MunicipalityParish ()Church nameLocation of the churchYear builtVatneVatne ChurchVatne1868
Geography The municipality was located at the entrance to the Romsdalsfjorden. Sør-Aukra Municipality and Vestnes Municipality were to the east, Skodje Municipality was to the south, and Borgund Municipality and Haram Municipality were to the west. The highest point in the municipality was the tall mountain Blåskjerdingen, on the border with Vestnes Municipality.
Government While it existed, Vatne Municipality was responsible for primary education (through 10th grade), outpatient health services, senior citizen services, welfare and other social services, zoning, economic development, and municipal roads and utilities. The municipality was governed by a municipal council of directly elected representatives. The mayor was indirectly elected by a vote of the municipal council. The municipality was under the jurisdiction of the Frostating Court of Appeal.
Municipal council The municipal council of Vatne Municipality was made up of 17 representatives that were elected to four-year terms. The tables below show the historical composition of the council by political party.
Mayors The mayor () of Vatne Municipality was the political leader of the municipality and the chairperson of the municipal council. The following people have held this position:
1902–1910: Rasmus Christian Hagen 1911–1934: Bernt K. Fagerli 1935–1937: Ivar Sollid 1938–1939: Amund K. Fylling 1939–1942: Jon P. Slyngstad 1942–1945: Carl J. Haugen (NS) 1945–1947: Jon P. Slyngstad 1948–1951: Ludvik Krogsæter 1952–1955: Johannes Fanneløp 1956–1963: Øyvind Sæter 1963–1965: Mads Skaar
See also List of former municipalities of Norway
References