Hillesøy is a former municipality in Troms county in Norway. The municipality existed from 1855 until its dissolution in 1964. It was located on both sides of the Malangen fjord in what is now Tromsø Municipality and Senja Municipality. The administrative centre was located at Brensholmen on the western shore of the island of Kvaløya. Brensholmen is also the location of Hillesøy Church, the main church for the municipality.

Prior to its dissolution in 1964, the municipality was the 214th largest by area out of the 689 municipalities in Norway. Hillesøy Municipality was the 365th most populous municipality in Norway with a population of about 2,507. The municipality's population density was and its population had decreased by 2.6% over the previous 10-year period. Hillesøy Municipality included about of land with on the island of Senja, about on the island of Kvaløya, and about of smaller islands including Hillesøya and Sommarøya. On Senja island, Hillesøy Municipality included the larger villages of Fjordgård, Husøy, and Botnhamn. On Kvaløya island, it included Ersfjordbotn and Brensholmen. The island of Sommarøya is connected to the large island of Kvaløya by the Sommarøy Bridge. Most of the other islands are only accessible by boat.

General information The parish of Hillesøy (originally spelled Hillesø) was established as a municipality in 1855 when it was separated from the large Lenvik Municipality (or it might have been in 1871–some sources do not concur). The initial population of Hillesøy was around 800 people. During the 1960s, there were many municipal mergers across Norway due to the work of the Schei Committee. On 1 January 1964, Hillesøy Municipality was dissolved and its lands were divided as follows: The areas of Hillesøy on the island of Kvaløya as well as all of the islands north of the Malangen fjord (with 1,316 inhabitants in total) were merged with the city of Tromsø (population: 12,602), all of Tromsøysund Municipality (population: 16,727), and most of Ullsfjord Municipality except the Svensby area (population: 2,019) to form a new, enlarged Tromsø Municipality. The areas of Hillesøy on the island of Senja and the little island of Hekkingen (with 1,159 inhabitants in total) merged with Lenvik Municipality (population: 8,825), the part of Tranøy Municipality along the south shore of the river Lakselva (population: 106), and the part of Sørreisa Municipality on Senja island (population: 129) to form a new, larger Lenvik Municipality.

Name The municipality is named after the old Hillesøy farm () on the island of Hillesøya since the first Hillesøy Church was originally built there. The meaning of the name is not entirely clear. The first element of the old name may come from the old Norwegian male name . Another possibility is that the name was originally . If this is the case, then the first element would be derived from the word which means "rock slab" or "cave". The last element of the name is not disputed. The last element is which means "island". Historically, the name of the municipality was spelled Hillesø. On 6 January 1908, a royal resolution changed the spelling of the name of the municipality to Hillesøy, to give the name a more Norwegian and less Danish spelling due to Norwegian language reforms.

Churches The Church of Norway had one parish () within Hillesøy Municipality. It was part of the Hillesøy prestegjeld and the Trondenes prosti (deanery) in the Diocese of Nord-Hålogaland.

Churches in Hillesøy MunicipalityParish ()Church nameLocation of the churchYear builtHillesøyHillesøy ChurchBrensholmen, Kvaløya1889

Geography The highest point in the municipality was the tall mountain Keipen on the island of Senja.

Government While it existed, Hillesøy 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 Hålogaland Court of Appeal.

Municipal council The municipal council of Hillesøy 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 Hillesøy Municipality was the political leader of the municipality and the chairperson of the municipal council. The following people have held this position:

1855–1857: Ole Johan Olsen 1857–1859: John Pedersen 1859–1862: Daniel Heitmann Hansen 1863–1874: John Pedersen 1875–1878: Jacob Bolche Matheson 1879–1883: Peder Svendsen 1883–1886: Ole Larsen Aaker 1887–1889: Johannes Næstaas 1889–1904: Ole A. Hanssen 1904–1904: Ingvald Kristoffersen 1905–1907: Samuel O. Kvamme 1907–1913: Carl Bertheussen 1914–1919: Ingvald Kristoffersen 1920–1922: Carl Bertheussen 1923–1925: Kristoffer O. Larsen 1926–1928: Ingvald Kristoffersen 1929–1931: Alfred Olufsen 1932–1942: Thorvald Nordheim 1942–1942: Carl Bersvendsen 1942–1945: Hagerup Paulsen 1945–1945: Alfon Engenes 1946–1963: Edvin O. Haugland

See also List of former municipalities of Norway

References

External links Weather information for Hillesøy