Harö 59°20,3' N-18°54,3' E

Harö is one of the most interesting islands and villages in the entire Stockholm archipelago, from a cultural perspective.

Harö village is a good example of how villages in the archipelago gradually had to move to new locations because of the land rise. The village had a traditional economy until recently and has conserved much of the older archipelago culture in the way the village was organised. Harö was also the archipelago community that underwent the most significant changes as a result of the land reform. This change can be seen in the way the village is organised. That fishing was more important than the marginal farming can be seen the buildings. 

Harö village is the archipelago village where an older way of life stayed. The village also has one of the finest and most protected harbours in the archipelago. Today, land rise has made it difficult to use the old harbour bay by boat, but in earlier days you could easily get to both Kanholmsfjärden and Rödkobbsfjarden from the anchorage. The village is located on low land between higher boulders and the anchorage is protected by several small islet. It was easy to sail by Harö without seeing the village. This was a choice location for the villagers, protection against pirates and easy access to rich fishing waters.

So, the present location of the village on the northern part of Harö is not the original location. The oldest known map from 1640 shows three farms on the present location, but can see that the majority of the fields and meadows are located about one km south on the island. A map from a survey in 1713 indicates that the village once was located near the fields. A channel, Hamnviken, still exists

Harö did not get public steamer connection until 1920 and this one of the reasons that the old archipelago culture remained so long on Harö, longer than anywhere else in Stockholm archipelago. in the 1930ies, villagers still hunted seal and caught fish in the traditional ways.

Facilities
Company	Contact	Address	Information
Lodgings
Cottages
Eating
Harö Krog/Nordens Ljus		Tel 571 570 50	A floating restaurant in the bay between Storö and Harö, situated between Möja and Sandhamn. Exhibition of Björn Lindroth´s paintings and traditional archipelago menu.
Other
Anchorage	59°20,3 N 18°54,3 E	Östersundet
Boattaxi Harö Båttaxi		tel 08-571 570 67
Provisions Harö Livs	Agneta  Sjöberg	Södermöja  130 43 Möja  Tel 08-571 571 60