Tikøb

History

Tikøb was probably founded during the late Viking period. The name is first documented as Tiwithcop in Esrom Abbey's Book of Letters (Esrum Klosters Brevbog) in 1170. It is believed that that name means "acquired land in/by the forest dedicated to the Gods". The sparsely populated was the largest parish on Zealand and one of the largest in Denmark. The village was originally located on three sides of a small lake. For centuries the village consisted of six farms, one of which was the rectory, a few other houses, an inn, and a forge. The first school in Tikøb, a so-called rytterskole, was built in 1722. When the new civil parishes (sognekommuner) were established in 1942, Tikøb became the administrative centre of Tikøb–Hornbæk–Hellebæk (later referred to as Tikøb Kommune or Tikøb Municipality). The parish had a large population of poor people who were attracted by the opportunity to work in the local forest industry. In 1861, a large social institution named Tikøb Workhouse (Tikøb Forsørgelses- og Arbejdsanstalt) was built on the outskirts of town, replacing the old poorhouses. It was one of the first institutions of its kind in Denmark located outside a market town. The newly established local fire department was also based at the same site. A few years later in 1867 a municipal office (kommunekontor) with daily opening hours, another new feature at the site, opened in the same building complex. From 1877, the institution also had a section for psychiatric patients. A post office also opened in the 1860s. A windmill was built in 1873, a co-operative dairy opened in 1893, and Tikøb Brugsforening was founded in 1920. The town was also home to a post office and several other stores. In the first half of the 20th century, it was increasingly small…