Beyond the shimmering waters lies Duvholmen. It is a small island in the Stockholm archipelago. Imagine living here. The island may be small but its history is big.
Duvholmen belongs to Lidingö Municipality. It sits southeast of Båtsmanshättan island. The passage from the Baltic Sea to Stockholm runs south of Duvholmen. The island stretches about 300 meters from northwest to southeast. Its width reaches up to 150 meters.
Once upon a time in 1661 Duvholmen was called Dufweholmen on a map. Duvholmen originally belonged to Elfvik farm’s land. Jan Olof Ålander owned Elfvik farm back then. In 1884 he sold the island to gardener Josef Berggren.
In 1890 Josef built a large wooden villa on the southern tip. It was typical for wealthy merchants in the Stockholm archipelago. This “grosshandlarvilla” is now called Schweizervillan. These villas became common around 1900. Wealthy people built them as summer residences. The veranda became a central social spot. It was even called “groggveranda.”
Paul Toll from Kreuger & Toll Byggnads AB bought Duvholmen in 1919. His summer house was across the sound on the Lidingö side. He sold it in 1921 to Kasper Höglund AB. This was a subsidiary of Kreuger & Toll Byggnads AB.
Around 1928 the concrete pier below Schweizervillan was built. A concrete tennis court was also built then. Gustav Fredrik Hazén from Kasper Höglund AB started using Schweizervillan as a summer home. Kasper Höglund AB owned Duvholmen until 1946.
Today Duvholmen is divided into about ten private plots. Some are summer residences and some are permanent homes. The largest business on the island is Duvholmens Båtbygg & Varvsservice AB. This is a boat building and repair service. Duvholmen has municipal water and sewage. Duvholmen has many permanent residents. The living environment is similar to Storholmen. Storholmen is in Stora Värtan northeast of Lidingö.
Interestingly northeast of the island lies a shipwreck. It is a wooden freighter about 30 to 35 meters long. Remains of at least four other sunken ships surround it. These wrecks are underwater witnesses. They whisper tales of past voyages and maritime adventures around Duvholmen.
Duvholmen is geographically Sweden’s smallest sea island. It lacks a land connection but has at least 15 permanent residents. The total area is about 3 hectares according to SCB. The distance to Lidingö is about 0.2 nautical miles.
Now, as you stand here you are on an island with a rich history. Duvholmen has transformed from farmland to a summer paradise. It now is a mix of residences and maritime industry. This small island shows a fascinating slice of Stockholm’s archipelago life.