Grumant

Grumant (Russian: Грумант ), also Grumantbyen, is an abandoned mining camp on Spitsbergen. It lies on the southern coast of Longyearbyen about twelve kilometers west of Longyearbyen at the foot of Fuglefjella at the mouth of the narrow Grumantdalen.

After a Russian expedition had found coal deposits in 1912 under the leadership of Vladimir Alexandrovich Rusanov here, the company Grumant Agafeloff AG & Co. was founded in 1913, the 1919 mining settlement Grumant docked. It was followed by the 1920 Anglo - Russian Grumant Co., Ltd.. and 1923, the Russky Grumant Ltd.. As before Grumant on freighter was no direct loading of coal because of insufficient water depth possible coal production in 1926 was suspended. During this time, a narrow gauge railway tunnel through the cliffs Loren for newly built, built further west Russian port of loading Colesbukta. In 1932, the Soviet coal mining company Trust Arktikugol the pit operation and put it away until 1962, when it was discontinued due to lack of profitability. Grumant was abandoned in 1965.

At its peak in the years 1951/52, the population of the village was given as 1106 inhabitants ( including Colesbukta ) so it was the most populous settlement on Spitsbergen at that time.

Most of the houses were demolished to the extent that their floor plans are hard to imagine today the spot yet. The remaining buildings have fallen into disrepair. The wooden roofs of the above-ground portions of the moor train are still present, but the tunnel is no longer to pass. Above the village there was a cemetery.

The name Grumant was inspired by the old Russian word for Greenland since the Pomors who came from the north coast of Russia to Spitsbergen and spent regularly extended period of time on hunting trips in the Arctic, first probably felt they were in Greenland.