Thisted probably arose sometime in the Middle Ages as a small village and fishing village. But during the 1400th century, the town developed into a local trade center, which until the end of the 1700th century continued to have the size of a small market town with modest trade. However, it was not until the 1800s that the city began to prosper. The city's shipping was also helped by the fact that in 1825 the Limfjord broke through to the North Sea, so that the ships could sail out of the western end of the fjord. However, western sailing slowed again, but with the construction of Frederik VII's canal at Løgstør in 1861 and the railway connection to Struer in 1882, the conditions for the industry became even better.
The influence of the occupation on the area:
In the 1920s and 1930s, the area below the slopes in Dragsbæk, at the current Hotel Limfjorden, was a recreational area owned by Thisted Municipality. The area was named Simons Bakker and was a popular bathing and excursion spot for the local residents of Thisted. When the war came, the Germans occupied the area and used it as a seaplane base. East of Thisted they set up a dummy camp with the aim of tricking the Allied airmen into attacking the fake facility instead of the real Seefliegerhorst base.
After the war, this facility was converted into a refugee camp for the many Eastern Europeans who came to Denmark. The camp, which became known as Dragsbæklejren, almost developed into a city within the city – a small community in itself. Today, the place houses the Emergency Management Agency in North Jutland as Thisted Kaserne, but it is also a symbol of the vicissitudes of life, with a memorial from that time and the memory of the country the refugees came from. A painted wooden cross and a large mosaic relief, both erected by refugees from Lithuania in 1947, stand at the Emergency Management Agency barracks.
Hotel Limfjorden will be created
According to a local resident of Thy, the Germans built part of the hotel in 1940. During the 5 years when Thisted was occupied, several buildings were built, of which only a former officer's building remains today. This hall is today our function room Guldsalen, in which at the time there was a large chandelier "decorated" with Nazi symbols. However, the chandelier is now in a museum.
Some time after the liberation, when the camp had been abandoned, the municipality took over the buildings in 1948 and furnished a hotel, the Strandhotellet. The beach hotel was then a rather posh place where no one was allowed in without a tie. It was the place for dancing and music every Saturday night. When the hotel officially became Hotel Limfjorden is unknown, but it is known that Strandhotellet was leased until the mid-80s.
Hotel Limfjorden became part of Danske Hoteller in 2006. In 2023, a major development took place at the hotel, where the old hotel was given new ambitious life in the kitchen, with a modern touch on the menu and local ingredients in focus. Especially with inspiration in the surroundings and the beautiful and harsh nature in the area.
