Gamle Stavanger ('Old Stavanger') is an area of the city of Stavanger.
In the years after World War II, a new city plan was created for Stavanger. It included razing most of the old wooden buildings in the city centre, and replacing it with new modern structures in concrete.
One single voice spoke up against this plan, and today it is recognized that Gamle Stavanger owes its existence to Einar Hedén, then City Architect of Stavanger. In 1965 the city council voted to conserve part of the old city centre.
The area selected for conservation was the one considered the least desirable, consisting of about a hundred small rundown wooden buildings located on the western side of Vågen. Over the years the area has changed from seedy to trendy, and today is considered a choice location for the urban-minded with a sense of history.
On two occasions Gamle Stavanger has grown, so that it now covers more than 250 buildings.
In 1975, Gamle Stavanger, together with Nusfjord and Røros, was shown as an example of how conservation of old buildings may well coincide with use, and how rehabilitation can be done without loss of character.
