A thousand years ago the Kokemäenjoki river valley was a main artery through which cultural influences from Europe entered Satakunta and other parts of western Finland. The historical province of Satakunta came into being in early medieval times. The centre of the province was in Kokemäki. There was an important trading post, Teljä, and the chapel of St Henry, where according to Catholic tradition the patron saint of Finland had preached before his martyrdom in 1155. The silting up of the river and the rise of the surrounding land eventually forced traders to move closer to the sea. The forerunner of Pori, Ulvila, received its charter in 1365.

The son of the King Gustavus Vasa of Sweden, John, was the Duke of Finland. He established the city of Pori in 1558 at the mouth of the Kokemäenjoki river. The ancient foreign-trade posts of the river then moved from Ulvila to Pori. The northernmost city in Finland was an important trade centre though which whitefish, salmon and other products of the Gulf of Bothnia were exported to continental Europe. Exotic delicacies such as spices, fine wines and fabrics were imported to Pori. From here they were sent on to other parts of Satakunta and northern Finland.

After a successful start, Pori’s fortunes took a turn for the worse in the 17th century. The entire Swedish kingdom was wracked by years of war and famine. The state’s restrictive economic practices denied foreign trade almost entirely to many cities, Pori among them.

Pori’s foreign-trade rights were restored in 1765. Once again the ships of the townspeople sailed to the ports of the Baltic Sea. A new seaport was founded at Reposaari as the old river harbour had become silted up.

Pori was a big town by Finnish standards. In 1766 it had a population of 1,500.

In 1809 Finland became part of the Russian Empire. There was no great change in the life of people in Pori. The old trading links, family ties and cultural connections with Stockholm were kept. In the 1840s its growing merchant fleet made Pori Finland’s foremost shipping town. Sawn timber was exported as far as the Mediterranean. Then began a series of accidents: the town had suffered numerous fires, but the great fire of 1852 brought disaster upon the town. In a single day, almost the entire city was reduced to ashes.

Pori’s growth as in industrial city accelerated in the 1870s. A match factory was founded in 1851 and an engineering works followed seven years later. The real industrial backbone of Pori was its sawmills, of which several were started in the closing decades of the 19th century.

The products of the sawmill industry were mostly exported, keeping the ports busy with shipping. A cotton mill founded at the turn of the century sought success for its products on the domestic market. The railway between Pori and Tampere was completed in 1895. A number of industrialist dynasties were influential in the city, among them the Ahlströms and the Rosenlews. The wealthy were balanced by a large and assertive industrial working class. The city’s population had now reached 12,279.

After the great fire, the city became more spacious in aspect; broad avenues crisscrossed the city centre, and blocks of fine masonry buildings were built along the riverbank.

Around the turn of the century, Pori was also a busy cultural centre. The national Finnish-language theatre gave its first public performance in Pori, in the upper hall of the Otava hotel in 1872. Several newspapers were published in the city, a library and a museum were started, there were Finnish and Swedish grammar schools, vocational schools and a workers’ institute.

Industry, culture and civilisation

Since Finland gained her independence in 1917, Pori has been an important, fast-growing city of heavy industry and ports. Rosenlew, Outokumpu, Rauma-Repola, Kemira and other industrial plants needed plenty of fresh labour and the city grew rapidly.

The new age brought new winds of culture. Within a few years, the Pori Jazz Festival grew to become a flourishing international festival, and Finnish rock often has its roots in Pori. In sport, the city won a name for itself as the home of prizewinning strongmen and its national champion ballgame teams.

In the new millennium, Pori is a city of students. In Pori’s centres of education one can study technology, business and the humanities. With its six thousand students, Satakunta Polytechnic has been chosen as the national centre of excellence in its field.

The industrial upheaval in Pori that started in the 1970s has been drastic, and the process of regeneration is still to some extent incomplete. The people of Pori have taken the hard years stoically. The city’s economic base is now more diverse than before.

The Pori National Municipal Park embraces the main features of Pori: the fast-flowing Kokemäenjoki river delta, industrial and cultural history, and the living present. Good environmental management has made Pori, Yyteri and the marine area a superb place for recreational pursuits. The delta is still a paradise for bird-watching enthusiasts in Finland.

As it prepares for its 450th anniversary, Pori is a city that is proud of its long history.

Pori has a population of 76,000. The population of the surrounding Satakunta rural district is 241,000.