# Sigurd Simensen

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{{Short description|Norwegian newspaper editor and politician (1888–1969)}}
thumb|Sigurd Simensen's Portrait
'''Sigurd Simensen''' (19 February 1888 – 27 April 1969) was a [Norwegian](/source/Norway) newspaper editor and politician for the [Labour](/source/Norwegian_Labour_Party) and [Communist](/source/Communist_Party_of_Norway) parties.

He was born in [Vestfossen](/source/Vestfossen).<ref name=simensenmaster>{{cite book|last=Kristiansen|first=Gunnar E.|title=Sigurd Simensen. Kommunist og pressemann|url=http://www.ub.uit.no/munin/bitstream/10037/27/1/thesis.pdf|accessdate=29 December 2010|publisher=University of Tromsø|location=Tromsø|language=Norwegian}}</ref> He started his career as an iron and metalworker,<ref name=arbleks>{{cite encyclopedia|year=1936|volume=6|title=Simensen, Sigurd|encyclopedia=[Arbeidernes Leksikon](/source/Arbeidernes_Leksikon)|editor1=Friis, Jakob|editor-link=Jakob Friis|editor2=Hegna, Trond|editor2-link=Trond Hegna|editor3=Juel, Dagfin |editor3-link=Dagfin Juel |publisher=Arbeidermagasinets Forlag|location=Oslo|language=Norwegian|page=278}}</ref> working at [Thunes Mekaniske Verksted](/source/Thunes_Mekaniske_Verksted).<ref>{{cite book|last=Bjørnson|first=Øyvind|author-link=Øyvind Bjørnson|title=På klassekampens grunn 1900-1920|year=1990|series=Volume two of ''[Arbeiderbevegelsens historie i Norge](/source/Arbeiderbevegelsens_historie_i_Norge)''|publisher=Tiden|location=Oslo|language=Norwegian|isbn=82-10-02752-2|page=508}}</ref> He first joined the [Union of Iron and Metalworkers](/source/Norwegian_Union_of_Iron_and_Metalworkers) in 1907,<ref name=lorenzbio>{{cite book|last=Lorenz|first=Einhart|author-link=Einhart Lorenz|title=Det er ingen sak å få partiet lite. NKP 1923–1931|year=1983|publisher=Pax|location=Oslo|language=Norwegian|isbn=82-530-1255-1|page=295}}</ref> and was politically organized from 1908. He became a leading member of [Norges Socialdemokratiske Ungdomsforbund](/source/Norges_Socialdemokratiske_Ungdomsforbund), and was elected to their central board in 1916. He became subeditor of their newspaper ''[Klassekampen](/source/Klassekampen_(1909%E2%80%931940))'' in 1917. In 1918 he was elected to the Labour Party central board, and was hired as travelling secretary for Northern Norway. He also chaired the national association of ''worker's councils'' which sprang up in the same year, post-[Russian Revolution](/source/Russian_Revolution).<ref name=arbleks/>

He left the Labour Party's central board in 1919.<ref name=maurs>{{cite book|last=Maurseth|first=Per|author-link=Per Maurseth|title=Gjennom kriser til makt 1920-1935|year=1987|series=Volume three of ''[Arbeiderbevegelsens historie i Norge](/source/Arbeiderbevegelsens_historie_i_Norge)''|publisher=Tiden|location=Oslo|language=Norwegian|isbn=82-10-02753-0|page=612}}</ref> In 1920 he moved on to being subeditor in ''[Folkeviljen](/source/Folkeviljen)''. He then edited ''[Vestfinmarkens Social-Demokrat](/source/Vestfinmarkens_Social-Demokrat)'' from 1920 to 1922.<ref name=arbleks/> In 1921 he was the leader of a seamen's and dockworkers' strike in [Hammerfest](/source/Hammerfest), which saw intervention by the military. "Hammerfest was the only city where something resemblant to a revolutionary situation ensued", wrote historian [Per Maurseth](/source/Per_Maurseth). After the strikers had been subdued, Simensen was sentenced to 120 days of prison.<ref>Maurseth, 1987: pp. 210–211</ref>

Simensen was hired as editor-in-chief in ''Folkeviljen'' in 1922.<ref name=arbleks/> While he was in prison, [Naftali Nilsen](/source/Naftali_Nilsen) was acting editor.<ref name=simensenmaster/> He joined the new [Communist Party](/source/Communist_Party_of_Norway) in 1923,<ref name=arbleks/> and when the Communist Party failed to gain control over the [Harstad](/source/Harstad_Municipality) newspaper ''Folkeviljen'', and also failed to run the [Tromsø](/source/Troms%C3%B8) newspaper ''[Troms Fylkes Kommunistblad](/source/Troms_Fylkes_Kommunistblad)'',<ref>Lorenz, 1983: pp. 168–169</ref> they started their own newspaper ''[Dagens Nyheter](/source/Dagens_Nyheter_(Norwegian_newspaper))'' in Harstad in 1924. Simensen became editor-in-chief. He was also a member of the city council from 1926 to 1955 (except World War II), serving as deputy mayor of Harstad from 1929 to 1930 and mayor from 1946 to 1947. He unsuccessfully stood for parliamentary election in [1927](/source/1927_Norwegian_parliamentary_election) and [1933](/source/1933_Norwegian_parliamentary_election). During the Second World War's [German occupation of Norway](/source/German_occupation_of_Norway), Simensen was engaged with [forced labour](/source/forced_labour). He died in 1969.<ref name=lorenzbio/>

==References==
{{Reflist}}

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Simensen, Sigurd}}
Category:1888 births
Category:1969 deaths
Category:Labour Party (Norway) politicians
Category:Communist Party of Norway politicians
Category:Mayors of Harstad Municipality
Category:People from Harstad Municipality
Category:Norwegian prisoners and detainees
Category:Prisoners and detainees of Norway
Category:20th-century Norwegian newspaper editors

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Sigurd Simensen](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sigurd_Simensen) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sigurd_Simensen?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.