Caspar Herman Hausmann

Caspar Herman Hausmann was a Danish-Norwegian General, lumber merchant and squire. He was born 10 January 1653 at Segeberg in the Danish duchy of Holsten (now Holstein), which was then in union with Denmark-Norway.

Hausmann was married to Karen Toller; Hausmann’s father-in-law, Niels Toller, owned substantial property in Norway including a number of sawmills, and his mother-in-law was the daughter of the assessor and broker Anders Madsen in Tønsberg. Thus, as a result of marriage, Hausmann gained control of substantial property. Via his wife, he inherited the Old Bishop's Palace (or Oslo Ladegaard) in the Old Town of Oslo. Here he lived until his death. As the holder of Oslo Ladegaard he also had control over most of the land in the Old Town. Another acquisition through the marriage was of the Frogner Manor, which after his death went to his daughter Karen, who married to Frederik Christopher de Cicignon. Hausmann also established the iron works Eidsfos Verk in 1697.

During the expansionary period for Norwegian shipping from 1690 through 1710 Haussmann established himself among the leading ship owners in Christiania. In 1704 and 1705, he was the city's largest shipowner and the fourth largest lumber exporter. He owned the large Bingen log booms on the Glomma River in Sørum and controlled much of the timber supply to Christiania. He exported his own lumber on his own ships and imported salt, wine and liquor. He died 9 September 1718 in Christiania (now Oslo) and lies in a crypt in Oslo Cathedral.