The name Koppang comes from the Old Norse word kaupang, meaning marketplace. People have traded here since the Middle Ages, and the Old King's Road from Oslo to Trondheim passed through town. Pilgrims heading for Nidaros Cathedral walked this same route. Repeated flooding from Glomma pushed settlers higher up the valley sides over the centuries, but the marketplace stayed.
The Røros railway line reached Koppang in 1875, and from 1877 to 1885 every train on the line had its overnight stop here, turning the village into a busy little hub. Today Koppang is the administrative centre of Stor-Elvdal, a municipality whose coat of arms features two crossed two-man saws: forestry built this place, and a large modern sawmill still employs much of the town. Stor-Elvdal also has one of the highest moose densities in Norway, which explains both the silver moose statue up the road and why the autumn hunting season is practically a local holiday.
The Røros railway line reached Koppang in 1875, and from 1877 to 1885 every train on the line had its overnight stop here, turning the village into a busy little hub. Today Koppang is the administrative centre of Stor-Elvdal, a municipality whose coat of arms features two crossed two-man saws: forestry built this place, and a large modern sawmill still employs much of the town. Stor-Elvdal also has one of the highest moose densities in Norway, which explains both the silver moose statue up the road and why the autumn hunting season is practically a local holiday.