Many Sámi reindeer herders lived far away from the mining town. They nonetheless had to head for Røros from time to time to buy provisions, do errands at the lawyer’s or district sheriff’s, go to sermons at the church or do other ecclesiastical business. They also visited the mining town during the Martnan market. When the Sámi had errands in Røros, it wasn’t always possible for them to get there and back in one day, and they often therefore had to spend the night. Many of them stayed with people they knew in the mining town, and families often had regular places where they stayed.

Johannes Müller [1767-1828], who was forest inspector and storekeeper at Røros Copper Works, and merchant Christian A. Lorck [1753-1828] in Trondheim were among those who had custodial reindeer in the Sámi families’ reindeer herds in the early 1800s. In a letter to Lorck, Müller wrote that the Sámi were to be taken care of properly when they visited the mining town. Whether this extended to accommodation is not known, but it was important to Lorck that the Sámi reindeer herders were treated well when they were in Røros. 

It was also common for the Sámi to stay at the various wayside inns in the mining town. There were many such inns in the town that offered people a bed for the night and a place for their animals to rest. People often slept in simple bunk beds, and they made their own food. We can imagine how full and lively these inns were when many people came together from different places. The wayside inns had stables for horses, and the reindeer were tied up in the courtyard. In winter, the Sámi namely used harnessed reindeer and sleds as their means of transport.

When they first made their way to Røros, they often had to spend one or more nights in the town. The harnessed reindeer, having stood in the courtyard for days, may well have cavorted their way out of the gateway and through the street, before setting off home. There are descriptions of many people gathering to see the Sámi setting off on their reindeer-driven sleds, sometimes several of them at a time. 

Before and during World War II, there was a café, eatery and inn here at Rønningagården. This is also where the Sámi stayed on their trips to the mining town. At market time, so many people stayed here that as well as all the beds and plank beds being occupied, people slept on all the available floor space.