Kumla is a small industrial town in the province of Närke, south of Örebro on the E20 between Stockholm and Gothenburg. It sits in a flat agricultural landscape and is primarily known for two things: it was once the centre of Sweden's shoe industry, with dozens of factories operating through the 20th century, and it is home to Kumla Prison, one of Sweden's highest-security facilities.
Outside town, the Kvarntorp Art Park has an unusual legacy: decades of alum-shale quarrying left a slag heap more than 100 metres high that continues to burn slowly inside — a low-temperature combustion that has been going on for generations. The heap has been converted into a permanent open-air sculpture park, a strange and compelling combination of industrial ruin and public art. The Kumla Shoe Museum in town documents the area's footwear manufacturing heritage in satisfying depth.
Kumla is a short rail or bus ride from Örebro.