Odense Harbour to Odense Fjord was built between 1796 and 1806 to facilitate the growth of Odense as a port city, radically increasing its level of trade and population. Founded in 1796, Odense Teater is the first provincial theatre in Denmark and the country's second oldest. Odense Central Library was established in 1924 and removed to Odense station in 1995. The Odense Music Library contains Denmark's largest collection of phonograms. From the 1840s, the city enjoyed a period of rapid expansion beyond its traditional boundaries, becoming Denmark's second largest city. The city gates were demolished in 1851 and soon afterwards development
Odense boundaries were redefined in 1970. As a result, the population declined slightly in the 1970s and 1980s, falling to 136,646 in 1981. It began climbing again in the late 1980s, and steadily grew to 144,518 in 1996 and 145,554 in 2004. In 2010 Odense had a population of 166,305 people. As of 2017 it had a population of 176,683. Odense Municipality is the administrative unit which covers not only the city of Odense but surrounding suburbs and villages. Odense City Council consists of 29 members, including a mayor. The former mayor of Odense, Anker Boye, is a member of the