Vågstranda Church ( no, Vågstranda kyrkje) is a

parish church A parish church (or parochial church) in Christianity is the church which acts as the religious centre of a parish. In many parts of the world, especially in rural areas, the parish church may play a significant role in community activities, ...

of the Church of Norway in

Vestnes Municipality Vestnes is a municipality in Møre og Romsdal county, Norway. Vestnes is part of the traditional district of Romsdal. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Vestnes. Other villages in the municipality include Vikeb ...

in Møre og Romsdal county,

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and the ...

. It is located in the village of

Vågstranda Vågstranda is a village along Romsdal Fjord in Rauma Municipality in Møre og Romsdal county, Norway. It is located along the European route E136 highway, about north of the village of Voll and east of the village of Vikebukt (in Vestnes Mun ...

on the coast of

Romsdal Fjord Romsdalsfjord or Romsdal Fjord ( no, Romsdalsfjorden) is the ninth-longest fjord in Norway. It is long and located in the Romsdal district of Møre og Romsdal county. It flows through the municipalities of Molde, Ålesund, Vestnes, and Rauma. ...

. It is the church for the Vågstranda

parish A parish is a territorial entity in many Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest, often termed a parish priest, who might be assisted by one o ...

which is part of the Indre Romsdal prosti ( deanery) in the

Diocese of Møre The Diocese of Møre ( no, Møre bispedømme) is a diocese in the Church of Norway which geographically consists of Møre og Romsdal county, Norway. Its bishop is seated at the Molde Cathedral which is located in the county administrative center ...

. The white, wooden church was built in a long church style in 1869 using plans drawn up by the

architect An architect is a person who plans, designs and oversees the construction of buildings. To practice architecture means to provide services in connection with the design of buildings and the space within the site surrounding the buildings that h ...

Jacob Wilhelm Nordan Jacob Wilhelm Nordan (23 February 1824 – 11 April 1892) was a Danish-born, Norwegian architect. During his career, he was one of the most prolific church architects in Norway. Biography Nordan was born in Copenhagen, Denmark and came to Norw ...

and the builder G. Olsen. The church seats about 200 people.

History

The church was originally established in 1870 to give the people of the Vågstranda area a church that they could attend that was closer than the Old Veøy Church which sat on an island in the

. At that time, there were about 450 people living in the Vågstranda area who would be able to use the church. To raise money for the new church, 39 families joined together to pool their money to fund the costs of the church. All farm owners in the parish volunteered together to construct the walls surrounding the cemetery. The building was built by the carpenter G. Olsen from

Trondheim Trondheim ( , , ; sma, Tråante), historically Kaupangen, Nidaros and Trondhjem (), is a city and municipality in Trøndelag county, Norway. As of 2020, it had a population of 205,332, was the third most populous municipality in Norway, and ...

who used architectural plans drawn up by

. The church was a sort of manufactured building that was actually constructed in Trondheim, then disassembled, shipped to Vågstranda, and then rebuilt on site. In 1881, a large

winter storm A winter storm is an event in which wind coincides with varieties of precipitation that only occur at freezing temperatures, such as snow, mixed snow and rain, or freezing rain. In temperate continental climates, these storms are not necessa ...

hit the church and it actually moved the church about off its foundation. That following spring, the church was repaired. The building received electricity in 1951, and in 1958 the church got new wood stoves for heat. The church was restored in 1971 for the centennial anniversary of the church. During this renovation, a sacristy was built, the exterior walls were insulated and clad with new siding, and new lighting was installed. On 1 January 2021, the

area was administratively transferred from

Rauma Municipality Rauma is a municipality in Møre og Romsdal county, Norway. It is part of the traditional district of Romsdal. The administrative centre is the town of Åndalsnes. Other settlements in Rauma include the villages of Måndalen, Innfjorden, Veblu ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Vaagstranda Church Vestnes Churches in Møre og Romsdal Long churches in Norway Wooden churches in Norway 19th-century Church of Norway church buildings Churches completed in 1870 1870 establishments in Norway

History

See also

References