Stangvik Church


Stangvik Church is a parish church of the Church of Norway in Surnadal Municipality in Møre og Romsdal county, Norway. It is located in the village of Stangvik on the shores of the Stangvikfjorden. It is the church for the Stangvik parish which is part of the Indre Nordmøre prosti in the Diocese of Møre. The white, wooden church was built in a long church style in 1896 by the architect Karl Norum and the builder Lars Mogstad. The church seats about 600 people, making it the largest church in Nordmøre.

History

The earliest existing historical records of the church date back to 1407. That church was a cruciform stave church that was built in 1407. It was the first of three known churches on this site. The church was richly decorated and was probably consecrated to either St. Olaf or the Virgin Mary. That church was struck by lightning and burned down in 1783. It was replaced by a smaller church that existed from 1784-1896 when it was torn down and replaced with the present church building.