Meløy Church


Meløy Church is a parish church of the Church of Norway in Meløy Municipality in Nordland county, Norway. It is located in the village of Meløy on the island of Meløya. It is one of the churches for the Fore og Meløy parish which is part of the Bodø domprosti in the Diocese of Sør-Hålogaland. The white, wooden church was built in a long church style in 1867 by the architects Håkon Adelstein Mosling and Jacob Wilhelm Nordan The church seats about 600 people, making it the second-largest wooden church in all of Northern Norway.

History

The earliest existing historical record about the church on the island of Meløya dates back to 1589, but the church was likely quite old by then. The church probably was built during the 14th century, since there are records that mention a parish of Meløy in 1440. During the 1660s, a new church was constructed right next to the old church, and then the old church was demolished after the completion of the new church.
In January 1704, a lightning strike hit the church, burning it to the ground. A new church was completed in 1711. It was a log building in a cruciform design with a steeple over the center. The present building was constructed just south of the old church starting in 1864 and it was completed in 1867. The new building was consecrated on 23 July 1867 and the older church was torn down in 1868.