History of Trondhjem Norwegian Lutheran Church
Sunday School Class, about 1912
Old Trondhjem Church is located near Lonsdale, Minnesota
in Rice County. The church was built in 1899 by the Norwegian
immigrant farmers who settled in what was then called Trondhjem,
Minnesota and is listed on the National
Register of Historic Places.
No longer
occupied by an active church congregation, the church is
now under the care and restoration of the Trondhjem
Community Preservation Society, Inc.
As a wood frame country church, with a simple, elegant design and painted white, it stands on a high hill along a gravel road, visible to the rural community for miles around. Its architecture and décor are clearly rooted in the Norwegian heritage of its founders. The ancient stave churches of Norway are reflected in its modified cruciform design, with a central short tower at its apex and a larger corner tower.
The first church on the same location was erected in 1878, and the chancel in this building dates to that original church. It has no basement and rests on a fieldstone foundation. The original bell still hangs in the bell tower. The circular attic window at the front of the building was originally painted with an eye, a traditional symbol of creation, and locally referred to as the “all seeing eye.”
Constitution
On May 15, 1876, a congregation meeting took place at
which a name was chosen and a constitution adopted. The
name selected was “Throndhjem’s Norwegian Lutheran
Church.”
The following names signed the
constitution:
|
Peder O. Berg |
N. Solberg |
Ingegrigt Skauge |
E. Skauge |
Trondhjem Cemetery
Listed on the National Register of Historic Places and
located across the road from the Old Trondhjem Church,
the cemetery was established before the church building.
On September 2, 1876, the church minutes state that the
congregation came to an agreement to locate the graveyard
on Johannes Fossum’s land, on the boundary between Weathland
sic. and Webster townships where they expected a road would
be located at some future date. The road was indeed located
there, and it now passes between the church and the cemetery.
Trondhjem Cemetery Listings
Here you will find listed all
burials in the Trondhjem Cemetary since its beginning in 1876, compiled by
John Dalby.