St. Olaf Kirke, commonly referred to as The Rock Church, is a small

Lutheran Lutheranism is a major branch of Protestantism that emerged under the work of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German friar and Protestant Reformers, reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practices of the Catholic Church launched ...

church located outside of

Cranfills Gap, Texas Cranfills Gap is a city located in Bosque County in central Texas, United States. It was founded by Norwegian Emigrants and to this day most residents can trace their lineage to those Norwegian Founders. The Bosque county area surrounding Cra ...

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

, in an unincorporated rural community known as Norse in

Bosque County, Texas Bosque County ( ) is a county located in the greater Waco area. The county sits just northwest of Waco in the U.S. state of Texas. As of the 2020 census, the population was 18,235. Its county seat is Meridian, while Clifton is the largest ...

. The Church is affiliated with the

Evangelical Lutheran Church in America The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) is a mainline Protestant church headquartered in Chicago, Illinois. The ELCA was officially formed on January 1, 1988, by the merging of three Lutheran church bodies. As of December 31, 2023, it ...

Background

St. Olaf Kirke is situated on a rise overlooking Meridian Creek Valley, four miles east of Cranfills Gap. The church was constructed in 1884 on land purchased for $25. Designed and built in 1886 by Andrew Mickelson, St. Olaf Kirke served a community of Norwegian settlers who farmed on area lands. With the help of Mickelson's brothers, Christian and Ole, as well as many local farmers,

limestone Limestone is a type of carbonate rock, carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material Lime (material), lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different Polymorphism (materials science) ...

was quarried from the surrounding hills to build the church. Originally, the church's floor consisted of little more than dirt and the pews were constructed of planks laid upon wooden kegs. While the church originally functioned as an extension of the Our Savior's Lutheran Church congregation located just six miles east, the growth of the community resulted in St. Olaf Kirke becoming an independent congregation in 1902. Norwegian was the primary language used during church services, although some English services were held as well. The church continued to be used for regular Sunday church services until 1917 when St. Olaf Lutheran Church was built in Cranfills Gap.

Recent history

Today, St. Olaf Kirke serves as a historical landmark with special significance for the descendants of the Norwegian settlers of the area. Special events, such as weddings and funerals, continue to be held in the church. The church was designated a historical landmark by the

Texas Historical Commission The Texas Historical Commission is an agency dedicated to historic preservation within the U.S. state of Texas. It administers the National Register of Historic Places for sites in Texas. The commission also identifies Recorded Texas Histor ...

in 1974 and was entered into the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...

in 1983. Due to the community's strong ties to its original Norwegian heritage, this area was visited

King Olav V Olav V (, ; born Prince Alexander of Denmark; 2 July 1903 – 17 January 1991) was King of Norway from 1957 until his death in 1991. Olav was born at Sandringham House in England, the only child of Prince Carl of Denmark and Princess Maud of Wa ...

of Norway on October 10, 1982. The King came to commemorate the birth of

Cleng Peerson Cleng Peerson (17 May 1783 – 16 December 1865) was a Norwegian emigrant to the United States; his voyage in 1824 was the precursor for the boat load of 52 Norwegian emigrants in the following year. That boat load was a precursor for the main wav ...

who is buried in the Norse Cemetery. At that time the King also visited St. Olaf Kirke which is located nearby.

Gallery

Image:St.olaf.kirke.altar.jpg, Altar Image:St.olaf.kirke.font.jpg, Baptismal Font Image:St.olaf.kirke.marker.jpg, Historical Marker

References

Other sources

* Blegen, Theodore C. (1969)''Norwegian Migration to America'' (New York: Haskell House) * Flom, George T. (1909) ''A History of Norwegian Immigration to the United States: from the earliest beginning down to the year 1848'' ( Iowa City< Iowa) * Lovell, Odd S. (1984) ''The Promise of America: A History of the Norwegian-American People'' (Minneapolis: The University of Minnesota Press) *Nelson, E. Clifford; Fevold, Eugene L. (1960) ''The Lutheran Church among Norwegian-Americans: a history of the Evangelical Lutheran Church'' (Minneapolis: Augsburg Publishing House)

External links

St Olaf's Kirke website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Saint Olaf Kirke Lutheran churches in Texas Norwegian-American culture in Texas 19th-century Lutheran churches in the United States Churches in Bosque County, Texas Churches completed in 1886 Churches dedicated to Saint Olav