Chapel in the Hills

Last updated

Chapel in the Hills
ChapelInTheHills3.JPG
Religion
Affiliation Evangelical Lutheran Church in America
Year consecrated 1969
Location
Location Rapid City, South Dakota, United States
Geographic coordinates 44°02′54″N103°17′55″W / 44.048398°N 103.298714°W / 44.048398; -103.298714
Architecture
Architect(s) Spitznagel and Partners
Style Stave church
General contractor Dilly Construction Company
Groundbreaking1968
Completed1969
Chapel in the Hills
Location3788 Chapel Ln.
Rapid City, South Dakota
NRHP reference No. 12000487 [1]
Added to NRHPAugust 7, 2012
Website
Chapel in the Hills

Chapel in the Hills is a stave church located near Rapid City, South Dakota, United States.

Contents

History

Visitor center Gift Shop, Chapel in the Hills.jpg
Visitor center

The Chapel in the Hills was dedicated on July 6, 1969, as the home for the radio ministry of Lutheran Vespers. Lutheran Vespers hosts such as, Richard A. Jensen were broadcast nationwide from this location in the Black Hills. The church is a special ministry of the South Dakota Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. [2]

The Chapel in the Hills is an exact replica of the Borgund stave church in Norway. The Borgund stavkirke was built around the year 1150 and is considered the most completely preserved stave church still standing in Norway.

Inside the log cabin museum Interior of log cabin museum at Chapel in the Hills in Rapid City, South Dakota.jpg
Inside the log cabin museum

The Norwegian Department of Antiquities provided a set of blueprints of the Borgund church to be used in the construction of the Chapel in the Hills. The woodcarvings resulted from the combined effort by Norwegian woodcarver Erik Fridstrøm and Rapid City resident, Helge Christiansen. [3]

The site includes an authentic log cabin museum that was built in 1876 by Edward Nielsen, a Norwegian immigrant gold prospector from Hole, Ringerike, Norway. There is also a stabbur, a grass-roofed house, that serves as the visitor center and gift shop.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Canton, South Dakota</span> City in South Dakota, United States

Canton is a city in and the county seat of Lincoln County, South Dakota, United States. Canton is located 20 minutes south of Sioux Falls in southeastern South Dakota. Canton is nestled in the rolling hills of the Sioux Valley, providing an abundance of recreational activities with the Big Sioux River bordering the eastern side, Newton Hills State Park to the south, and Lake Alvin to the north. The city was named by Norwegian settler and former legislator James M. Wahl. The population was 3,066 as of the 2020 census.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Association of Free Lutheran Congregations</span> American religious body

The Association of Free Lutheran Congregations (AFLC) is the sixth largest Lutheran church body in the United States. The AFLC includes congregations from the former Lutheran Free Church in 27 different U.S. states and four Canadian provinces. The AFLC is not an incorporated synod, but a free association. Each local congregation is a separate corporation. Minnesota is the geographic center of the organization, with over 80 congregations and over 12,000 members. There are also numerous congregations in the neighboring states of North Dakota, South Dakota, and Wisconsin. The AFLC headquarters are in Plymouth, Minnesota, where the Association Free Lutheran Bible School and Seminary are also located.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Stave church</span> Wooden Christian church building

A stave church is a medieval wooden Christian church building once common in north-western Europe. The name derives from the building's structure of post and lintel construction, a type of timber framing where the load-bearing ore-pine posts are called stafr in Old Norse. Two related church building types also named for their structural elements, the post church and palisade church, are often called 'stave churches'.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Norwegian Americans</span> Americans of Norwegian birth or descent

Norwegian Americans are Americans with ancestral roots in Norway. Norwegian immigrants went to the United States primarily in the latter half of the 19th century and the first few decades of the 20th century. There are more than 4.5 million Norwegian Americans, according to the 2021 U.S. census; most live in the Upper Midwest and on the West Coast of the United States.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Borgund, Sogn og Fjordane</span> Former municipality in Sogn og Fjordane, Norway

Borgund is a former municipality in Sogn og Fjordane county, Norway. It was located in the southeastern part of the traditional district of Sogn. The 635-square-kilometre (245 sq mi) municipality existed from 1864 until its dissolution in 1964. It encompassed an area in the eastern part of the present-day Lærdal Municipality. The administrative center of Borgund was the village of Steinklepp, just northeast of the village of Borgund. Steinklepp was the site of a store, a bank, and a school. The historical Filefjell Kongevegen road passes through the Borgund area.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Heddal Stave Church</span> Church in Telemark, Norway

Heddal Stave Church is a parish church of the Church of Norway in Notodden Municipality in Vestfold og Telemark county, Norway. It is located in the village of Heddal. It is the church for the Heddal parish which is part of the Øvre Telemark prosti (deanery) in the Diocese of Agder og Telemark. The wooden, triple nave stave church was built in a long church design around the year 1200 using plans drawn up by an unknown architect. The church seats about 180 people.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Borgund Stave Church</span> Church in Vestland, Norway

Borgund Stave Church is a former parish church initially of the Catholic Church and later the Church of Norway in Lærdal Municipality in Vestland county, Norway. It was built around the year 1200 as the village church of Borgund, and belonged to Lærdal parish until 1868, when its religious functions were transferred to a "new" Borgund Church, which was built nearby. The old church was restored, conserved and turned into a museum. It is funded and run by the Society for the Preservation of Ancient Norwegian Monuments, and is classified as a triple-nave stave church of the Sogn-type. Its grounds contain Norway's sole surviving stave-built free-standing bell tower.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lom Stave Church</span> Church in Innlandet, Norway

Lom Stave Church is a parish church of the Church of Norway in Lom municipality in Innlandet county, Norway. It is located in the village of Fossbergom in the traditional district of Gudbrandsdal. It is the church for the Lom parish which is part of the Nord-Gudbrandsdal prosti (deanery) in the Diocese of Hamar. The brown, wooden stave church was built around the year 1170 using plans drawn up by an unknown architect. The church seats about 350 people.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hopperstad Stave Church</span> Church in Vestland, Norway

Hopperstad Stave Church is a historic parish church of the Church of Norway in the village of Vikøyri in Vik Municipality in Vestland county. It was historically the church for the Hopperstad parish in the Diocese of Bjørgvin. The church is currently owned by the Society for the Preservation of Ancient Norwegian Monuments. The brown, wooden stave church was built during the 12th century. The church seats about 30 people.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gol Stave Church</span> Church in Oslo, Norway

Gol Stave Church is a 12th century stave church originally from Gol in the traditional region of Hallingdal in Buskerud county, Norway. The reconstructed church is now a museum and is now located in the Norwegian Museum of Cultural History at Bygdøy in Oslo, Norway.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gustav Adolf Stave Church</span> Church in Goslar, Germany

The Lutheran Gustav Adolf Stave Church is a stave church situated in Hahnenklee, a borough of Goslar in the Harz mountains, Germany. Construction of the church began in 1907 and it was consecrated on 28 June 1908.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hans Strøm</span> Norwegian clergyman (1726–1797)

Hans Strøm was a Norwegian clergyman. He also became a prominent zoologist and naturalist. He is best associated with his topographical description of the traditional district of Sunnmøre.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Borgund, Lærdal</span> Village in Western Norway, Norway

Borgund is a small village in Lærdal Municipality in Sogn og Fjordane county, Norway. It lies along the European route E16 highway, about 20 kilometres (12 mi) southeast of the village of Lærdalsøyri. It is the site of the Borgund Church and the historic Borgund Stave Church. Historically, the village was part of the old Borgund Municipality which existed from 1864 until its dissolution in 1964.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Borgund Church</span> Church in Møre og Romsdal, Norway

Borgund Church is a parish church of the Church of Norway in Ålesund Municipality in Møre og Romsdal county, Norway. It is located in the village of Borgund, just east of the city of Ålesund. It is the church for the Borgund parish which is part of the Nordre Sunnmøre prosti (deanery) in the Diocese of Møre. The historic, white, stone church was built in a cruciform design around the year 1300 using plans drawn up by an unknown architect. The church reflects both Romanesque and Gothic architectural styles. The church seats about 750 people.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Churches in Norway</span>

Church building in Norway began when Christianity was established there around the year 1000. The first buildings may have been post churches erected in the 10th or 11th century, but the evidence is inconclusive. For instance under Urnes Stave Church and Lom Stave Church there are traces of older post churches. Post churches were later replaced by the more durable stave churches. About 1,300 churches were built during the 12th and 13th centuries in what was Norway's first building boom. A total of about 3,000 churches have been built in Norway, although nearly half of them have perished. From 1620 systematic records and accounts were kept although sources prior to 1620 are fragmented. Evidence about early and medieval churches is partly archaeological. The "long church" is the most common type of church in Norway. There are about 1620 buildings recognized as churches affiliated with the Church of Norway. In addition, there are a number of gospel halls belonging to the lay movement affiliated with the Church of Norway as well as churches belonging to other Christian bodies. Until the 20th century, most churches were built from wood. 220 buildings are protected by law, and an additional 765 are listed as valuable cultural heritage.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Haukedalen Church</span> Church in Vestland, Norway

Haukedalen Church is a parish church of the Church of Norway in Sunnfjord Municipality in Vestland county, Norway. It is located in the village of Haukedalen. It one of the two churches for the Holsen og Haukedalen parish which is part of the Sunnfjord prosti (deanery) in the Diocese of Bjørgvin. The white, wooden church was built in a long church style in 1885 using designs by the architect Hartvig Sverdrup Eckhoff. The church seats about 120 people.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Borgund Church (Lærdal)</span> Church in Vestland, Norway

Borgund Church is a parish church of the Church of Norway in Lærdal Municipality in Vestland county, Norway. It is located in the village of Borgund. It is the church for the Borgund parish which is part of the Sogn prosti (deanery) in the Diocese of Bjørgvin. The red, wooden church was built in a long church design and in the dragestil style in 1868 using plans drawn up by the architect Christian Christie. The church seats about 175 people.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tønjum Church</span> Church in Vestland, Norway

Tønjum Church is a parish church of the Church of Norway in Lærdal Municipality in Vestland county, Norway. It is located in the village of Tønjum. It is the church for the Tønjum parish which is part of the Sogn prosti (deanery) in the Diocese of Bjørgvin. The red, wooden church was built in a cruciform design in 1832 using plans drawn up by an unknown architect. The church seats about 175 people.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Washington Island Stavkirke</span> Stave church in Wisconsin

Washington Island Stavkirke is a stave church located in Washington Island, Wisconsin. It is owned and operated by Trinity Evangelical Lutheran Church and is positioned a few hundred yards away from it.

References

  1. "Weekly list of actions taken on properties: 8/06/12 through 8/10/12". National Park Service. August 17, 2012. Retrieved August 27, 2012.
  2. About the Chapel in the Hills Archived February 27, 2009, at the Wayback Machine
  3. "History of the Chapel in the Hills". Chapel in the Hills. Retrieved February 27, 2018.

Other sources