The (Replica) Hopperstad stave church in Moorhead, Minnesota

Last updated on March 28th, 2026

At the edge of the prairie where Minnesota and North Dakota meet, Moorhead’s Hopperstad stave church (a replica of the medieval Hopperstad stavkirke in Vik, Norway) transports visitors to the Viking era when Christianity first came to Scandinavia. Built on the grounds of a museum, the building is regularly open to the public.

The exterior of the replica church from one side.

The Hopperstad replica stave church looks like something right out of Norse mythology.

Stave churches were common in medieval Scandinavia. They were built at a time when Christianity was beginning to replace traditional Nordic beliefs, and these elaborate structures mixed Nordic spiritual elements with Christian ones.

Over time, more than a thousand stave churches were built across Norway. Today only 28 remain, including the original Hopperstad church.

Although constructed using modern tools and building techniques, the Moorhead stave church is built to look almost exactly like the Norwegian original.

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A Viking church in Moorhead

Moorhead, Minnesota, is home to many families with Norwegian ancestry, so it seems fitting the city also has a full-scale replica of a Viking-era Norwegian church.

Side of the replica Hopperstad stave church in Moorhead with evening lighting.

The replica Hopperstad church is a modern construction using an ancient architectural form.

Like the original Hopperstad church, Moorhead’s replica has 18 staves (posts) and stands 72 feet high.

All carvings inside and out were created by hand. However (unlike the original), the replica was constructed using modern tools and building techniques.

Building a homage to Norwegian ancestry

The replica Hopperstad church was built by Guy Paulson, an amateur woodcarver in need of a retirement project. (Men seem to need big projects with ties to their ancestors in this part of the country. Maybe it’s the long winters.)

Read more about how this church came to be

The rise of stave churches in Norwary

The original Hopperstad stave church was constructed during a time of great change in Norway as the Vikings’ traditional Nordic religions were replaced by Christianity.

The Vikings adopt Christianity

The traditional religion of the Vikings was filled with gods, giants, and lots of supernatural conflict. But as the Vikings traveled, they came into contact with Christianity.

While well-known as raiders, in many places Vikings sought to establish long-term trade routes and settlements. To do so, they needed working relationships with the people already living in those places. But by the time the Vikings arrived, the people of the British Isles and Normandy were already Christian. And Christians were forbidden from dealing with pagans.

Read more about Christianity coming to Norway

What is a stave church?

Stave churches (called a stavkirke in Norwegian) are wooden buildings constructed using vertical, roof-bearing posts and vertical, load-bearing timbers (called staves) to form the central structure. Both posts and staves were either buried in the ground (which caused them to rot) or set into stone sills to hold them in place. An upper wooden sill tied the posts and staves together at the top.

Upper levels helped support what was below it, with braces and supports to keep everything tight and in place.

Architectural drawing showing construction details from the side for a stave church.

Drawing of the Hopperstad Stave Church in Vik, Norway, by Peter Andreas Blix from the collection of the Norwegian Directorate for Cultural Heritage [Public domain] via Wikimedia.

All of this was done by fitting the building’s pieces together like a giant three-dimensional puzzle using dovetailed joints, pegs, and wedges. It was a church built without nails, resulting in a flexible structure that expanded and contracted with the changing weather.

Few stave churches survived the passage of time

Stave construction was common in northern Europe, particularly in Nordic countries, as Christianity spread into the region late in the Viking era. Although rare and exotic today, it’s believed that up to 2000 stave churches were built in Norway alone.

In the earliest churches, staves were set directly in the soil. Being pine, they rotted rather quickly, requiring regularly rebuilding the entire. Because of this, Sweden and other countries soon turned to stone churches like the ones I saw throughout Gotland.

However, in Norway, the tradition of building with wood continued far longer.

In the 12th century, Norwegians improved their technique for stave church construction by building on stone sills. Setting the posts and walls on top of the sill protected them from moisture, thus greatly increasing their lifespan.

Although archaeological evidence indicates they were built earlier, the only existing stave churches in Norway were constructed after stone sills came into use in the 12th century.

By the 14th century, the age of the Vikings was over, and this construction technique was no longer used.

Today, only 28 stave churches remain in Norway.

This church’s story begins in medieval Norway

The stave church in Moorhead is a full-scale copy of the 12th century Hopperstad Church in Norway. While constructed using modern techniques, it includes all the structural elements and decorations of the original church.That includes elaborate carvings and hardware.

But the original Hopperstad itself was once an abandoned ruin that barely escaped demolition.

Recreating a church from an abandoned ruin

The original Hopperstad stave church was constructed in the hills above a fjord in Vik, Norway, around 1130. This makes it one of the oldest surviving stave churches.

It was constructed on a stone sill. That helped preserve it through 700 years of use until a new church was built in 1877.

But once the new church was complete, the exterior of the old church was stripped and the building abandoned.

Historic photo of the partially dismantled original church in Norway.

Hopperstad Stave Church in 1885 before restoration. Photo from the Norwegian Directorate for Cultural Heritage [Public domain] via Wikimedia.

Peter Andreas Blix to the rescue

Once abandoned, the congregation planned to demolish the remains of its old Viking church. But people elsewhere were beginning to see Norway’s medieval churches as a valuable (and rapidly disappearing) part of their history.

Read more about saving the original Hopperstad stave church

Much was lost, but much remained

Restoring Vik’s Hopperstad Stave Church presented challenges beyond funding.

The removal of exterior features and siding made it unclear what the church originally looked like or how its exterior gallery (porch or ambulatory) was constructed.

Earlier changes also left their mark. For example, a 17th century project lengthened the church nave and topped it with a bell tower. Other log additions expanded the church in various directions.

While some of these additions were removed even before the church was abandoned, all left their mark. And all of them made it more difficult to determine what the original church looked like.

There’s a lot of interpretation, imagination, and research involved in restoring an abandoned medieval building. In the end, it’s a guess based on personal knowledge and biases.

Blix kept what remained of the original stave church structure and carvings. He also kept late-medieval additions like the baldachin and the small window openings in the chancel that were added to allow lepers to receive communion.

Other existing features were deemed inappropriate and removed.

Restoring and recreating the Hopperstad church’s exterior

Because so much of the Hopperstad church’s exterior had been altered, Blix turned to the similar, well-preserved Borgund stave church as a model.

Exterior view of an old stave church in the Norwegian mountains.

Borgund Stave Church in Laerdal, Norway, by Zairon [CC BY-SA 3.0 Creative Commons license] via Wikimedia.

The Borgund church is both more recent and smaller than Hopperstad. But the two have similar floor plans and structural elements. They are also located relatively near each other, making it easy to assume there were many other similarities. Thus, Blix based missing elements of the Hopperstad church on those found at Borgund. Zairon, CC BY-SA 3.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0>, via Wikimedia Commons

In particular, the Borgund church provided a model for the roof turret, ridgeline dragons, and external gallery at Hopperstad.

The roof turret

While some stave churches are boxy, at 72 feet in height, the Hopperstad church seems to reach for the sky.

Front of a wooden stave church from an angle on a sunny day.

A church that reaches for the sky.

Part of that effect is due to the turret that sits above the main structure.

Turret with stylized dragons on the replica Hopperstad stave church.

The elaborate turret and ridgeline dragons are copies of those on the Hopperstad church, which were copied from the Borgund church.

While the original Hopperstad church probably had a roof turret, it was long gone by the time the church was restored. That means the turrets atop both the heavily restored Norwegian original and the American replica are based entirely on the Borgund church’s turret.

Architectural drawing of roof turrets.

Drawings for the roof and turret on Hopperstad Stave Church by Peter Andreas Blix from the collection of the Norwegian Directorate for Cultural Heritage [Public domain] via Wikimedia.

Dragons abound

Likewise, the dragons that swoop down from the roof and adorn the ridges were also inspired by the Borgund church.

Architectural drawing of a dragon on a roof.

Drawing of the dragons that adorn the roof of the Hopperstad Stave Church by Peter Andreas Blix from the collection of the Norwegian Directorate for Cultural Heritage [Public domain] via Wikimedia.

Like turrets, carved dragons were found at other stave churches. It seems these dragons, similar to those that once adorned the prows of Viking ships, were common on stave churches from this period.
A carved dragon sweeping down from the roof of the replica Hopperstad stave church.

Carved dragons sweep down from the dragon-scale shingled roof of the church.

While dragons are commonly portrayed as evil in Norse mythology, they are also connected to both change and human wickedness. Dragons were one of the few images from old Norse religions regularly depicted on the exterior of stave churches.

The exterior ambulatory

Below the dragon heads and dragon-skin shingles, a covered gallery or ambulatory wraps around the church. Like the turret and dragons, it too is modeled entirely on the Borgund church.

The pillars and doorway of an external ambulatory or gallery that wraps around the replica Hopperstad stave church.

An exterior gallery (an ambulatory) wraps around the Hopperstad Church.

Neither truly inside or outside, galleries like this were important at a time when many people were deemed “unclean” and not fit to enter the church itself.

(Today it’s just a wonderful sheltered space with beautiful light.)

Doorways with elaborate carvings

Viking churches in the early days of Christianity combined Christian and pagan imagery. The Hopperstad church was no exception.

The most dramatic feature of the porch may be the doors into the church itself. Called “portals” because of their oval shape, they include beautifully carved panels and metalwork. These portals on the Moorhead church are exact copies of Viking-era carvings and hardware that survived for centuries at the original Hopperstad church in Norway.

Drawing of the entry of the Hopperstad church with carvings.

Drawing of west portal by Peter Andreas Blix from the collection of the Norwegian Directorate for Cultural Heritage [Public domain] via Wikimedia.

The best of these is a wild tangle of dragons and vines by the elaborate main door. (A door that may have been used only by the community’s ruling elite.)
Drawing of a Viking church doorway.

Peter Andreas Blix illustration of the side door of the Hopperstad Stave Church from the collection of the Norwegian Directorate for Cultural Heritage [Public domain] via Wikimedia.

Restoring the church’s interior

Significant cultural changes occurred over the 700 years the Hopperstad church was in use, including the change from Catholic to Lutheran following the Reformation. The interior of the original Hopperstad church also changed over time as physical needs, tastes, and religious practices changed.

The Hopperstad stave church interior as it exists today is based on architect Peter Andreas Blix’s interpretation of its appearance during the late medieval period. That includes leaving some later additions in place while removing others.

Bare walls, but an original baldachin

Probably the most notable “original” item in the Hopperstad church was an early 14th century wooden canopy called a baldachin. Often used to cover a special statue, this one was reported to cover the baptismal font before the church was abandoned.

Architectural drawing of a baldachin.

Drawing of baldachin from Hopperstad Stave Church by Peter Andreas Blix. (From the collection of the Norwegian Directorate for Cultural Heritage [Public domain] via Wikimedia.)

While not original to the 12th-century church, the baldachin was a very rare find. And this one was in good condition, with well-preserved carvings and paint. Thus, while other later additions were removed, Blix retained this one.

Paulson also included a copy in his Moorhead replica.

Like the original, the one in Moorehead includes carvings of four heads: Jesus, a queen, king, and a monk. The interior of the canopy is brightly painted with scenes from the life of Mary.

Colorful painted interior of a wooden canopy in a church.

Like the Norwegian original, the interior of the baldachin is painted with scenes from the life of Mary.

Illustration of historical painted religious scenes.

Illustration by Peter Andreas Blix of the paintings on the underside of the baldachin at the Hopperstad Stave Church from the collection of the Norwegian Directorate for Cultural Heritage [Public domain] via Wikimedia.

HOWEVER, unlike the canopy in the Vik stave church, the carved frame and supporting posts in Moorhead were left unpainted.
What happened to the other paintings?

Except for the interior of the canopy on the baldachin, the interior of Moorhead’s replica Hopperstad church is bare wood. The original church in Norway has some painted trim, painted carvings on the baldachin, and a few paintings on (and hanging on) the walls. However, both churches have very little painted decoration. While modern visitors may see this as appropriate for an ancient church, historically it probably isn’t accurate.

For centuries church interiors were awash with Biblical scenes, demons, and other imagery. In an age when most people were illiterate (and worship services were in Latin), wall paintings were religious lessons for parishioners.

It is likely that the Hopperstad church had a painted interior through much of its existence. Indeed, it still retained bold Baroque paintings from the 16th century when Blix began his restoration. However, he didn’t think they were appropriate for a 12th-century church and, once removed, were not replaced.

The Hopperstad church is a cathedral in wood

At first glance, stave churches seem strange and exotic with their vertical lines, towering roofs, and sneering dragons.

Drawing of the side of the Hopperstad church.

Drawing of the Hopperstad stave church by Peter Andreas Blix from the collection of the Norwegian Directorate for Cultural Heritage [Public domain] via Wikimedia.

But doesn’t it look a bit like a cathedral in wood?

Step inside the Hopperstad stave church and take a look around. You’ll see a lot more similarities with other medieval Christian churches.

Interior of a stave church showing baldachin and upper level structure.

The floor plan of the Hopperstad church is the same as medieval basilica-style stone churches in other parts of Europe.

Floor plan of the Hopperstad church.

Drawing of the Hopperstad stave church floor plan by Peter Andreas Blix from the collection of the Norwegian Directorate for Cultural Heritage [Public domain] via Wikimedia. Modern labels added to identify features.

Like other medieval churches, the original Norwegian stave church in Vik is oriented east/west, with the altar at the east end of the church and a large entryway at the west end. In many medieval European churches, the large, formal entrance was reserved for ceremonial uses. It’s unclear whether that was the case at the Hopperstad church, although this entrance was elaborately decorated with Viking carvings.
Read more about the church's design - and a couple of unusual windows. . .

Plan your visit to Moorhead’s stave church

The replica Hopperstad stave church is located in Moorhead, Minnesota, along the boundary with Fargo, North Dakota.

Visiting the Fargo-Moorhead area

My travel guide for exploring the Fargo-Moorhead area has information on traveling to Moorhead, sightseeing and other activities to do while you are there, eating and drinking, and finding a place to sleep.

Link to a travel guide for Fargo, North Dakota, and Moorhead, Minnesota, on ExplorationVacation.net.

Fargo-Moorhead is a great weekend destination or short road trip stay. There’s a lot more here than you probably expect!

The following offers some very basic information.

Travel to Moorhead

The Fargo-Moorhead area is located three to four hours drive time from Minneapolis, Minnesota; Sioux Falls, South Dakota; Bismarck, North Dakota; and Winnipeg, Canada.

Fargo has a small international airport with regularly scheduled flights on several airlines.

Regional map showing driving time to Fargo-Moorhead from various places in the Upper Midwest.

The Fargo-Moorhead area may be closer than you think!

Get a bite to eat

From the stave church, it’s an easy walk to a number of restaurants in both Moorhead and Fargo.

Downtown Moorhead has a wonderful upscale restaurant very worth visiting: Rustica Eatery and Tavern. Good restaurants seem to come and go in Moorhead, but there are always  a few decent dining options closer to the freeway. Budget options and national chains are also mostly near the freeway, but there are a few right downtown.

Across the river, Fargo has a great selection of wonderful restaurants at all price points.

Spend the night

Both a Radisson tower (which has been updated and is under new management since I regularly stayed there many years ago) and the artsy Hotel Donaldson are located just across the river in downtown Fargo. It’s a pretty easy walk to either. There really aren’t any hotels in this part of Moorhead, but downtown Fargo offers a lot more eating and shopping options anyway.

You can read reviews for all the options in the Fargo/Moorhead area and book a room at Booking.com or Expedia. Or head over to my travel guide for more information on what’s where and where to stay in the area.

Visiting the replica Hopperstad stave church

Moorhead’s replica stave church is located on the grounds of the Historical and Cultural Society of Clay County along the Red River in downtown Moorhead. It’s easy to miss the entrance, so keep in mind that it is the very last driveway on the right before you cross the bridge into Fargo or the first one across the bridge on the left when coming into Moorhead from downtown Fargo.

Known as the Hjemkomst Center, the Society’s excellent museum houses a modern Viking ship and several galleries with rotating exhibits on local and regional history and art.

The exterior of the church can be viewed at any time of day or night without charge. A guided tour is needed to see the interior. Weather permitting, tours are offered by the Historical and Cultural Society from April through December. Tours are included in the museum entrance fee. (You can see the interior anytime on a virtual tour, but it’s not the same as being there.)

Admission fees in summer 2025 were $12 or less to visit both the museum and replica church.

The Historical and Cultural Society of Clay County is open most days from 9-5. Check their website for specific days, times, and fees.

Visit other stave churches

While stave churches are a form of medieval Scandinavian architecture most often associated with Norway, stave construction has been used in other places. And, because the style is so distinct, several of Norway’s historic churches have been reproduced (with varying degrees of accuracy) elsewhere.

Stave churches in Norway

Of the thousands of medieval stave churches built in Norway, only 28 remain today. In addition, there is at least one that was reconstructed after an arsonist burned it down.

The Gol Church was moved and reconstructed in Oslo in 1884. Like the Hopperstad church, missing components of the original church were restored using the Borgund stave church as a guide. Today the Gol Church is a featured attraction at the Norwegian Museum of Cultural History. This is the only original Norwegian stave church I’ve seen.

The website StaveChurch.com has links to all the remaining churches in Norway, including a bit of history and information on hours and admission charges for visitors. The page on the Hopperstad Church has all the information you need to plan a visit.

Stave churches in the United States

Moorhead’s replica Hopperstad Stave Church isn’t the only stave church in the USA. Several other examples are located around the country.

The following are open to the public, at least on a limited basis.

There are a couple of other churches that are privately owned in Connecticut and Indiana. As they are not open to the public, I have not included them in this list.

The replica Gol Stave Church Museum in North Dakota

The Scandinavian Heritage Park in Minot, North Dakota, is home to a full-size replica of Norway’s Gol stave church.

Exterior of a large wooden stave church.

The replica in Minot’s Scandinavian Heritage Park was dedicated in 2000. It’s open for tours as part of the regular admission to the park.

Read more about other stave churches in the USA

Read more about stave churches

There isn’t a lot of great information on stave churches on the web in English, but these are a few of the more useful sources I found.

  • StaveChurch.com has links to all 28 of the remaining churches in Norway, including a bit of history and hours and admission charges for visitors. The page on the Hopperstad Church has all the information you need to plan a visit.
  • Similar information, but without detailed visitor information, is available on the Visit Norway.
  • The book, Norway’s Stave Churches: Architecture, History, and Legends by Eva Valebrokk and Thomas Thiis-Evensen has a nice introduction to stave churches in general and a couple pages (with beautiful photos) of each of the Norwegian churches. It’s available for a few dollars through ABE.
Read more about stave churches

See more photos of the Hopperstad replica stave church on CindyCarlsson.com

The turret on a stave church with the text \"the replica Hopperstad stave church, Moorhead, Minnesota - ExplorationVacation.net\"Hjemkomst Center

Link to a travel guide for Fargo, North Dakota, and Moorhead, Minnesota, on ExplorationVacation.net.

 

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