The church was first built in 1125, beside Vangsmjøsa. It was inundated by spring floods which unearthed corpses buried in the surrounding churchyward, so they moved the church. In the early 1700’s the old church was torn down, with a new building completed in 1747.
During installation of a new church floor in 1935, 156 pieces of timber from the original building stored under the floor were discovered. Although not complete, the timbers offered enough clues to the original design for plans to be drawn up for its restoration. World War II delayed the project, but on Midsummer’s Eve 1956 the church was consecrated by Bishop Alex Johnson.
Reconstructed stave church is pictured below. All the material is original, from 1125, except for the roof and the north wall. These were not in good enough condition.
Øye Stave Church is one of the smallest, the most original and perhaps the oldest stave church in the country.
The parish church, pictured at left, is still used for regular parish services and activities.
