In 1867 the first church was built in the historic lands of the Dakota people that would eventually become known as the Norway Lake area - due to the large numbers of Norwegian immigrants who settled in the area. During the ten years that this church, made out of logs, was used there were 490 baptisms, 140 confirmations, 72 marriages, 77 burials, and 125 services conducted. The community quickly outgrew the log church and five new churches were built around the Norway Lake area. The church was dismantled and the logs were used to build a barn at the parsonage for one of the new churches - where they still sit today.
In 1996 a group of community members from the Norway Lake area began a project to built a replica of the original Log Church at the same place it once occupied. After thorough research, community meetings, a few tall tales, and plenty of coffee the group organized as the Norway Lake Lutheran Historical Association. 40 oak trees from the same forest that provided the logs for the original church were donated and harvested. The builders used both historic and modern tools to complete the the new log church - lovingly referred to as “The Old Log Church” in 1999.
