A church in the snow - how Östersund got its first respite

Imagine Östersund in the 1830s. It is winter. The ice is heavy over Lake Storsjön. People from the small town - still more village than city - lace up their leather shoes, wrap their coats tighter around their bodies, and start walking. Walk across the ice. Because it's Sunday. And there is no church in town.

The service is waiting on Frösön.

This is how it looked before the Old Church was built. For although Östersund was a city founded by kings, it was long without a spiritual heart of its own. But then something began to change. The city grew. People moved in. Someone suggested a parish of their own. Others said: a church of its own! And suddenly it was no longer a crazy idea.

In 1838, the starting shot was fired. With the help of local forces, money from the state - and a small contribution from Karl XIV Johan himself - construction began. The church builder Pehr Nilsson from Stugun led the work, stone was laid on stone, and seven years later, in 1845, the building was completed. It was consecrated the following year. A classicist church in white stucco, round-arched windows, a sturdy tower with a clock face - 600 seats, a room for faith and belonging in the middle of the grid city.

The old church stood like a white axis in the middle of young Östersund. The tower was visible from afar - not because it was so high, but because everything around it was so low. Here the people of the city gathered for baptisms, weddings, communion and curiosity. At a time when the city was still scattered and unclear, the church became something solid to hold on to. Something that said: now we are a real city.

In the 1890s, the church was given a facelift. The steeple was redesigned in a new, more pointed style. The interior was cleaned up. It was the town's way of saying: we are no longer newcomers - we belong here. But time does not wait. And Östersund grew fast. Too fast. Soon 600 seats were not enough.

So in 1940, a new, larger church was built a few blocks away. The old church then became... just that, the 'Old Church'. No longer the spiritual hub of the city - but not forgotten either. Instead, it was given a new life as a breathing space and memorial. A quiet heartbeat from the 19th century, in the midst of today's urban pace.

Today it stands in the church park, surrounded by old trees and curious children. The tower still looks out over Prästgatan. And even though most people nowadays don't have to cross the ice to attend church services, many still feel that the little white church has always been there. As an anchor. As a reminder.

Photos provided by Föreningen Gamla Östersund

The Old Church in Östersund, built between 1838 and 1845 and consecrated in 1846, was the city's first church and was built in connection with Östersund getting its own parish after previously belonging to Frösö. The church, designed in a classicist style with white plastered walls and towers, accommodated around 600 people and became a central feature of the city's social and religious life in the 19th century. The construction was led by church builder Pehr Nilsson and was partly funded by donations, including a grant from King Karl XIV Johan. In the 1890s, the church was renovated and given a new spire. After the inauguration of the new Great Church in 1940, the Old Church lost its role as the main church, but is still in use and is today Östersund's oldest church building, located in Kyrkparken.