Orsa Church

The first stone church was built in the 13th century and probably replaced a wooden stave church. Around 1300 the church was extended to the east and then the sacristy was probably added. An inventory of the roof of the church found splintered pieces of wood that may date from around 1300, when the sacristy was built. In the middle of the 14th century the church was extended to its current width. At the end of the 15th century, the church was expanded to its present size, except for the chancel. In 1607 the foundation stone for a church tower was laid on the west side, but it was not until 1639 that the tower was completed. The current pentagonal choirs were added during a remodeling in 1752–1755 under the direction of master builder Petter Schulzberg from Västerås. Today's church tower was built in 1853 according to plans by the architect Ludvig Hawerman. The earlier tower from 1639 was demolished due to poor construction.