Onarheim Church

Historie

Onarheim Church is a parish church in Tysnes municipality in Hordaland county, Norway. It is located in the village of Onarheim on the southeastern side of the island of Tysnesøya. The church is part of the Onarheim parish in the Sunnhordland deanery in the Diocese of Bjørgvin. The white, wooden church was built in 1893 by the architect Karl Askeland. The church, which seats about 500 people, was consecrated on 7 July 1893 by the Bishop Fredrik Waldemar Hvoslef.HistoryThe first time a church at Onarheim is mentioned in historical records was in 1327. At that time it was a stone church that was built some time earlier. It was sold into private ownership in 1723. In 1819-1820, the church was in disrepair, so it was completely renovated and rebuilt. In 1863, the municipality of Tysnes bought back the church from private ownership. As the population of the parish increased, the church eventually became too small, so in 1893, the old church was torn down and a new church was built on the same site.