The Church in Dønnesfjord

Round the year of 1700 the church on Hasvik was the only church in the county of Hasvik. When the number of inhabitants increased and the fishing improved the people who lived by the Breivik Fjord, on Sørvær and on the outer side of Sørøya got a long way to get to church.There were people living in the fjords on the north side of the Sørværpeninsula and in the Dønnesfjord; it must have been high activity in the area round the year of 1800. Sven Foyn was whaling and had a whalestation in Bøle. When the fishingseason at the Breivik Fjord was over, the fishermen moved to the region of Dønnesfjord and had their base there. It could be from 500 to 600 visiting fishermen divided on a couple of hundered boats staying there. The tradingcentre Galten was established in 1840, and became one of the populous places. There were both a store and an inn, and the fishermen could deliver their catch. Russian ships came there to sell flour and to buy fish. In 1863 August Ferdinand Schumacher bought parts of Galten, and in 1872 he bought the rest. Together with his wife, Christine, he built the place up to be a considerable fishing village. There were many and large houses and fishermen's shacks with room for 550 men.

But as before mentioned, it was a long way to church. Either one could take the sea route out of The Dønnesfjord, round to Sørvær and further to Hasvik, or go on foot over the mountain to Breivikbotn and further from Breivikbotn to Hasvik. Visiting the church was hardly done every week! By royal resolution on December 15th. 1885 it was given permission to build a church in Galten, and in 1888 it was finished. It was a simple white church out of wood with 150 seats. The consecration of the church should take place on August 24th., and became very dramatic. People came from all the places around the district the day before the consecration, but the next day the weather got so bad that the priests who should consecrate the church couldn't get there by boat. The people had go home again, but in the morning on August 28th. 1888 the clergy and other visitors came by steamboat, and the consecration of the church could finally be done.

During the evacuation and burning of Finnmark in 1944, the church in Galten was the only building that did not burn down in Hasvik. By coincidence the fire fortunately got out, but even today you can see a mark of schorch inside the church (look at the picture under to the left).

Mark of schorch in the stairs

The altarpiece

The oven in the church

(All photos: Copyright © 2002, Anne Olsen-Ryum)

The fishing village Galten was not rebuilt after the war, and therfore the church was moved to Dønnesfjord in 1951. In 1952 it was consecrated again.

There are nobody living in Dønnesfjord today, but the church is used for service once every summer. There has also been several weddings in the church for the last few years. One of our familymembers, Simen, was baptized there in 1989. In 1997 the church in Dønnesfjord was chosen as an official cultural monument for Hasvik (look beneath).

The church has strongly decaied for the last few years. The Chief Inspector of Inspectorate of Ancient Monuments and
Historic Buildings means that the church in Dønnesfjord is of great cultural value, and has therefore in 2002 granted NOK 350.000,- for restoring it.

Source: The Congregation Magazine of Hasvik
No. 2/90