Beitstad Church
History
The earliest existing historical records of the church date back to the year 1432, but the church was not new that year. The old stave church was built about 350 metres (1,150 ft) northeast of the present church site. During the 1600s, the old church was in poor condition so it was torn down and a new timber-framed building was constructed about 350 metres (1,150 ft) to the southwest.
In 1814, this church served as an election church (Norwegian: valgkirke). Together with more than 300 other parish churches across Norway, it was a polling station for elections to the 1814 Norwegian Constituent Assembly which wrote the Constitution of Norway. This was Norway's first national elections. Each church parish was a constituency that elected people called "electors" who later met together in each county to elect the representatives for the assembly that was to meet in Eidsvoll later that year.
By the 1860s, the church was too small for the parish so in 1863, the parish decided to get permission to replace the old church. In 1869, the old church was torn down and replaced with a new wooden long church on the same site. Rasmus Overrein was the lead builder for the new church. It was consecrate on 19 September 1869. The church was renovated in 1932 using the designs of Roar Tønseth.