Swedish Church Rolled for Miles to New Home

Kiruna, Sweden —(Map)

Workers in Kiruna, Sweden have been working hard to raise one of the country’s most famous churches and roll it over 3 miles (5 kilometers) to a new location. The church’s old location was no longer safe. The operation took two days to complete.

Kiruna Church was built in 1912, and is one of Sweden’s most famous churches. The red wooden church was once voted Sweden’s most beautiful building built before 1950. Inside, it has a massive pipe organ, and a large painting created by a member of Sweden’s royal family.

Kiruna Church was built in 1912, and is one of Sweden’s most famous churches. The red wooden church was once voted Sweden’s most beautiful building built before 1950. Inside, it has a massive pipe organ, and a large painting created by a member of Sweden’s royal family.
(Source: Arild Vågen [CC BY-SA 4.0], via Wikimedia Commons.)

But the ground underneath the church was slowly giving way. Kiruna is a mining town. The nearby LKAB iron mine is the largest underground iron mine in the world. It provides jobs for many of the town’s people.

The mining company LKAB built much of the town, including the church, in the early 1900s. But the mine has been going for over 100 years. In that time, it has removed roughly 2.2 billion tons (2 billion tonnes) of rock from underground. This great empty space is now causing the ground to sink around Kiruna.

This led to a plan to move the town to a new location about three miles (5 kilometers) away. LKAB is paying for the entire move, which is expected to cost around $1 billion. The first buildings were moved about 10 years ago. Some were moved; others were torn down and rebuilt.

The mining company LKAB built much of the town, including the church, in the early 1900s. But the mine has been going for over 100 years. The great empty space of the mine is now causing the ground to sink around Kiruna, so the town and the church needed to be moved.
(Source: TorbjørnS [CC BY 4.0], via Wikimedia Commons.)

But transporting the church is a huge challenge. The building is 115 feet (35 meters) tall, and weighs 741 tons (672 tonnes). Engineers had to carefully support the inside of the church to make sure it would hold together.

Over the last year, LAKB has been taking out lampposts and working to widen the roads. The needed to make room for the church to travel to its new home.

On Tuesday, after a blessing, the raised church slowly started moving. Large crowds of local people and visitors from outside gathered to watch the event. Even Sweden’s king – Carl XVI Gustaf – was there.

Transporting the church is a huge challenge. Engineers had to carefully support the inside of the church to make sure it would hold together. LAKB has been taking out lampposts and working to widen the roads to make room for the church to travel to its new home.

The church traveled at about 0.3 mph (0.5 kph), and the trip took about 12 hours in all, split over two days. On Wednesday afternoon, the church finally completed its journey.

Not everyone is happy about the church having to be moved. LAKB has been criticized for putting the town in danger. A plan to open a new mine is also upsetting some people. The new mine contains iron and rare earth minerals. These minerals are important for electronics and green energy.

The church traveled at about 0.3 mph (0.5 kph), and the trip took about 12 hours in all, split over two days (above). On Wednesday, the church finally completed its journey. Some people have criticized the mining company for putting the town in danger. Some of the mining operation can be seen in the background above.

Local indigenous Sami people worry that the mines could be destroying their way of life, which goes back thousands of years. The Sami people have a long history of herding reindeer. They worry that the new mine could cut off an important migration path for reindeer.

Still, many people are happy that the Kiruna Church has been saved, rather than being torn down. But there is still a lot of work to do before the church is ready. The church isn’t expected to open again until the end of 2026.