#fall #spring #summer
Attractions, See and experience

Soini Church

The construction of a church in Soini was debated at the county meeting held on 6 February 1791. A solution was arrived at when a decision was made to buy a quarter mantal farm as a vicarage from Erkki Juhonpoika Vakkuri for 222 thalers and 10 shillings. The deal was signed on 2 April 1792. The church was ordered to be built on Mäkäränmäki, along a winter road. In winter 1793, the owner of a farm located on the spot dismantled his building and transported the logs on a sled to a new location close to the current centre of the village.

The church was built by Yrjäänä Lepistö from Kuortane in 1793, with help from local residents. At the time, Soini consisted of 20–30 houses and its population was 200–300. No documents related to the construction of the church remain and it is likely that no drawings were ever prepared for it. The original church was a modest, low and unpainted building with a shingle roof and no tower. Its interior walls did not have a lining. It had eight windows, including semi-circular top windows. The church had no heating system and its interior walls were unpainted. In 1840, a bell tower was built for the church and the interior walls were given a wood lining.

The church has been renovated on several occasions: in 1885 by Juho Kuorikoski, in 1962 by Veikko Larkas and in 1992 by architect Matti Klemola. The exterior walls were painted and the steel roofing was replaced in 2010.

Soini Church is a traditional Ostrobothnian cross church. Located in the centre of the village, the church seats about 400 people. An accessible entrance is located at the rear of the building (viewed from the separate bell tower).

Activities
Attractions