The block-pillar church (; ) was a common type of wooden church in Ostrobothnia in the 17th century. Individual specimens are also found elsewhere in Finland and in northern Sweden.
Construction The basic form of a block pillar church is a nave church, where the walls are made of horizontal logs and the joints between the logs are placed inside a timber pillar. The pillars are square timbered cavities as high as the walls with interlocking joints and are visible from both outside and inside the church. The pillars support a long timber wall so it doesn't start to buckle due to pressure from the roof. Inside the church, the walls are supported by tie beams between the parallel walls. Most commonly two pairs of block pillars were used, but the largest block-pillar church is , which has three pairs of pillars. In the west gable, the churches often have a timbered tower with a high spire. Most often the tower had no church bells, and a bell tower was built separately. Block-pillar churches appear to have been an Ostrobothnian specialty.
Preserved churches Around a hundred block-pillar churches were built, twelve of which have been preserved. The oldest preserved is from 1627, which was expanded into a cruciform church in 1777.
Place Church Built Notes Picture Alastaro, Loimaa, Finland 1754 moved from Loimaa in 1841 Jukkasjärvi, Kiruna, Sweden 1726 Kempele, Finland 1688–1691 Kristinestad, Finland 1700 Muhos, Finland 1634 Sodankylä, Finland Sodankylä Old Church 1689 Temmes, Tyrnävä, Finland 1767 Tervola, Finland 1687–89 Tornio, Finland 1684–86 Ullava, Kokkola, Finland 1783 Utajärvi, Finland 1762 Vörå, Finland 1626–27 expanded to cruciform church in 1777
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