In 1886, Missionary Ole J. Norby, a native of Norway, arrived in Mandan and discovered many Scandinavians of the Lutheran faith. He saw the need to establish a church. On April 18, 1886, a group of pioneers gathered at the rural home of Mr. and Mrs. Hans Benson six miles west of Mandan near Marmot to organize a Lutheran church congregation.
In 1961, the congregation celebrated its 75th anniversary of its founding with the dedication its third church building located at the corner of Nineth Street and Fourth Avenue NW. The current church was completed and opened for use in 1958 and replaced the 44-year-old wood structure at Eighth Avenue and First St NW. Paster Reverand Carsten F. Brien led the celebration and served the congregation since in 1949. Three members were honored during the dedication, Mrs. A.C. Hermanson of Mandan, Oscar Carlson of the Stone community, and Mrs. Nancy (Carl) Hendrickson of the Heart River area. Carlson and Hendrickson were baptized on the day the church was established on April 18, 1886 as the Scandinavian Evangelical Lutheran Church. Five years after its founding, the first church, a small wooden structure was built in the Syndicate area, southwest Mandan.
