The first church in the Altafjorden was built near the end of the 1600s. The church was on the island of Årøya, in the middle of the fjord. The decision of the placement was that there was an old fortress on the island. The materials of the fortress could be used to build the church. The fort was built during the Kalmar War and was a blockhouse with earthwork surrounding built to stop the Swedish advance in Finnmark. This blockhouse was given to the church and in 1694 the church was ready for use. It was also the first cemetery in the Altafjorden.
