Following the high ground up above the river that forms the boundary of Decorah on three sides, West Broadway commands a prominent location in the civic space of the city. As expected, the latest revival styles are represented in the seven blocks of the National Register Historic District.

While there are lavish Italianate villas on Broadway like you’d see in Lafayette Square.

Simpler homes immediately start on the side streets.

Going around a curve as the elevation rises, there is a nice Arts and Crafts house where the street becomes known as Upper Broadway.

Heading back down, there are more houses in the Queen Anne style.

This spectacular Gothic Revival house is right at the curve between Upper and West Broadway.

The First Lutheran Church of Decorah is another congregation that reflects the city’s strong northern European roots, particularly Norway (there’s even a museum in town). Dating from 1863, the current church was completed in 1873, and was even known as the Norwegian Evangelical Lutheran Church at the time.