By 1882 Stromsburg had two brickyards furnishing material for businesses, churches, and homes. Buildings of "native brick" still standing include the opera house (now converted into Viking Center, and Viking II and III), the Wilson Block, Svenska Varen, and a number of homes.

As evidence of the ethnic interests, the first churches established included a Swedish Baptist in 1873, a Swedish Lutheran in 1874, a Methodist Episcopal in 1875, a Swedish Methodist in about 1880, and a Presbyterian in 1881. Still active is the Baptist, Methodist, and Lutheran, with the addition of an Evangelical Free, and a Covenant Church.