The Geographical Analysis of Mormon Temple Sites in Utah

Brigham Young University BYU ScholarsArchive

Theses and Dissertations

1992

The Geographical Analysis of Mormon Temple Sites in Utah

Garth R. Liston Brigham Young University - Provo

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BYU ScholarsArchive Citation Liston, Garth R., "The Geographical Analysis of Mormon Temple Sites in Utah" (1992). Theses and Dissertations. 4881. https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/etd/4881

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the geographicalgeograp c ananalysisysls 0off mormormonon tetempletempiepie slsitessltestes in utah

A thesis presented to the department of geography brigham young university

in partial fulfillment of the requiaequirequirementsrementscements for the degree master of science

by garth R listenliston december 1992 this thesis by garth R liston is accepted in its present form by the department of geography of brigham young university as satisfying the thesis requirement for the degree of master of science

f c- H L ricirichardard H jackson 1 committeeoommittee chair

alan H grey committecommifctemeflermeymere er

i w i ige-e&e date laieialeidleaaleig- J 6tevstevtpvnstldepartmentni d- epartmentepartment chair

n dedication0 0

this thesis is dedicated to my wonderful mother luana liston not only has she financed a major part of this work and the rest of my education she has always been a constant support and great friend sincere thanks are extended to dr richard jackson and dr alan grey of the brigham young university geography department who served on my thesis committee dr jackson is possibly the finest geographer in the mormon church who has been heard to say im so humble im proud dr grey contributed greatly to my thesis in the form of a painstaking editing of the second draft not only does dr grey shun the limelight but also the light of his office which he seldom has on but hes never in the dark when it comes to the study of the earth as the home of man

also I1 wish to thank the secretarial staff of the geography department for helping me many times in processing forms and filling requirements

hiin table of contents page acceptance page ii

list of tables vii list of figures ix

chapter 1 1

introduction 1

statement of the problem 9

hypothesis I1 9

limitations 10

methodology 11

background information on mormonism 12

utah when the cormonsmormons arrived 0.0 14 chapter 2 review of literature 21 chapter 3 the salt lake city temple site 29 chapter 4 the st george temple site 45 chapter 5 the manti temple site 65

iv chapter 6 the logan temple site 82 chapter 7 the provo temple site 95 chapter 8 the ogden temple site 108 chapter 9 the jordan river temple site 121 chapter 10 the bountiful temple site 134

chapter 11 summary of the provo ogden jordan river and bountiful mornmormonon temple sites 146

chapter 12 conclusion 150 abstract 166

bibliography 167

v list of tables page

tabletabie 1 utah climatic statistics 31 tabletabie 2 origin of mornmormonon place names 50 tabletabie 3 population statistics of st george utah and adjacent communities 53

tabletabie 4 population statistics of manti utah and adjacent communities 71

tabletabie 5 colonization of utah by 1877 77 tabletabie 6 the mountain men left names on our map 84 tabletabie 7 population statistics of logan utah

and adjacent communities 1 91

tabletabie 8 provo city statistics 97 tabletabie 9 population statistics of provo utah and adjacent communities 107 tabletabie 10 ogden city statistics illiiiili111 tabletabie 11 population statistics of ogden utah and adjacent communities 119 tabletabie 12 south jordan population growth 123 tabletabie 13 south jordan statistics 126

viVI table 14 population statistics of south jordan utah and adjacent communities 133 table 15 bountiful population statistics 136 table 16 bountiful city statistics 137 table 17 population statistics of bountiful utah and adjacent communities 145

viivilvn s-m-p-

list of figures

figure 1 mormon templetempie sitessltes in utah x figure 2 hierarchy of mornmormonon lands and buildings 8 figure 3 physiographic provinces of utah 18 figure 4 fur trapper routes 19

figure 5 westward migration routes 20 figure 6 s- altait lake city templetempie site 39 figure 7 mormon exploration and settlement routes 48

figure 8 mormon expansion by decade 49 figure 9 t george templetempie site 59 figure 10 settlement sequence 70 figure 11 m- antiantl templetempie site 72 figure 12 mormon settlement sitessltes 76

figure 13 logantemplesitelogan templetempie site 89

figure 14 rovo templetempie site 106log

figure 15 ogden templetempie site 118

figure 16 saltsait lake valleyvailey vicinity map 125

viii figure 17 map of bountiful utah 138 figure 18 bountiful temple site 139

IXix figure I11 mormon temple sites in utah source adapted by author from greer etal

logan

ogden t

bountiful saltsait lake city jordan river

a provo

mantimantl

st george

x chapter 1

introduction

the geography of mormonism the church of jesus christ of latter day saints contains a landscape comprised ofmany significant features of importance of which are the unique temple sites cormonsmormons

develop and maintain A mornmormonon temple site is considered the

ground on which a mornmormonon temple is situated or is planned for and

the land that adjoins the temple and the temple also most temple sites usually contain at least several acres of land and frequently are

surrounded with walls or fences to clearly indicate the temple site

grounds hereafter in this thesis whenever temple site is used it

will refer to a completed or planned mormon temple and the block or

parcel of land it occupies A completed temple is also hereafter

considered a vertical extension of the temple site temple sites to most cormonsmormons and non cormonsmormons alike represent a visual monument

1 2 of pernpermanencealenceanence and authority from a single functioning temple site in kirtland ohio constructed between 1833 to 1836 berrett pg

125 morncormonsmormonsons now have approximately 50 temple sites operating or

being built throughout the world whenever a mormon temple site

is constructed and opened for use by devout Morcormonsmormonsmons a geographical

temple district is formed to assign cormonsmormons in certain areas to attend a suggested temple usually closest to where they live thus a

mormon templetempie site is symbolically a regional geographic capital in

mormondomeMormondome and the world

A temple is a holy sanctuary an edifice erected in honor of

deity a place in which the divine presence actually exists joseph

angus quoted in raynor pg 1

within mormon temples several important ordinances are performed on behalf of living and dead individuals these ordinances

are of such importance they can only be performed in a dedicated

temple

mormon temples proper do not represent seats of church

ecclesiastical authority but they do indicate that administrative

power is nearby housed in other buildings temples are nearly always built in areas of significant numbers of Morcormonsmormonsmons to ensure consistent 3 utilization of the sacred edifices local administrative and

ecclesiastical power is found near temples in mormon chapels where

stake presidents and ward bishops preside at public meetings

worldwide mormon church hereafter simply stated as church

authority is found in salt lake city utah where the presidentprophetPresident Prophet of the church and the quorum of twelve apostles

are headquartered A stake president and his counselors and high

council quorum preside over a geographical area that can vary

considerably in size from a few square miles to several thousand and

contain from 800 members Morcormonsmormonsmons to over 11000 nelson pg

57 A stake will normally be made up of five to ten wards of

approximately 450 cormonsmormons each within the stake boundaries

chapels or meetinghousesmeetinghouses are also important symbols of the mormon

landscape representing the earthly structures where entrance to

gods kingdom and required fundamental teachings are gained

chapels are where nearly all members receive weekly sacrament

communion

complementing mormon temple sites and chapels are thousand of buildings and acres of land used for the spiritual and temporal support of the church and cormonsmormons and non cormonsmormons alike 4 throughout the world the church has constructed schools for secular

and theological training of youth and adults As well as being

concerned for the spiritual aspect of members and nonmembernon member lives the church attends to the physical welfare of individuals by operating land holdings such as farllfarminging ranching and other agricultural

production that total into the hundreds of thousands of acres

commodities from these welfare farilfarmss are distributed to needy

families in and outside the area of each enterprise also the church

owns and operates many significant and well known business

ventures such as radio and television stations retail business outlets

real estate companies and others using accumulated profits for

church operating costs and welfare assistance to needy people such a diversity of property and buildings in the authors

opinion results in a hierarchy of sacred spaces and structures

business entities owned by the church operated for profit could be considered a mundane foundation that hardly approaches a spiritual

realm however the next category of property above business

entities the welfare farms enters the spiritual domain by virtue of

directly sustaining human life through donated labor and derived goods A third spiritually higher group of land and structures would 5 be secular schools although there are few of these in operation today they are acclaimed by member and nonmembernon member alike as beautiful and accredited institutions land in and of itself can become sacred or spiritual when humans attach special religious

meaning to it but building a sacred structure on sacred ground adds

to its spiritual value once a sacred building is put on sacred land

the spiritual value of both can be increased by beginning and maintaining spiritual activity within that sacred building from secular schools the church operates the next highest spiritual level of lands and buildings would be their spiritual schools commonly referred to as institutes of religion thousands of institutes of religion are found next to colleges and universities

throughout the world to offer spiritual classes with secular training

still spiritually higher would be morllmoriimormonon chapels where baptism and

other public sacramental ordinances usually occur finally the

highest spiritual level of lands and buildings are the temple sites

land is most sacred when a temple is constructed upon it because of the most sacred rites that occur therein A temple site now is considered just as a biblical temple site of old a place where god can

literally appear to converse with his servants and to where the 6 highest degree of spiritual instruction and ordinances are confined

A graphic example of these six levels of mormon land and buildings

is given in figure 2

geography in general is the study of the earth as the home of man but specifically its the study of phenomena associated with the earths surface by definition there are many phenomena and topics that a geographer can study religion is very important as it often greatly affects the other activities of man within religion religious

buildings and sites are significant research subjects as they are

observable features of landscapes and often provide the setting of

religious origin experience or power religious buildings and sites

of a sect offer the researcher insight as to theological doctrine

customs ordinances priority development history organization

culture etc thus mormon temple sites are especially useful for interpretation of the churchs geographical influence as their

function is well developed and documented and they constitute prominent features on the landscape

in some ways the history of the church and its struggle for religious survival has taken place in order that its unique temple sites could be developed and operated only by being endowed and 7

11 sealed11sealed for time and eternity to their spouse in a temple and living righteously until the end of life can a member hope to obtain eternal life with god and family members thus to a believing church member the temple site and continual righteous living represent the keys to eternal happiness and reward consequently the building and operation of authorized temples is of important consideration by the leaders and members of the church As frequently as possible where there are sufficient numbers of active members in a general area the president of the church will seek revealed approval from god to build a new temple for that area public services church historical department temple architecture section pg 3 figure 2 hierarchy of mormon landsadsnds and building sites

MORMON TEMPLE SITES

MORMON CHAPEL SITES

MORMON institutes OF RELIGION SITES

MORMON COLLEGE AND university SITES

MORMON WELFARE FARM SITES

MORMON BUSINESS enterprise SITES 9 although a temple site is constructed to serve a specific

geographical area exact placement of the site within that area is of

important concern to the churchschurche-s president however not all temple sites are situated the same way or by the same process

statement of the problem

the problem for this study will be what are the important geographical aspects of the first eight mormonmorn on temple sites in utah such elements as historical data population statistics climate and

topography local economic issues transportation church doctrine

etc will be analyzed to deterdetermineinelne important characteristics and

conclusions

hypothesis

it is hypothesized that moriimormonon temple sites will conform to descriptions of sacred space as suggested by various researchers 10 limitations

this thesis study wlwill11ll be limited to the first eight completed or currently planned temple sites in utah salt lake city st george manti logan provo ogden bountiful and jordan river even though the bountiful temple site hasnt been completed yet it will still be included in this study as the site has been chosen and work has begun for the temple there 11 methodology

for the greater part of this thesis historical analysis will be employed to deterdetermineinelne significant site selection decisions and factors for the first eight temple sites in utah data will be gathered from individuals secondary sources and church records of critical importance to this study will be oral interviews of church officials directly involved with present temple site selections although cormonsmormons believe that the president of the church under the direction of jesus christ makes the final site selection for any temple there are various church administrative departments that offer

technical support for such acquisitions and developments of property and buildings the church keeps detailed records and will be asked to provide historical andor cultural data that may not commonly be available other oral interviews with selected individuals will also take place and be included in this study for example the person who suggested to the church president the site of the provo temple and other such key figures will be interviewed

each temple site will be studied in chronological order as to when the site was chosen for each site a brief geographical 12 description will be given followed by historical data following the

introduction and discussion of each site a summary will be given

background infoinformationatlon on mormonism

cormonsmormons believe and testify unequivocally that the mormon churchthechurch the church of jesus christ of latter day saints is gods only true church on the earth they believe that the church is neither a derivation of any current or ancient church it is however

a reinstitution of gods only true church berrett pgsggs 1201 20 according to church doctrine christs church and teachings and priesthood authority disintegrated and were nearly completely lost at or about the time the last of christs twelve apostles were martyredmartyred from the time of the last apostolic martyr until joseph

smith gods true teachings and priesthood authority were not found

in a formal organization such as an incorporated church on the earth thus began what religionists term the great apostasy berrett ggspgs v xv this apostasy lasted until joseph smith was visited in 1820 by god the father and his son jesus christ during this visit god instructed smith in several matters one of which was the fact that 13 his true church wasnt on the earth following this personal appearance to smith smith received other visitations from heavenly messengers and further directions

by april of 1830 joseph smith had translated the book of

mormon from ancient records and he and five other men organized what was later named the church of jesus christ of latter day saints according to the laws of the state of new york before and after the church was organized under the direction of jesus christ and through joseph smith his prophet many other revelations were received by smith concerning church government and important

aspects relating to the re establishment of gods true church and doctrines on the earth

from the time smith announced to the world he had had a personal visitation from god the father christ and other heavenly beings smith and the church were the focus of persecution this persecution forced members to flee from new york state to ohio in

1831 berrett pg 84 from ohio they fled to missouri in 1831 but

soon left missouri for illinois in 1839 berrett pg 122 after only a short time in illinois joseph smith and his brother hyrum were murdered by a mob in 1844 berrett pg 189196189 196 and the cormonsmormons 14 fled west eventually arriving on the eastern edge of the great basin

in july of 1847 soon after arrival in the great basin the new city was named the city of the great salt lake bancroft pg 265 later this name was shortened to salt lake city with church headquarters in salt lake city brigham young who succeeded joseph smith as prophet and president of the church

began sending groups of morncormonsmormonsons to organize new towns throughout

the region from these new utah settlements several cities were chosen for temple sites

utah when the mocormonsmormonsons arrived

for the most part when brigham young and company arrived at what is now salt lake city utah was a challenging new homeland much of the state was a desert with little potential for agriculture in addition to the deserts there were several high plateaus extensive canyons and geological formations that couldnt be developed for

agriculture or industry by the newly arrived Morcormonsmormonsmons yet the various mountain systems in utah provided life giving water and 15 sheltering timber also the mountains and mountain valleys supplied

wild game pastures cropland and minerals

approximately thirty percent of utah is terntermeded basin and range being the westerly segment about ten percent of utah in the northeastnorth east is the rocky mountain section with the remaining sixty percent east central and southeastsouth east being the colorado plateau

greer etal pg 16 please see figure 3 physiographic provinces

also consult figures 4 and 5 for the extent of fur trappers and westward migration routes that traversed utah the significance of the fur trappers in assisting the colonization of utah by the cormonsmormons

is very important not only did these trappers become quite knowledgeable of several areas of present day utah but they conveyed this valuable inforninborninformationatlon to brigham young and other church leaders that aided mornmormonon settlement the principle route mormon pioneers used in tratravellingvelling to utah is shown in figure 4 along with other important routes that preceded the mormon route these various caravan trails were essential to settlement of the western united states and later served as main transportation corridors for social and economic flow 16 much of utah had earlier supported human life from simple agricultural means and from hunting and gathering activities the critical factor for the Morcormonsmormonsmons survival was water resources although utah didnt abound in rivers and streams there was sufficient drainage and enough precipitation to grow crops for the

settlers along the west face of the wasatch front and provide range grasses elsewhere for livestock of necessity the cormonsmormons would nearly always settle close to a mountain stream or valley river from the streams and rivers water was damned and diverted to gardens

and fields which often resulted in very good yields in spite of insect and environmental destruction wheat barley potatoes vegetables

and even fruit trees were planted and harvested in settlements whose

size varied with the available water

aiding agricultural development were soils conducive to adequate crop growth and harvests the valleys and foothills of central utah where the cormonsmormons usually settled and those that extend from utahs northern border to its southern border are predominantly mollisolmollmollisonisol soils that are relatively fertile hutchings murphy in greer etal pg 29 17 the physical environment was of major importance to the first mormon pioneers and would continue to be a significant factor following colonization of utah of the first settlements in utah the ones that flourished did so in large part to favorable environmental factors that allowed continued and further growth 41

18 figure 3 physiographic provinces of utah source greer etaleoal pg 16

rmsUMS A santS ant tri tj AV W physiographic PROVINCES

LECINOLEGEND OOUNDARYDOUNDARY 1DIVISIONSI ISIONS rhylngfjpkx rfrfoviodiovi t sdjon 0 jlyg&phlcriiyiicrphlc solonss0lons V kl jjrjj1

U

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17 ido100

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40

1 411 tat8

figure 4 fur trapper routes source greer etal pg 80

TRAPPER ROUTES

LICCND

imiilimilliam H ashley vius18251825. lo icieeslenc0gjenicloa-clo skrec 0lnalnolnoin 165gits113133 elnerhernflnclinriCl inrileekyepi r s w42sIK 2 rs 1 Anianioinfaninitsenitse rtobjonefinehlRohi Joujow 18318j2 injrdijhjededjh sinS ih lllitiftlla112 2 n- r sih ll2 P rh allinlailervailerjllin 1 allbtlbil jaj4 nndfvu il aejJ afesjfesdatdal

lasi n- v holohelgheig ailAIM 1sj j Is srez81.81 MI C itiikioki Is m5ma W

46 ismtom

rklaklrke p4pa ism

so lovvdevee bjb J to irliftoft L 1

isutsuIOU 3

fcsfaswss 20 figure 5 westward migration routes source greer et alat pg 84

ri A

FL 90

FL

AW

T mi

WESTWARD MIGRATION ROUTES 183018501830 1850

f chapter 2

review of literature

there is a considerable amount of literature that deals with sacred space and sacred sites which will be cited here and used to

augment or disprove the hypothesis that mornmormonon temple sites qualify

as sacred space several authors have completed specific studies on

the geography of religion in general as well as the geography of mormonism these studies and other relevant authors of religion and geography will provide a framework for this thesis it is intended by this thesis that a preliminary investigation of important geographic

and religious characteristics will be presented to better understand the temple sites of utah this study will therefore be a focused analysis of a particular aspect of mormonism that will hopefully contribute to a better understanding of this religion

21 22 the review of literature will consist of three types of

information sources on mornmormonismonismeonism material on religion and sacred

spaces and the concept of sacred and the writings on religion and

sacred space and sites by noted geographers william edwin berrett in the restored church has produced a concise work on basic elements of mormonism that include statements of the relationship of the church with the church jesus

christ established when he lived on the earth the organization and brief history of the moriimorlimorllmormonon church up to the 1970s and many explanations of basic teachings of the church especially important is berretts section on temples and related temple doctrines the book is not produced by the church but has been used by it richard V francaviglia in the mormon landscape has written on his living with the Morcormonsmormonsmons and his observation of the

landscape the members of this church have produced of interest is his examination of the development of mormon thought motives and

expression and diffusion of characteristics of this people lowry nelson a professor of sociology in the mormon village as does berrett provides a short history of the doctrines and establishment of the church and follows by studying mormon villages 23 and towns in utah and alberta although a sociologist nelson gives geographical aspects of his discussion that contribute to understanding of earlier utah settlements thomas F odea author of the Morcormonsmormonsmons it presents an account of early mornmormonismonismeonism development and history from the standpoint of a non mormon it is a detailed examination of important founding events and introduction of basic church beliefs good information on early utah settlements and physical geography are included

editors edward H spicer and raymond H thompson of plural society in the southwest have examined the southwest area of the united states and northern mexico to describe the dominate ethnic and quasi ethnic cultures of this area mornmormonismonismeonism is studied as well as the navajo and hopi indian tribes and the mexicans of northern mexico in the section on the church the element of sacred space and homeland is briefly discussed and applied to mormonism as well as indian cultures

concerning authors of sacred sites and space mircea eliade is of special importance due to his recognized experience and authorship of religious topics in both the sacred and the profane and the 24 encyclopedia of religion eliade extensively traces the chronology of

the concept and origin of sacred and applies sacred status to time space and specific sites eliades definitions and characteristics of

sacred space and sites have helped to define what a sacred site is and

how it came to be and how to recognize one many authors on

religion in general and specific topics include references to eliade

stephen beasleymurraybeasley murray in towards a metaphysics of the sacred has authored a short but concentrated analysis of holy he does this by reviewing this concept from the writings of others

although there are only one hundred pages of text the information is sharply focused the last section is devoted to the sacred concept

roger caillaiscailloisCaillois in man and the sacred is another sociologist who has joined the concept of sacred to taboo transgression life and

death sex and sexual purification play war and the ambiguity of scared of special note caillaiscailloisCaillois work isnt based at all on the work of eliade and doesnt contain a single reference to eliade as most authors do in another short manuscript robert cohn in the shape of sacred space has advanced the application of sacred by 25 illuminating four biblical settings in which a sacred object is important using a city setsettingtink james doughertys the fivesquareFivesquare city illustrates the sacred aspects of various types of earthly and heavenly cities included in his work dougherty makes a number of references to sacred space temples and other elements of anything or any place that is sacred in the anatomy of the sacred james livingston devotes a considerable amount of work to introducing religion the symbols of religion that include sacred spaceapace and structures the social dimension of religion and the future of religion in his opinion in several chapters livingston develops the sacred concept to place and especially concerning religion

another small booklet understanding religious man by frederick J strengstrong briefly introduces and discusses religion and its origins and expressions then proceeds to explain how one might be religious and ends by suggesting how religion can influence mans view of his community and world in several places streng makes reference to the sacred it concept and specifically to sacred space 26 an important source of religious reference to sacred space and temples is harold turners book from temple to meeting house the entire volume is given to worship in sacred places with many examples of such along with excellent interpretations of these

examples

moving to the writings of geographers that have commented on

sacred sites and the concept of sacred john B jackson has a chapter that mentions these subjects in his book the necessity for ruins jackson deals firstly with the subject of sacred groves but then diverges to various related sacred features of religion

geographical areas history philosophy etc another jackson richard jackson contributes significantly to the topic of sacred space especially concerning the church with two studies he and some associates have produced in pilgrimage in the

mormon church jackson et al gives a brief introduction and

description of mormonism then mentions holy places of Morcormonsmormonsmons temples historical sites and related issues another article by jackson and roger henrie entitled perception of sacred space found in the journal of cultural geography studies the mormon perception of sacred space using three categories of sacred space 27 from this study its learned what types of sacred sites are important to cormonsmornmormonsons and in what order donald meinig in 1965 published an article on the mormon culture region strategies and patterns in the geography of the

american west 184719641847 1964 11 A substantial article that contains mostly history of the church he also describes the mormon core area

and makes a few remarks concerning temples

david sopher the author of geography of religions has

produced an excellent study of world religions their geographical

aspects and extent and has a considerable number of remarks about

sacred places of many religions including mormonismmorn onismeonism also sopher

discusses temples religious systems and the future of religions

A very interesting geographer with an excellent sociological perspective yi fu tuan has two books that each contain writings on sacred sacred space and human views of landscape and sacred places in landscapes of fear tuan makes valuable statements about space in general a cultures interpretation of space and influence on it and

several paragraphs about sacred space more attention to sacred

space temples intimate space and mythical space is presented in tuanseuans space and place 28 conclusion

As is hoped by the preceding review of literature there is

presently at least a suffsufficienticientscient amount of inforninborninformationatlon on the religious

concept of sacred and the geography of religion that an application of these discourses can help to evaluate the sacred status of mormon

temple sites an important feature of the cited literature is that

much of it has developed recently enough to be relevant yet old

enough to have been refined by noted religious and geographical scholars also cormonsmormons and mormon culture has been studied and reported fairly well that help to better understand this culture and

determine how mormon sacredness aligns with common definitions

As numerous and acknowledged religious writers have developed

the subject of sacred space sacred time and sacred objects such as

buildings and temples defining criteria has evolved to determine

these topics with these definitions it will be possible to ascertain if mormon temple sites qualify as sacred space chapter 3

the salt lake city temple site

towards the end of july 1847 advance parties of mormon scouts and pioneers entered the salt lake valley on july 24 1847 as church president brigham young viewed the valley for the first time he later wrote the spirit of light rested upon me and hovered over the valley and I1 felt that there the saints would find protection and safety brigham young quoted by bancroft pg 262

wilford woodruff who was present when young first saw the salt lake valley later wrote he was wrappedenwrappedunwrappeden in vision for several minutes he had seen the valley before in vision and upon this occasion he saw the future glory of zion planted in the valley woodruff quoted by bancroft pg 262 the salt lake valley is at the eastern margin of the basin and range province and is one of a number of fault block depressions

29 30 found along the western edge of the wasatch mountains it is

roughly rectangular in shape being approximately 15 miles wide and

30 miles long the length of which is oriented nearly north and south the eastern edge of the valley is bounded by the wasatch mountains the western boundary being the oquirrh mountains the north and south enclosures are small extensions of the wasatch range after the mormon pioneers arrived salt lake valley was simply referred to as the valley morgan quoted in the valley of the great salt lake

pg 9

the salt lake valley is usually referred to climatically as being semiaridsemi arid and is somewhat typical of other mountainousnonmountainousnon areas of

utah by referring to table 1 utah climatic statistics a better understanding of the climatic challenge the pioneers faced can be gained the summers were hot winters cold and growing seasons varied considerably throughout the state in the lower basins and valleys there was limited annual precipitation 31 table I11 utah climatic statistics for the main utah settlements source ellsworth pg 39

mean temperature annual mean growing season elevation precipitation city feet above maximum minimum inches days sea level febeaveravi 5860 64064.064-0 30930.9 112511.25112-5 106

blanding 6036 63863.863-8 35535.535-5 119511.95119-5 147 brigham city 4335 63663.6 38438.4 177317.73177-3 157 bryce canyon 8000 56956.9 25225.2 158315.83158-3 608060 80 plateau 110120110 120 bottomlandbottomland cedar city 5980 64764.7 36136.1 102710.27102-7 142

coalvilleCoalville 5550 61561.561-5 26926.9 139813.98139-8 67 duchesne 55155.515 60460.4 28428.4 9439.4394-3 115 76- emery 62106.210 60460.460-4 31331.331-3 7647.644 132

farmington 42674.26742-67 64664.664-6 38238.238-2 195219.52195-2 168 fillmore 5250 66366.3 38438.4 141014.10141-0 155 green 57- river 40584.05840-58 70170.1 35235.235-2 5785.788 158

heber 55935.59355-93 60560.560-5 27527.527-5 158415.84158-4 77 canabkanab 5010 70570.5 39339.3 123812.38 163

levan 5300 63863.8 34734.734-7 135413.54 137 logan 4775 59159.1 37037.0 166616.66 164 manti 5515 62162.1 32532.5 129912.99 130

8 84- milford 5028 64864.864- 33233.233-2 8448.444 128 82- moab 40004.00040-00 72772.7 41041.041-0 8268.266 182

morgan 5070 62662.662-6 29129.1 146814.68146-8 92 ogden 4280 63463.4 37637.6 172317.23172-3 160 91-9g panguitch 6720 61361.361-3 24824.824-8 9199.19gi- 67 97- price 5560 64264.264-2 34734.734-7 9779.777 153 provo 4470 64964.9 34134.1 135013.50135-0 126 83- richfield 53005.30053-00 66966.966-9 32432.4 8358.355 129 saint george 2880 77677.6 44744.7 7817.8178-1 213 salt lake city 4220 63963.9 38738.7 147414.74147-4 202

tooelethoele 4820 62662.6 40240.240-2 158315.83158-3 170 85- vernal 5280 61461.4 27027.027-0 8528.522 119

salt lake city statistics would be very similar to those of bountiful and south jordan jordan river temple 32 the moods of members of the initial pioneer company of men women and children were mixed to say the least upon viewing salt lake valley the journal of wilford woodruff gives this positive description

we gazed with wonder and admiration upon the vast fertile valley spread out before us for about twentyfivetwenty five miles in length and sixteen miles in width clothed with a heavy garment of vegetation and in the midst of which glistened the waters of the great salt lake with mountains all around towering to the skies and streams rivulets and creeks of pure water running through the beautiful valley woodruff quoted by young pg 119

another apostle writing in retrospect magnified the task that the

pioneers faced

A broad and barren plain hemmed in by mountains blistering in the burning rays of the midsummer sun no waving fields no swaying forests no verdant meadows to rest and refresh the weary eye but on all sides a seemingly interminable waste of sagebrush spangledbespangledbe with sunsunflowersflowers the paradise of the lizard the cricket and the rattlesnake whitney quoted by romney unpublished thesis pg 98

within days of arrival crops were planted streams damned and watering crops streets and city blocks were surveyed and marked out

quickly the pioneers built small log cabins with wood from distant canyons and scouted the land to the north south and west 33 choosing the salt Llakee city temple site on july 28 1847 brigham young in the company of other church leaders and general members walked to an area near their camp struck his cane into the ground and stated here we will build

a temple to our god nielsen pg 1 originally the salt lake city temple site was to have been forty acres in size however after consultation with the other church leaders young reduced the lot

size to ten acres nielsen pg 1 the standard city block of the older parts of the city the story of the construction of the salt lake temple is fairly well known it took forty years to complete due to many delays and

setbacks begun in 1853 it was finished in 1893 and has become an international landmark and landscape symbol of salt lake city and the church augmenting the grandeur of the temple site with its two

visitors centers the world famous tabernacle and the assembly hall

is its beautiful vegetation every year about 500 varieties of flowers

are planted on the square and over 130000 plants are grown every six months in the greenhouses owned by the church nielsen pg 25 34 why did brigham young initiate the construction of the salt lake city temple and why did he choose the site that he did firstly a temple was needed for the sacred ordinances for the worthy membership of the church in his own words some might query whether a revelation had been given to build a house of the lord but he is a wicked and slothful servant who doethboeth nothing but what his lord commandethcommandeth when he knoweth his masters will I1 know a temple is needed and so do you and when we know a thing why do we need a revelation to compel us to do that thing if the lord and all the people want a revelation I1 can give one concerning this temple in a few days I1 shall be able to give a plan on paper and then if heaven or any good man on earth will suggest any improvements we shall receive them and adopt them brother joseph often remarked that a revelation was no more necessary to build a temple than a dwelling house if a man knew he needed a kitchen a bedroom a dining room a parlor etc he needed no revelation to inform him of the fact and I1 and my brethren around me know what is wanting in a temple having received all the ordinances belonging therein just as well as we do what is wanting in a convenient dwelling house brigham young quoted by raynor pg 13

As to the reason why brigham young chose the site he did he continues by having said

1 I scarcely ever say much about revelations or visions but suffice it to say five years ago last july I1 was here and saw in spirit the temple not ten feet from where we have laid the chief cornerstone I1 have not inquired what kind of temple we should build why because it was represented before me I1 have never looked upon that 35 ground but the vision of it was there brigham young quoted in raynor pg 15

official historical records of the church contain several corresponding but different versions of how the salt lake city temple site was chosen from the journal history of the mormon church a written statement by brigham young states that this

afternoon july 28 1847 accompanied by elders heber C kimball willard richards orson pratt wilford woodruffand thomas bullock

I1 designated the site for the salt lake city temple block between the forks of city creek and on motion of orson pratt it was

unanimously voted that the temple be built on the site designated

microfilm CR 100137 8 c2c-a many years later wilford woodruff also wrote in his journal entry of the same date july 28 1847 that when brigham young decided where the salt lake city temple site should be president young waved his hand and said here is the forty acres for the temple the city can be laid out perfectly square north south east and west woodruff journal history of the mormon church microfilm CR 100137 8c2 not only did young choose the salt lake city temple site but he instituted an element of city planning that salt lake city would be oriented to the cardinal directions of the compass and that the city was to be square in shape 36 the salt lake city temple site is located on a ten acre city block temple square in downtown salt lake city when the

mornmormonon pioneers first arrived at the site it was in the northeast corner of the salt lake valley the temple site was typical of the rest of the valley covered with sagebrush and prairie grasses elevation

of the temple site is approximately 4330 feet above sea level and

imperceptibly slopes upwards from west to east nearby was city creek that furnished adequate water for the temple site it also

augmented the sites meager 15 inches of rainfall with a growing

season of 202 days the watered crops grew well although the temple

wasnt completed until 1893 its site early became the central point

of activities and expansion of the city once the temple site was

selected plots of land for homes and gardens were allotted nearby to

the pioneers and homes gardens crops and pastures were soon

constructed and planted or sectioned off for such

A short distance to the north and east of the temple site are the wasatch mountains these mountains extend in a nearly straight north south direction and form the eastern boundary of salt lake valley from the canyons of the west side of the wasatch mountains

the pioneers could obtain lumber building stone wild game and fish 37 that greatly aided settlement and sustenance such closeness to the towering peaks of the wasatch mountains were natural sources of

visual strength and domidominancenance for the mormon landscape also the wasatch range could be viewed as a protective barrier that cradled the new zion from old babylon but didnt completely engulf it or prevent zion from being spread to the four corners of the earth from its slightly elevated position the completed salt lake city temple could be seen from nearly the entire salt lake valley once completed the temple became the focal point of the mormon landscape

of the world not only does it represent the world capital of mormonism but of important political power in utah aiding to the visibility of the temple site were early and subsequent

transportational routes pioneer and modern travellerstravellers through salt lake valley pass close to the temple site which helps expose and

define the mormon culture and landscape figure 6 salt lake city temple site shows the location of the temple site and the surrounding topography 38 summary of the salt Llakee city temple site

when considering the salt lake city temple site or any other church temple site its important to always acknowledge the completed temple that occupies the site as part of the site A temple site isnt just the ground or lot thats slated for a temple to be built upon its the finished temple that extends into and above the earth as well as the immediate temple grounds A temple is the visual

extension of the temple site and represents the temple site on the mormon landscape 39 figure 6 salt lakeke city temple site source adapted by author from united states geological survey salt lake city north and south maps 124000124.000 scale

emigration canyon great salt lake

pr salt lake city temple site x x 0 el4330el 4330 2 20 2-8 W cc 0 W CO0 C salt lake valley U0 0 el 4290 w 8

CO 0 w

point of the mountain

utahlakeUtah Lake not drawn to scale 40 the salt lake city temple site symbolizes many meanings upon the mormormonon landscape it ranks among a handful of buildings in the world that are recognized by large numbers of people such concern to have a temple site and begin developing it upon arrival of the cormonsmormons in salt lake valley indicates the importance of temple sites and temple work in mormon doctrine brigham young claimed many times that god had revealed to him the temple site with the completed temple on it the temple site is well suited for such a large and substantial structure the ground is level in the immediate and

extended surroundings sufficient water was nearby to supply the temple site and more importantly to sustain the pioneers and their

crops and facilitated the settlement of the area crops and feed grew

well for human and livestock needs and building materials of

sufficient quality and quantity for the temple and homes were also available the temple site until recently could be viewed from nearly the entire salt lake valley dominating the valley and establishing

the mormon presence and landscape skyscrapers now block the

north south and east view of the site of very special symbolism the salt lake city temple site is a monument to the dedication suffering and sacrifice of the mormon 41 pioneers in large part the trek to salt lake valley was a death march for hundreds of Morcormonsmormonsmons to achieve a peaceful sanctuary for

the remaining survivors to live their religion that heavily involved

having a temple site such importance of a temple was evidenced by

brigham youngs choosing a site for one before doing anything else of significance upon arrival in salt lake valley from sagebrush it became the first sacred space for a group of white men between st louis and the coast of california from the temple site the community of salt lake city grew its choosing signaled that home sites could be placed around it and that construction could begin this process was continued in subsequent mormon communities with the chapel meeting house or tabernacle replacing the temple site where communities didnt have a temple first the chapel or tabernacle site would be chosen then homes could be placed around it in conjunction with this mormon community planning process the salt lake city temple site also represented both an arrival point for incoming mormon converts and a departure point for outgoing cormonsmormons to settle other areas of utah neighboring states and foreign countries this temple site also signifies the cooperation of brigham young with other church leaders and 42 members originally young wanted temple square to be 40 acres in

size but later agreed to reduce it to 10 acres for easier maintenance

nielson pg 1 church authority is manifested by the temple site the completed temple houses the most critical of planning meetings church leaders have before the temple was finished the mormon prophet of the world and the twelve latter day apostles held council

nearby the temple site even unfinished the temple site was a

hallowed landmark and symbol made distinct by religious definition

before dedication the temple site became the recognized target

in the mormon landscape for the federal government of the united states whose purpose was nothing less than religious persecution

polygamy in church pioneer times and now is a crime in the united

states but the course of action the federal agents took in prosecuting

church polygamists was often illegal especially just before the church ended this practice other forms of political harassment occurred also occupying utah territory with federal army troops delaying the granting of statehood refusal of congress to accept elected delegates from utah and nuisance meddling and probing into secular and religious affairs all of these offenses were aimed at the 43 church with the salt lake city temple site as the mental picture antagonists knowingly or unknowingly took when attacks of any kind

were made upon the chuichchulchchurch to attack mornmormonismonismeonism is to attack the salt lake city temple site for that site represents the heart and power of the church nearly all important matters of doctrine policy and decisions stem directly or indirectly from that site the highest leaders of the church meet frequently in the temple to regulate

matters of the kingdom its value is inestimable in its early history the salt lake city temple site was also viewed as an admirable token of an industrious people who braved a

new frontier indeed this temple site has represented continued

praise and controversy over church policies such as polygamy past

priesthood denial to male blacks and current denial to women

importance of genealogical research strengthening family units an

efficient welfare system world missionary program and opposition to

the equal rights amendment and gambling such a controversial history of the church most frequently symbolized by the salt lake

city temple site will probably encounter future speculation as cormonsmormons continued to hearken to what they believe is gods will 44 thus the salt lake city temple site represents many symbols on the morimorlmormonon landscape all of which are profound and enduring

important leadership and decision making patterns were established by brigham young at this time although he claimed revelation as to the temple site and later the design of the temple he still accepted and followed good advice from subordinates chapter 4

the st george temple site

once the saints had arrived in the salt lake valley brigham young soon began the process of expanding moriimorilmorllmormonon settlements to the areas he perceived the saints could use the salt lake valley provided isolation and protection but it was apparent to young that

this valley could not supply all the physical needs of the members

also young wanted to occupy or at least claim as much territory as possible with mormon communities from these subsequent

settlements diversified raw materials could be obtained to sustain the

church berrett pgsggs 285305285 305 other areas would need to be settled

by cormonsmormons to provide living space for the converts young expected would come west to join the main body of Morcormonsmormonsmons to this end young announced in march of 1849 the following

we are about to establish a colony of about thirty families in the utah valley about fifty miles south we

45 46 hope soon to explore the valleys three hundred miles south and also the country as far as the gulf of california with a view to settlement and to acquiring a seaport brigham young quoted by young pg 176

beginning in 1849 and for several years afterward young sent several scouting and settlement parties into southwesternsouth western utah despite tremendous effort these first colonizing efforts failed

disease drought floods and fainting hearts often curtailed success president young visited the virgin river country st george area in

18618611 and stated there will yet be built between these volcanic ridges a city with spires towers and steeples with homes containing many

inhabitants brigham young quoted by larson pg 102 As

president young made this prophecy he is said to have been looking

in the direction of present day st george larson pg 102 this new settlement was later colonized under the direction of young to be a center of cotton production

it is suggested by most authors that st george was named after church apostle george albert smith who accompanied the large group of colonists that founded st george such naming of early towns with the names of church leaders or other religious sources was

common among the pioneers table 6 entitled origin of mormon place names gives examples figures 7 and 8 mormon exploration 47 and settlement routes and mormon expansion by decade illustrate early mormon areas of investigation and colonizing whereas the salt lake valley had sufficient water resources and essential materials for settlement the area of st george was much more arid with fewer natural resources As the cotton mission pioneers entered the valley of st george there was less natural vegetation than the salt lake valley and even the resident indians were more destitute than their northern counterparts indeed it

looked bleak and the searing desert sun compounded the problems brigham young had taken careful precautions before sending

nearly 300 families to establish st george most families were chosen

by young and were known to him to be sturdy and dedicated people earlier scouts to southwestsouth west utah had reported that the valley of the santa clara creek and the virgin river where st george is located

had bottoms now expanded about one mile in width and several miles

in length loose sandy soil very pleasant for farming extremely fertile

and easily watered and somewhat subject to overflow daughters of utah pioneers pg 292 based on these reports the cotton mission

settlers left to settle st george arriving december 1 1861 reid pg

102 7

48 figure 7 mormon exploration and settlement routes source greer et al pg 88

ix

MORMON exploration AND settlement ROUTES explanation mafamapa llUlllullorgiul lerloflor iftj ir 6rfaf afanenpenpfa 14 fj 11 1ft4 fm C onitunitonie awftui tmtamt alfeleeierlf hauHAL rail iftj t-j A iftuifju riyariy r rkrm nnwbcwb b IM rqaq c fnan nfhnah ifrj lmfllM fl 1116 albencealbencaalbanalbcn cjrnoncarnonueeuanpon sanolspool 111051 AKC S no luilujIUJ kwllllw CMA stitwstite iwlniwan nlhnihniknah fl ihlIHM T eampamfafafaf 4 1 iihaih atlptl M aund N lllllhc PK lkalk3 lllftuk llflllyl maffmfff 1faf I1 SKS K iv ib hjirhlt f isuirwIRU 11 AClacaarmm clll S

10

SF

N rilrikelk 4 t 01 swy

49 figure 8 mormon expansion by decade source greer et al pg 90

MORMON EXPANSION BY DECADE

LECEND seltseleSeItseitmenisfvllrmrnimenI period

I1 17 it

if 11771077 96

potpoki 1697

typetyne M wnlementwnlement

v L

04 b

w4wa 5

Is

r i

al r 50 table 2 origin of mormon place names source ellsworth pg 183

places named for church leaders place names drawn from the bible and the book of mormon abraham millard county abraham H cannon bountiful davis county benson cache county ezra taft benson deseret minardmillard county brigham city box elder ctyacty brigham young enoch iron county cannonvilleCannonville garfield county george Q cannon ephraim sanpete county clawson emery county rudger clawson jordan river fielding box elder county joseph F smith lehi utah county heber wasatch county heber C kimbaukimballkimbail manti sanpete county hyrum cache county hyrum smith mount carmel kane county losepajosepa tooelethoele county joseph F smith mount nebo utah county josepa hawaiian for joseph nephi juab county taylor weber county john taylor salem utah county thatcher box elder county moses thatcher moab grand county

widtsoeWidtsoe garfield county john AAL widtsoe moroni sanpete county woodruff rich county wilford woodruff ivins washington county anthony W ivins joseph sevier county joseph A young lyman wayne county frances M lyman place names drawn from homes in europe maeser uintah county karl G maeser and the british isles marion summit county francis marion lyman avon cache county avon england parleys park summit county parley P pratt glendale kane county glendale scot parleys canyon parley P pratt washington ctyacty leeds england penrose box elder county charles W penrose lynne box elder ctyacty lynne scotland saint george washington ctyacty george A smith wales sanpete county wales england snowvilleSnowville box elder county lorenzo snow elsinore sevier ctyacty elsinore denmbenm LTltalmagealmagetalmagetaimage duchesne county james E talmage venice sevier county venice italy 51 the establishment and building of st george was at considerable monetary and human cost the suffering of the cotton mission pioneers is well documented and possibly unequaled among

mormon pioneers

st george is located in the very southwest corner of utah being just north of the junction of the santa clara and virgin rivers

elevation of st george is approximately 2700 feet above sea level and is surrounded by several mountain ranges north of st george is the pine valley range east of st george are the hurricane and vermillion cliffs south are the virgin mountains and west of st

george are the beaver dam mountains being situated in a large

flood plain st george has often been plagued by flooding especially

in early pioneer days before dams were constructed precipitation for

the general area of st george is approxiapproximatelyI1 mately eight inches a year greer etal pg 66 however the potential evapotranspiration is nearly 36 inches a year greer etal pg 64 the high evapotranspiration rate is due in part to high annual maximum

temperatures that often exceed 100 degrees fahrenheit during summer months although st george and its adjoining areas are usually considered desert environments with adequate moisture from 52 nearby rivers and occasional rainfall agricultural production was successful enough to sustain the pioneers several other settlements nearby were started shortly before st george was settled but due to emphasis and support by brigham young st george quickly became

the largest community in the area figure 8 population statistics

of st george and adjacent communities will indicate the sustained growth of st george as compared to neighboring towns 53 table 3 population statistics of st george ututah and adjacent communities source moffat utah population section

CENSUS YEAR population

CITY 1980 1970 1960 1950 1940 1930 1920 1910 1900 1890 1880 1870 1860

bloomington 350 20 48 50 75 63

harrisburgHomsburgbung 14 26 103 105 120

hurricane 2361 1408 1251 1271 1524 1197 1021 366

ivins 600 137 77 95 83

LaloverLaVerloverenVerkinkn 1174 463 365 387 349 236 150 100

leeds 218 151 109 160 232 165 152 150 190 200 200 104

st george 11350 709770975130456235915130 4562 3591 2434 2215 1737 1600 1377 1384 1142

santa clara 1091 271 291 319 283 249 305 293 258 202 195 233

toquerville 277 185 197 219 263 288 331 250 250 250 371 264 79

washington 3092 750 445 435 507 435 464 424 529 415 483 463 196 please note A blank entry indicates no data givennogigivencogiven1novenno population at that time 54 the mormon experiences of raising cotton in southwest utah is one of success at high cost and contributed to the development of a temple site in st george the years following the founding of st george with the purpose of growing cotton were marked by severe hardship brigham young and other church leaders soon became

aware and deeply concerned with the trials of the cotton mission by concentrating on growing cotton for cormonsmormons elsewhere in utah the st george pioneers were unable to provide for themselves by growing

or producing other cash crops or foods accordingly young established that all the tithing labor molasses vegetables and grain paid by the people of cedar city utah and all places south of that city would be sent to st george reid pg 119 this assistance was later enlarged to include all eggs fresh meat cheese chickens and

other perishable products reid pg 119 while this action provided food it failed to supply other necessities such as clothing and building materials to obtain these essentials individuals began selling small amounts of raw cotton to non cormonsmormons to the chagrin of young forthwith young condemned this black market and urged the saints to devote all the cotton to the church 55 in april of 1871 brigham young wrote president erastus snow in st george stating that it had been decided by he and the twelve apostles that a temple would now be built in st george reid pg

234 no doubt this decision was made in part to reward the

suffering and sacrifices of the pioneers public services church

historical department st george temple section pg 24 also a temple site would help to permanently establish st george and extend the mormon presence a considerable distance south of salt lake city the construction of the st george temple additionally gave area cormonsmormons employment during the mild winter months

selecting the st george temple site

the choosing of the st george temple site is not only enlightening in a religious and historical sense it also reveals the determined character of brigham young we read the following in the st george temple history

immediately following the decision to erect a temple in utahs dixie church leaders began to search for an appropriate building site many rumors have been circulated concerning an undocumented statement by brigham young that moroni the nephite general had 56 actually dedicated the site where the temple now stands little information is available concerning this statement but the following declaration by david henry cannon jr one of the first settlers in st george sheds some light on the background of the statement 1 I am eighty two years old tomorrow october 14 1942 I1 am the onlaonlvonly living person so far as I1 know who heard and saw wha-whatim I1 am to relate at the time of which we shall speak I1 was a lad of eleven years all seeing and all hearing and drove a team hitched to a scraper president brigham young had written to robert gardner president of the stake high council in his letter he expressed a wish that a temple be built in st george also that brother gardner select a few leading brethren and as a group to visit sites where it might be best to build the temple this they did visiting spots each thought might be best they could not agree and so informed president young president young arriving later somewhat impatiently chided the brethren and at the same time asked them to get into their wagons or whatever else they had and with him find a site to the south they finally stopped but brother young protested the men this land is boggy after a storm and for several months of the year no one can drive across the land without horses and wagons sinking way down there is no place to build a foundation we will make a foundation said president young later on while plowing and scraping where the foundation was to be my horses leg broke through the ground into a spring of water the brethren then wanted to move the foundation line twelve feet to the south so that the spring of water would be on the outside of the temple not so I1 replied president young we will wall it up and leave it here for some future use but we cannot move the foundation this spot was dedicated by the nephitesNephites they could not build it the temple but we can and will build it for them 57 to this day the water from that very spring is running through a drain properly built for it 1I make this statement of my own free will and choice and without any fear or misgiving signed david henry cannon jr bublicpublicvublicpublic services church historical department st george temple section pg 2424.

following this declaration by mr cannon an attestation was given by the three people who received mr cannons remarks they stated that we the underundersignerundersignedsigned found david henry cannon jr preparing beans to be canned also his mind was clear and keen during the entire interview covering about thirty minutes he never hesitated for an answer and he never was once in doubt as to what he had seen and heard upon these memorable occasions he told us many other items which we recorded this fourteenth day of october 1942 but which we do not make a part of this signed statement

signed E ernest bramwell 85 C st salt lake city utah

zilpha H bramwell 85 C st salt lake city utah richard S mcallister st george utah public services church historical department st george temple section pg 2424.

ground breaking ceremonies for the temple site took place on november 9 1871 and construction for the temple began that same 58 day the temple was nearly finished in early 1877 and the dedication ceremonies of the finished edifice were completed in april 1877 although the temple site is located in a valley plain it is situated on

a slight elevation talmage pg 209213209 213 nearly in the center of st

george as depicted in figure 9 59 figure 9 st george tempietemple site st george utah source adapted by author from the united states geological survey st george quadrangle

N red hills P el 3200 apapproxprox pop P- US89-8.911 9 891 to washingtons ington

0 cc0 0CY

CD ccS 00oo ff CO 0 te aleple CD 68 ita 9.9 asicsi 00 CV 404 0 1 illiliLIJ st george reidsfields

virgin river santa clara river not drawn to exact scale 60 summary

the st george temple site is symbolically similar to and different from the salt lake city temple site and the other temple sites the church has chosen and developed it too represents on the mormon landscape sacred space and holy house where god or other

heavenly messengers can literally appear where holy ordinances and

knowledge may be gained for living and dead persons and where

revelation often descends upon humble patrons also it helps to

solidify the mormon presence of an area and sometimes indicates a

conquering of sorts of the physical environment and mortal enemies

more so than the salt lake city temple site st george and its temple site were established in a harsher environment As such the

st george temple site signifies the determination of cormonsmormons to

leave comfortable surroundings at the request of their leaders to extend their faith for a considerable number of years the st george temple site served as the southern boundary of the mormon landscape in utah being a boundary point the temple site also served as a gateway to lands and people to the south and west of st george with the completed temple the temple site was and still is 61 a unique landmark for travellerstravellers between salt lake city and los angeles the templestemplet-pley-s white exterior contrasts strikingly with the red earth and black rock of the immediate area of st george to morncormonsmormonsons and others the temple site by appearance and contrast

exemplifies the ability and need for church members and other christians to be outwardly and inwardly spiritually different than the

environment they live in As the color white often portrays purity

the st george temple site is an excellent symbol of virtue and

godliness

according to the foregoing cannon account brigham young

appeared to have chosen this temple site by revelation from god

received just prior to choosing the site As it was the temple site

young decided upon seemed at first a poor choice to which local

church leaders objected and even offered alternate sites however young wouldnt compromise a literal inch even when it was evident

the ground was boggy from an underground spring subsequent assessment though indicates the st george temple

site is situated in the best location of that confined area visibility of the site and temple would have been better from a higher elevation but water for such a temple site possibly wasnt known at the time to 62 be at higher altitudes above the valley this lack of water at higher elevations is indicated by US government maps of st george the spring which the temple site encompassed has consistently provided

water for its needs water was also nearby in the virgin river but

not so close as to damage the temple site during flooding another deserving characteristic of this temple site is that its befitting of such a sacred symbol no other land in the area of the

temple site was as valuable at that time nor could have another location have been as centrally located in the only vicinity where

settlement could occur community growth was aided by not having to cluster around a temple site that was mostly rock that wouldnt

support garden crops or fruit trees it appears that the previous account of david henry cannon jr how he witnessed brigham young choosing the st george temple site and heard young state the site was originally dedicated for a

temple by some ancient american inhabitants known as nephitesNephites is the only public document the church has concerning how this temple site was chosen although its impossible to determine complete accuracy of cannons statement several important aspects of cannon himself and the observation he claims strongly indicate he spoke the 63 truth of how this temple site was located importantly it was the written opinion of three adults of probably at least average

intelligence that when cannon related the site selection story

cannon appeared to have a clear and keen mind and could discuss

and answer questions about this incident without hesitation and was

steadfast in what he recounted adding support to cannons story

and credibility are statements and recollection of statements by

others that what cannon claimed was at least very possible

one individual is said to have witnessed brigham young

speaking in the st george tabernacle church and heard young state that the spirit world was not far from us and if the veil could

be taken from our eyes there wouldnt be either a man woman or

child who would dare go out of this tabernacle as the spirits of the

Gadigadiantonanton robbers were so thick out there this is where they lived in these mountains heber jarvis quoted by lundwall pg 86 the Gadigadiantonanton robbers were enemies of the nephite people in the book of mormon a book cormonsmormons believe to be sacred scripture similar to the bible thus if the spirits of the Gadigadiantonsantons still inhabit the st george area the nephite people could have lived near there at one

time also as the Gadigadiantonanton robbers lived primarily from stealing food 6461 from the nephitesNephites as mentioned in the book of mormon ifbrighamifbrigham young actually stated what jarvis claims he said then nephite people that lived at or near present day st george could very well have dedicated the st george temple site many years ago also a written statement by brigham young again mentions the Gadigadiantonanton robbers

that the spirits of the Gadigadiantonsantons are around us you may see battlefield after battlefield scattered across this american continent

where the wicked have slain the wicked brigham young quoted by lundwall pg 296 this declaration is also found in the journal of

discourses volume 12 pg 128 consequently its an established fact brigham young claimed the Gadigadiantonanton robbers lived throughout canada the united states and mexico this being the case it parallels that the nephite people also lived and travelled these same areas and could have chosen and dedicated the st george temple site it appears that cannons story

is possibly true at least according to statements made by brigham young chapter 56

the manti temple site

according to hunter centennial committee pg 18 on june

14 1849 an indian chief called walker with twelve of his tribe visited with president brigham young and requested young to send mormon settlers to sanpete county chief walker is said to have asked for the settlers to teach his people how to grow crops and build homes within six moons replied young 1I will send you a company berrett pg 423 young then sent a scouting party that explored this area later known as sanpete valley and picked the site for the town of manti a name chosen by young after a city in the book of mormon isaac morley then led the company of settlers to manti arriving in november of 1849

As with establishing other mornmormonon settlements the task was difficult upon arriving at manti it began snowing it snowed so

65 66 much and for so long that the pioneers had to clear patches of valley

grass for the animals to feed many anianimalsmalsmais died of starvation and exposure and even the indians said it was the coldest winter they could remember the dead animals were eaten by the indians which reduced their begging for food from the settlers provisions that the manti pioneers brought with them ran out in december and men and wagons returned to salt lake city for additional food on the return

trip though the snow had become so deep the wagons bogged down

and the food was eventually delivered by sled and human back

fortunately enough food trickled in to sustain the community until

spring romney pg 282 283 when spring arrived so did

rattlesnakes by the hundreds according to one pioneer they crawled everywhere they attacked the horses and cattle they crawled into the

bedding they were found in the dugouts and one of the brethren

killed thirty in one day romney pg 282 283 after several years manti was firmly established and served as

a center for the formation of other nearby communities the villages ofmount pleasant spring city and ephraim these new settlements experienced excellent agricultural success the fame of which attracted

other settlers to the area sutton pg 515 516 figure 10 67 settlement sequence depicts the establishment of manti and neighboring communities the time periods of the settlements and

patterns of development that grew in part from manti table 4 population statistics of manti utah and adjacent communities indicates the growth of manti and its surrounding cities plainly

manti hasnt always been the most populous city in san pete valley but has shared this distinction with ephraim and mt pleasant over

the years figure 11 manti temple site illustrates manti city and the temple site

the manti temple site is on a hill of nearly solid rock oriented mainly east and west with downward sloping sides to the north south and west the hill is a lateral extension of the wasatch mountain range originally the manti temple site sloped downward

from east to west dropping 50 feet in elevation in only 200 feet of level distance the highest point of the hill nearest the temple site is east of the temple site approximately 13 of a mile and has an elevation of 5720 feet above sea level the temple site elevation is 5640 feet above sea level the city of manti itself is quite close to being in exactly the middle of utah and has an average elevation of 5600 feet an average elevation of the sanpete valley immediately 68 west of the temple site is approximately 5425 feet above sea level the main highway that traverses sanpete valley connecting manti with other communities north and south is highway number 89 and

passes on the west edge of the temple site property temple block the higher elevation of the manti temple site compared to surrounding ground levels results in an excellent view of and from the temple site

east of the temple site about 12 mile are the foothills of the wasatch mountains from the base of the foothills the slopes

steadily rise in elevation on a horizontal map distance of three miles to a height of approximately 10250 feet above sea level these high mountains form an impressive and contrasting background to the

temple site across sanpete valley the foothills of the san pitch mountains begin four miles west of the temple site the san pitch mountains rise to an average height of 8500 feet above sea level and

are six to eight miles wide extending south of manti only a few miles

but continue north of manti about 40 miles the manti temple site is in a steppe BS environment greer etal pg 55 although this area receives 13 inches of precipitation yearly the natural vegetation is desert like however crops and 69 natural grasses do quite well in this area aided by an adequate soil type aridoaridosoilssoils greer etal pg 28 29 if watered properly from precipitation or irrigation

of special importance to the manti temple site is a constant spring of water just east of the temple site public services church

historical department pg 18 that supplies the temple site with a year round supply of water completely adequate for its needs 70 figure 10 settlementSeftsefulement sequence source peterson & bennion pg 22

indianola 187018901870 1890

N 0 milburn 185918611859 1861

e fairview 185918611859 1861

mt pleasant 185918611859 1861

chester 187018901870 1890 spring city 1849

ephraim 1849

fayette 185918611859 1861

manti1849mantimantl 1841849 gunnison 185918611859 1861 sterling 187018901870 1890 centerfieldCenterfield 187018901870 1890 e christianborgChristianborg 187018901870 1890 e axtell 187018901870 1890 e mayfield 187018901870 1890 71 table 4 population statistics of manti utah and adjacent communities source moffat utah population section

CENSUS YEAR population

CITY 1980 1970 1960 1950 1940 1930 1920 1910 1900 1890 1880 1870 1860 185011850

axtell 25 250 250 200 180

Centercenterfieldfield 653 419 475 601 598 554 566 495 400

chester 50 182 200 200 200

ephraim 2810281021272127 1801 1987 2094 1966 2287228722962296 2086 1800 1698 1167 910

fonForforviewfairviewforeviewview 916 696 655 974 1314 1120 1423 1218 1119 844 863 531 303

fayee 165 93 161 200 247 81 200 100 91 100 125

gunnison 1255 1073 1059 1144 1115 1057 1115 950 829 600 548 475

dionoloindianolaIn 108 400 150 100

manti 2080208018031803 1739173920512051 2268226822002200 2412241224232423 2408 1950 1748 1237 916 100

mayfieldMoyfield 397 267 329 390 473 467 550 485 400 250 150

mt pleasant 2049 1516 1572 2030 2382 2284 2415 2280 2372 2254 2004 1346 746

sterling 199 144 137 188 223 200 150 300 204 85 pleasepease note A blank entry indicates no data givencogiven1nogivennogivenno popu-lation at that time 72 figure 11 manti temple site source adapted by author from united states geological survey mantimantl utah quadrangle L12400-240001240000 scale

manti temple site el 5640

EI goo el 6005600 N

to gunnilc 73 selecting the manti temple site

an official publication of the church states that in august

1850 brigham young in manti pointed to quarry hill present manti

temple site and said one day a temple would stand on top of that hill overlooking the valley the church ofjesus christ of latter day saints pamphlet no page number another earlier account contained in an additional temple document states that another high

ranking church leader also prophesied a temple in manti in the same

location as brigham young later indicated while helping to choose

the site for the city of manti president heber C kimball prophesied

that the day would come when a temple would be built on this hill

present manti temple site some disbelieved and doubted the

possibility of even making a settlement there brother kimball said

well it will be so and more than that the rock will be quarried from that hill present manti temple site to build it with public services

church historical department pgsggs 16 17 an official church account tells how the manti temple site was chosen and dedicated as

follows 74 at the conference held in ephraim sanpete county june 25 1875 nearly all the speakers expressed their feelings to have a temple built in sanpete county and gave their views as to what point and where to build it and to show the union that existed elder daniel H wells said manti george Q cannon brigham young jr john taylor orson hyde erastus snow franklin D richards lorenzo young and A M musser said manti stone quaquarry I1 have given the names of the order in which they spoke at 4 pm that day president brigham young said the temple should be built on manti stone quarry early on the morning ofapril 252518771877 president brigham young asked brother warren S snow to go with him to the temple hill brother snow says we two were alone president young took me to the spot where the temple was to stand we went to the southeast corner and president young said here is the spot where the prophet moroni stood and dedicated this piece of land for a temple site and that is the reason why the location is made here and we cant move it from this spot and if you and I1 are the only persons that come here at high noon today we will dedicate this ground public services church historical department pg 182318 23 of special note the last half of this quote beginning with early on the morning until the end of the quote was also found in a mormon newspaper named the latter day saints millennial star L august 13 1888 the similarities between the foregoing statement and the site selection process of the st george temple site are obvious president

brigham young went to a spot in the general area a temple was to be constructed and chose a very specific site that couldnt be moved even a few feet and while so choosing the st george and manti temple sites young declared that these sites were previously chosen 75 for temple sites by ancient nephitesNephites one of which was the

prophethistorianprophet historian moroni possibly moroni was the nephite who dedicated the st georgetemplegeorge templetempie site all things considered moroni could very well have also dedicated the st george temple site according to statements by brigham young and others

ground breaking and dedication ceremonies of the temple site occurred april 25 1877 the temple itself was completed in the spring of 1888 and dedicated may 21 1888 berrett pg 374 A great majority of stone used to construct the mantimantlmantti temple was

obtained from rock excavated on site

president brigham young died four months after the manti

temple site was chosen and dedicated august 29 1877 a map of

major mormon settlement sites young helped to establish is shown in

figure 12 A more complete list of communities young influenced in

settling is given in table 5 76 figure 12 mormon settlement sites source buttle pg 123

A laketownLaketown 1869 CU e logan 1859

brighambrighamcity1851city 185

e huntsville 1860 ogden 1848 fort supply 1853

e morgan 18s18600 mormon statonstation 1849 farmington 1848 4 coamllecoalvllle 1859 bountiful 1847 a wanshipmanship 1859 salt lake city 1847 Grantsgrantsvillegrantsvllle1851ville 1851 e tooelethoele 1849 9 heber city 1859 american fork 1850 j provoprovo18491849 J spanish fork 1851

nephinephi18511851

e manti1849mantManti 1849

fillmore 1851 e salina 1863 kanosh 185918590 e richfield 1864 elk mt 1855 marysvaleMarysvale 1864 moab beaver 1858

circiecirclenilleCirclecirdev1lle1864NIlle 1864

carowanparowan 1851

0 cedar city 1851

washington 1857 K 0 santa clara 1854 st george 1861 77 table 5 colonization of utah by 1877 source miller

salt lake city 1847 eden1859eden 1859 bountiful 1847 henefer 1859 farmington 1847 gunnison 1859 ogden1848ogden 1848 moroni 1859 big cottonwood 1848 smithfield 1859 sugar house 1848 heber city 1859 centervilleCenterville 1848 juab1860juab 1860 bingham 1848 morgan 1860 north & west jordan 1848 huntsville 1860 kaysvillewaysvilleKaysville 1849 saint george 1861 provo 1849 pipe springs 1863 genoa mormon station 1849 monroe 1863 granger 1849 salina 1863 draper 1849 circlevilleCircleville 1864 manti 1849 richfield 1864 tooelethoele 1849 panguitch 1864 Grantsgrantsvilleville 1849 bloomington 1864 lehi 1850 montpelier 1864 pleasant grove 1850 fish haven 1864 payson 1850 laketownLaketownetownutown 1864 spanish fork 1850 liberty 1864 american fork 1850 glendale Berrberryvilleyville 1864 layton 1850 calls landing 1864 Pacarowanparowanrowan 1851 marysvaleMarysvale 1864 brigham city 1851 woodruff 1865 san bernardino 1851 manila 1869 nephi 1851 eureka 1869 fillmore 1851 randolph 1870 cedar city 1851 kanab1870canabkanab 1870 Paraparagonahgonah 1852 milford 1870 mt pleasant 1852 lee s ferry 1872 ephraim 1852531852 53 grass valley 1874 fort supply 1853571853 57 cannonvilleCannonville 1874 santa clara 1854 snowvilleSnowville nd fairfield 1855 escalante 1875 las vegas 1855581855 58 dervilleordervilleOr 1875 fort bridger 1855571855 57 grouse creek 1876 morgan 1855 woodruff 1876 moab elk mtnman mission 1855 bunkervilleBunkerville 1877 leahilemhi salmon river mission syracuse 1877 1855581855 58 price 1877 beaver1856beaver 1856 huntington 1877 wellsville 1856 castle dale 1877 washington 1856 ferron 1877 bervillehebervillehubervilleHe price 1858 snowflake 1877 coalvilleCoalville 1859 loa rabbit valley before 1877 deseret 1859 78 summary

the manti temple site was chosen by brigham young in april 1877 the third temple site the church leader chose while consulting

with local church leaders young made the final decision where it would be unlike the st george temple site selection that young made the local leaders of manti agreed with young where the manti

site should be its documented by a newspaper and another person

that young stated that this temple site was previously dedicated by

moroni an ancient nephite prophet mentioned in the book of mormon the city of manti is a central location for church members of the sanpete valley and is within convenient distance of richfield

further south manti is also near to being the geographical center of utah the manti temple site is the first temple site to be situated between two other temple sites being located between the salt lake city and the st george temple sites the manti temple site and city helped strengthen the mormon presence and colonization efforts along this line and elsewhere in southern and southeasternsouth eastern utah 79 from population figures found in table 6 its seen that even though manti was the original settlement of sanpete valley it didnt dominate the surrounding communities in terntermss of population both ephraim and mt pleasant have exceeded mantis population for different census dates this is an opposite pattern of the cities of st george and salt lake that also contain temple sites once st george and salt lake city were founded each soon became and maintained the highest populace of any other town in the region A partial

explanation of manti not always having a higher population than its

nearby towns could be that as new mormon converts arrived from

europe and were sent to the sanpete valley to live they could have

settled in mt pleasant and ephraim before continuing to manti further south

As a considerable number of scandinavian converts settled in

sanpete valley and helped to clear the temple site and build the

temple the manti temple site and temple are to a large part a tribute to the skill and devotion of these descendants of vikings by 1880 slightly over 25 percent of residents of sanpete valley were born in scandinavia peterson & bennion pg 23 80 the manti temple site more than other early utah temple sites was centrally located to important building materials and skilled

labor to develop the site and its temple As the site was originally a

sloping hill of solid rock a level foundation pad had to be dug down to resulting in considerable excavation however much of this displaced rock was used to construct the temple reducing the cost

and delay of transporting this material from nearby or distant areas

especially advantageous was the constant spring of water very near the temple site that supplies all the water needs of the site

As beautiful and functional as the manti temple site is it could be argued that it would even be better situated if it was further east on the hill it occupies if the temple site was closer to the top of its hill the temple would be more visible especially the east end As it

now stands the east end of the manti temple at ground level faces a solid rock wall its surprising the architect and other supervisors of the day didnt try to better expose the east end of the temple this could have been accomplished by building up a foundation on the west end of the temple not only would the east end have been better exposed but this would have also better implemented the mormon temple tradition of having doors on most temples facing east in 81 honor of jesus christ when he returns to the earth from the east for anyone now to enter the manti temple from the east on the ground level they wouldwouldhavehave to walk between a big rock and a holy place chapter 6

the logan temple site

the logan temple site is located in cache valley of cache county cache county is situated in the northernmost area of utah and extends into southern idaho the configuration of cache valley is wider in the north than the south where the smallest east and west dimension is approximately five miles the northern width of utahs section of cache valley where it borders idaho is nearly twenty miles the west and east borders of cache valley are formed by two ranges of the wasatch mountains from the southern end of

cache valley to the idaho border the distance is approximately 35

miles elevation for the valley is approximately 4500 feet with

logan itself 4535 feet above sea level gousha road atlas pg 104 and yearly precipitation is 161216 12 inches greer etal pg 54

82 83 aside from the tribes of american indians who lived in and travelled through cache valley its believed that the first white men in this area were fur trappers accounts indicate that by 1824 fur trappers were hiding cached their furs in what was once called

willow valley brigham young had scouts explore cache valley in

1847 receiving the report that this northerly valley had excellent grasses timber and water sources utah institute of fine arts pg 192 193 but harsh winters and a shorter growing season than areas

to the south settlement of cache valley began in 1856 when several families homesteadhomesteaderhomesteadeded wellsville hunter pg 358 these families fled to southern settlements as johnsons army marched to utah but

returned in 1859 with other families to found the present city of

logan hunter pg 358 logan is believed to have been named after ephraim loganalogan a mountain man or logan fontanelle a friendly indian chief ellsworth pg 112 several geographical areas in utah were named after mountain men as indicated in table 6 titled the mountain men left names on our map 84 table 6 the mountain men left names on our map source ellsworth pg 113

ashley creek ashley valley ashley named for william H ashley explorations in 1825 national forest

bear river bear lake named by the british fur trapper michael bourdeau 1819

beaver river beaver beaver beaver river so named because of the abundance of county beaver

browns hole on green river site of 1837 fort davy crockett built by mountain men daggett county

cache valley cache county named by jim beckwourthBeckwourth probably 1825261825 26 from willow valley favorite place to cache furs

duchesne river fort duchesne named for a french fur trapper du chesne who was in duchesne and duchesne county uinta basin about 1840 perhaps named by father desmet after rose du chesne

great salt lake named by 1824251824 25 first big salt lake henrys fork green river named for andrew henry associate of william H ashley

logan cache county possibly named for mountain man ephraim logan or logan fontanelle a friendly indian chief who had been so named by frenchcanadianfrench canadian trappers in region 1820- 1839 malad river box elder county from french malade sick trappers got sick from eating beaver on this creek the beaver had eaten poisonous roots

ogden ogden river ogden valley named for peter skene ogden of the hudlunhudsun s bay agdensogdens hole ogden peak company in the region from 1825

portage box elder county from the french porter to carry where one must carry his boat

provo provo river provo canyon named for etienne provost weber river weber canyon weber named for john H weber county 85 following pernpermanentanent settlement ofloganoflogan in 1859 irrigation to the city and surrounding farnfarmlandland was broadened and soon

agriculture was thriving in a short time cache valley became known

as the granary of the kingdom larson pg 76

selecting the logan temple site

historical documents from the church and other sources

provide few details concerning the site selection process for the logan temple site one historian simply states that brigham young

selected the site and conducted ceremonies for breaking of the ground

in 1877 utah state institute of fine arts pg 196 however the announcements that a temple would be built in logan and the

general vicinity of the temple site were given in an unorthodox

manner as the following accounts illustrate the first known recorded statement that a temple would be built in logan came from john thirkill who is said to have stated such while speaking at a church meeting in 1857 thirkill also mentioned the temple site would be located on the east bench of logan public services church historical department logan 86 temple section pg 14 bishop william H maughan later wrote of this incident that he had witnessed relating that brother john thirkill was appointed orator of the day and he stood up with his buckskin pants and check shirt on and his shoes on his feet he soon got to prophesying and he said there would be a temple built on the

ground at logan and a large city there and pointed out where many other settlements would be fornformeded he said he could see these things and could not help telling it olsen pg 6 it is not mentioned by any author or the church records whether thirkill was a leader in the church at the time he said a temple would be built in logan thirkill nonetheless was allowed to speak as he chose and gave possibly the first public declaration concerning the logan temple site

in 1857

several years later in 1863 another unplanned announcement of a temple site in logan was given by a high ranking church leader during a religious meeting of church members at logan in his own words apostle wilford woodruff stated the day will come after your fathers and these prophets and apostles are dead you willw U have the privilege of going into the towers of a glorious temple built unto the name of the most highgh pointing in the direction of the bench east of us

upon the logan bench 91 and while you stand in the 87 towers of the temple and your eyes survey this glorious valley filled with cities and villages occupied by tens of thousands of latter day saints you will then call to mind this visitation of president young and his company you will say that was in the days when presidents benson and maughan presided over us that was before new york was destroyed by an earthquake it was before boston was swept into the sea by the sea heaving itself beyond its bounds it was before albany was destroyed by fire yea at that time you will remember the scenes of this day treasure them up and forget them not wilford woodruff president young followed and said what brother woodruff has said is revelation and will be fulfilled public services church history department logan temple section pg 15 it should be noted that wilford woodruff didnt record the foregoing speech until may 8 1884 however records of the cache valley stake contain the same original remarks woodruff made in

1863 public services church history department logan temple

section pg 15

the logan temple site is located on a prominent terrace that is approximately 65 feet higher than logans main street and the main residential section of logan on such a prominence two blocks

east of main street the temple site is easily viewed from several miles to the north south and west at night the temple site is well lighted

and especially beautiful figure 13 shows the logan temple site on a city map of logan utah 88 another church document specifically mentions the temple site being chosen but unfortunately doesnt expound upon why the church leaders chose it on may 18 1877 one day after the actual site was chose george J gibbs wrote the ground site for the prophesied temple to be built at logan was selected yesterday by the first presidency and twelve and surveyed by elder jesse W who was assisted by james meartineau the architect truman D angell and others the site is most beautifully situated on a piece of table land immediately east of the city commanding a delightful view of the celebrated valley of cache documentary history of brigham young pg 1556 now classified as history of the church 1939 ca 188218821 cr100 102 43 c2c-a microfilm

another source writes that when brigham young came to logan to choose the temple site young stated that the site was the finest situation for a temple he had ever seen olsen pg 23 the author of the source containing the preceding remark supposedly made by brigham young doesnt reference this statement leaving question as to young actually having said this however this author was for many years a presiding worker in the logan temple with access to early records of the temple the temple site is itself beautiful and does afford a wide view of much of cache valley 89 figure 13 logan temple site source adapted by author from united states geological survey loganlogon utah quadrangle map L12400-240002240000 scale

N US 91

utah state university

US 89 sr30SR 30 j J logar609ani temple site elel46004600 logan Tabetabernaclemade US 899189 91 90 since 1870 logan has been the dominate city population wise

of cache valley table 7 presents the population of logan and surrounding towns ththe logan temple was completed in 1884 and dedicated on may 17 1884 berrett pg 374 the logan temple site is on a terrace protruding westward from the east bench of logan its width length and shape very

adequately provides surface area for the temple that measures 171 feet long in its east west orientation and is 95 feet wide at the east end of the temple site before logan city streets were expanded there were two smaller deltas that extended to the north and south these

smaller deltas which are said to have been in near perfect symmetry were later removed to allow city streets to be constructed the entire temple site terrace to a depth of over one thousand feet is composed of solid gravel the north south and west sides of the temple site slope quickly to lower elevations that have been landscaped with

beautiful lawns flower beds shrubs and trees olsen pgsggs 222622 26 the logan temple site is located within the rocky mountain system but not within the basin and range physiographic province greer

etal pg 16 but it was within the early mormon core area greer etaletalpgpg 142 of utah 91 table 7 population statistics of logan utah and adjacent communities source moffat utah population section

CENSUS YEAR population

CITY 1980 1970 1960 1950 1940 1930 1920 1910 1900 1890 1880 1870

avon 150 150 benson 250 200 100 hyde park 1495 1025 696 644 696 723 721 699 550 450 433 343 hyrum 3952 2340 1728 1704 1874 1869 1858 1833 1652 1423 1234 708 loganlogon 26844 22333 18731 16832 11868 9979 9439 7522 5451 4565 3396 1757 mendon 663 345 345 369 454 434 404 459 494 500 543

millvillemillevilleMill ville 848 441 364 401 439 403 409 353 400 500 539 402 nibley 1036 367 333 304 271 paradise 542 399 368 401 500 433 505 620 596 550 512 346 providence 2675 1608 1189 1055 1110 1088 1132 1020 877 650 578 481 richmond 1705 1000 977 1091 1131 1140 1396 1562 1111 1100 1198 817 smithfield 4993 3342 2512 2383 2461 2353 2421 1865 1494 1080 1177 744 please note A blank entry indicates no data givencogivennogiven1nogivenno population at that time 92 summary

from scant church historical documents and other records the

logan temple site was publicly alluded to at least two times by

different members of the church before the site was actually chosen

on both of these occasions those who proclaimed a temple site would

be located in logan were said to have declared such under inspiration of god it is unknown whether the second individual wilford woodruff to declare this message was aware of the previous prophecy

of john thirkill As john thirkill is depicted as a relatively obscure church member and communication and recording means were very rudimentary during that time period it seems probable woodruff was uninformed to thirkills earlier temple site announcement even less is known why brigham young chose the temple site other than young and other church leaders chose it on may 17 1877 it would

have been obvious to young and other leaders as it is to most people

today that the logan temple site is well suited to a large religious

structure visibility of the temple site excellent the site is large

enough and geologically stable olsen pg 23 for a considerable building and the site and temple constitute the central monument 93 and theme of cache valley whether approaching cache valley from north south east or west the temple site probably draws the attention of most visitors to the valley the logan temple and it site when completed established the northern stronghold and quasi boundary of the early church in utah thereafter the valleys and mountains from the st george temple site to the logan temple site were claimed by church members as

their own such a claim could only be weakly disputed by non

members because of these striking landscape symbols ofmormon will and strength adding visual strength to the temple site is the castle-

like architecture of the temple A design that hadnt been fully employed before except on the then uncompleted salt lake city temple this architecture also served to remind church members of the strength of their church and god and the strength they must

acquire to keep gods commandments the logan temple site is somewhat reminiscent of the nauvoo temple site the adjoining city is to the west the west side of each

site slopes down and away the sites and the temples on them are oriented nearly east and west and each site is visible for many miles distant 94 As with the temple sites at salt lake city st george and manti then church president brigham young chose the logan temple site it appears from the few historical records of the church that its unknown whether brigham young chose the site with or without the suggestions of local leaders from logan young did

however invite the local leaders to be present in selecting the site and also during the dedication of it this was the last temple site brigham young chose which enables it to be a final monument to the ending of the brigham young era also this temple site with completed temple was another mark of the firm establishment of the church in the rocky mountains of the united states chapter 7

the provo temple site

historical background of provo utah

provo utah was named after a frenchcanadianfrench canadian fur trapper ettienneentienneEntienne provost who frequented the beaver ponds of present day provo area in the early 1820s young pg 565856 58 it was permanently settled by mormon pioneers acting under direction of brigham

young john S higbee led the first mormon colonists to utah valley and established provo in april of 1849 kenner pg 204 at first the biggest problems to the settlers were the same as that of founding salt lake city to quickly build log homes and plant crops and feed themselves through the coming winter soon however indian attacks began and continued for several years finally the indians were subdued and provo flourished

95 96 not only did the church establish provo but it also promoted

continued growth of it in several ways by constructing brigham

young academy in provo in 1876 berrett pg 306 the population

and economic base were positively affected then and afterwards As

provo continued to grow in the late nineteenth century it became a

hub of economic and cultural resources for much of the rest of the

state south of there another economic plus occurred during world war II11 when geneva steel mill was opened in nearby orem to help supply steel for the war effort of the united states the multiplier effect of economic development from geneva steel mill and other

provo industries continued commercial growth of provo and drew

individuals seeking employment from surrounding areas at present provo has matured into a cultural educational and economic center of the intermountain west the following data in table 8 provo city statistics will indicate the health and vitality of provo utah 97 table 8 provo city statistics source provo city office of economic development

population 1990 86835 maiormaormoor provo and area employees population utah county 1990 263590 brigham young university 13500 utah valley regional medical center 389 beds geneva steel mill 2600 outpatient surgical centers 1 alpine school district 2424 psychiatric hospitals 2 novell inc 2400 birthingberthingBirthing centers I11 ut valvolvoi reg med cntrcantr 2000 convalescent health center 1 provo school district 1600 firefighting personnel 57 sears telecatalogTelecatalog cntrcantr 1600 law enforcement personnel 66 signetics 1400 Paraparamericparamedicmedic service yes WordwordperfectPerfect corporation 1300 public libraries 1 ut st train school gli91191 1 public libraries universityuniversitycollegecollege 6 ut val comm college 807 cultural facilities 7 stouffer foods 800 bean musemuseumum prof harris fine arts center lithographers 700 provo tabernacle provo city 660 eldred center womens cultural center nuskin intlantl 580 marriott center systems inc BYU stadium eagle 540 city parks and fields 44 utah state hospital 450 community 7 neighborhood 15 cicatwicat systems inc 450 school pay fields 14 cemeteries 2 utah county 450 golf courses 2 ZCMI depart store 420 canyon parks 2 educational facilities 31 mountain view hosp 360 public K 12 18 teleflexTeleflex 360 private K 12 10 special education 3 talley corporation 355 colmbuscommbusComm Bus colleges 4 american fork hosp 350 vaitek inc 335 seven peaks resort 335 98 selecting the provo temple site

the story of the provo temple site and how it was chosen centers around an individual who has freely given much of his life in

community and religious service having served as a university vice

president for brigham young university stake president 16 years

regional representative mission president and chairman for a temple

site selection and fund raising committee for the church ben lewis

of provo utah is well acquainted with church affairs mr lewis came to brigham young university BYU at the request of then BYU president ernest wilkinson upon arrival mr

lewis began to help with the expansion of BYU especially in real estate acquisition and development soon after arriving mr lewis

was called as a stake president 1955 to 1971 his ecclesiastical and vocational duties often mixed and overlapped and he soon became a

key figure for church leaders to call upon concerning land matters in provo the choosing of the provo temple site came in large part from mr lewis multiple responsibilities mr lewis related the following sequence of events to me in an interview on july 13 1992 99 concerning how the provo temple site was chosen As stated by mr lewis

according to local provo tradition president brigham young is

said to have once stated that one day well have a temple here in provo another provo tradition purports that the area surrounding

the maeser building on BYU campus is the area that president

young may have been referring to when he stated a temple would be built in provo and this area was named temple hill such

traditions whether accurate or not seem to have perpetuated the idea

that one day a temple would be built in provo around the late 1950s or early 1960s a german immigrant

named leathy owned a large acreage in the oak hills section of

provo northeast of BYU campus brother leathy contacted his stake

president ben lewis and repeated a very vivid dream he recently

had in his dream he saw a temple on his property overlooking utah valley so forceful and seemingly real was the dream that brother leathy decided to relate it to president lewis and added that if the

church wanted his property for a temple site they could have it

president lewis was greatly interested by the dream and offer brother leathy explained to him after further discussion they 100 parted with president lewis stating hed discuss this development with president harold B lee who was coming to provo in the near future president lee subsequently declined the land offer and the matter was closed temporarily president lewis did however purchase the leathy property for BYU to have it under church

ownership for possible BYU development or more especially a temple

site later in the early 1960s the stake presidents of utah valley and surrounding areas were called to a meeting with the first presidency of the church at this meeting it was announced in confidentiality that a temple would be built in provo and that the temple district would be asked to raise the majority of money for it the decision to establish other temples in utah even though temples were needed and desired elsewhere was based on a temple work study president david 0 mckay had conducted earlier from this study it was learned that if temples were operating in provo and

ogden world temple work would double based on these findings the first presidency decided to announce and construct temples for provo and ogden utah then president tanner looked at president lewis and asked him to be chairman of the fund raising and site selection 101 committees for the provo temple site be glad to do it replied president lewis following the meeting president lewis privately

spoke to president tanner and explained how BYU already owned property leathy acreage where the temple should be placed president tanner cautioned president lewis however that he should still fornform a site selection committee and make recommendations according to normal procedure otherwise president lewis might be criticized this president lewis did and several possible locations were examined but the committee still recommended the leathy site the temple now occupies at the time it seemed the temple and temple site were destined for prompt completion but several problems delayed even the beginning of construction

although the site selection committee comprised of local

church leaders from provo had reached a unanimous decision the church building committee wanted another location with the ogden temple being planned to be constructed next to the ogden tabernacle the church building committee felt it logical to put the provo temple next to the provo tabernacle however the church building committee underestimated parking potential and other site 102 situation features of downtown provo that negatively affected this site also president lewis and his committee felt strongly the temple

would be more beautiful and better exposed on the east bench of provo finally president lewis took the church building committee

on a tour of the provo area examining all possible sites after the tour of possible sites the church building committee still desired to build next to the provo tabernacle and the matter was referred to president tanner of the first presidency of the church all things considered president tanner concluded with president lewis and the leathy site was finalized this would not however be the only delay to the beginning of construction another blockage came from a group of geologists living in provo who observed the leathy site sits on a section of the wasatch

fault according to the geologists the temple site would straddle the

fault and would be seriously damaged or destroyed during an earthquake president lewis studied this claim by the geologists but still felt strongly the leathy site should be used As president lewis again explained to president tanner if an earthquake occurs a temple site anywhere in the general area would probably be affected and even if the temple was destroyed it would have been a beacon of 103 beauty and holiness during the time it occupied the east bench of provo As before president tanner agreed with president lewis and the geologists were overruled an interesting aspect of this last incident was the fact that several of the geologists who were

concerned to build a temple on a geological fault themselves lived near the temple site the provo temple site was finalized by the first presidency and construction began financing of the provo temple and temple site was accomplished by the fund raising committee that president lewis also

chaired not only did the committee raise the specified amount but

also surplus funds that were donated back to the church the provo temple site is located in northeast provo utah the site is part of a symmetricalnonsymmetricalnon city block that is very roughly triangular in shape the northeast corner of the temple property is the apex and the southwest edge of the block being the base the

size of the temple site is slightly over six acres with an average elevation of 4880 feet above sea level the entire acreage slopes downward from the northeast corner to the southwest property edge the elevation change due to the sloping is an 80 foot drop in 1250 feet of horizontal distance figure 14 depicts the temple site the 104 temple acreage or triangle and the city streets closest to the temple site that carry the majority of patrons to the temple property

immediately east 12 mile of the temple site is the base of the wasatch mountains that rise steeply to an average height of

approximately 8000 feet above sea level west of the temple site is

utah valley that extends five miles to the shore of utah lake north and south of the temple site continues the provo bench that joins the base of the wasatch mountains the provo temple site faces to the southwest providing an excellent unobstructed view of and from utah valley for a score of miles the temple site is climatically listed as having a humid continental climate having hot summers greer etal pg 55

As indicated in table 9 provo has been the largest city in utah valley since its first census year of 1850 cultural and economic

factors have helped provos population to continually grow

development of the provo temple site was begun in november

of 1969 and completed and dedicated in early 1972 berrett pg 375 the external and internal design of the provo temple is markedly different than earlier temples in utah essentially the exterior is much less detailed and unfamiliar in form as compared to the gothic 105 of england or the french castles the interior centers around six instructional rooms where large numbers of church members are

efficiently taught sacred doctrines in a shorter time period than previous temples

A summary of the provo ogden jordan river and bountiful temple sites will be given at the end of the bountiful temple site

section 106 figure 14 provo templetempie site source adapted by author fromneom the united states geological survey prouoprovo utah map 124000

hodyloodyl north temple drive iialinLiwa00andomadomnin 0o

N

view drive

900 east street

not drawn to exact smisscale 107 table 9 population statistics of provo utah and adjacent communities source moffat utah population section

CENSUS YEAR population

CITY 1980 1970 1960 1950 1940 1930 1920 1910 1900 1890 1880 1870 1860 1850

american fork 12417 7713 6373 5126 3333 3047 2763 2797 2732 1942 1299 1145 695

lehlehileht 6848 4659 4377 3627 2733 2826 3078 2964 2719 1600 1497 1058 831

orem 52399 25729 18394 8351 2914 1915 600 500 150

payson 8246 4501 4237 3998 3591 3045 3031 239723972636213517882636 2135 1788 1436 830

pleasant 10883 5327 4772 3195 1941 1754 1682 1618 2460 1926 1775 930 526 grove

provo 74108 53131 36047 28937 18071 14766 10303 8925 6185 5159 3432 2384 2030 500

spanish 9825 7284 6472 5230 4167 3727 4036 3464 2735 2214 2304 1450 773 fork

springvilleSpringspnngvi-villelle 12101 8790 7913 6475 4796 3748 3010 3356 3422 2849 2312 1661 1357 please note A blank entry indicates no data givencogivennogivenlnogivenno popu-populationlation at that time chapter 8

the ogden temple site

historical backbackgroundaundound of ogden utah

ogden was probably the only settlement in utah occupied by a white man when the mormon pioneers arrived in salt lake valley

prior to being settled by miles goodyear in 1844 or 1845 ogden had been a well known resting rendezvous and wintering area for many

notable fur trappers of the early west several indian tribes also used

the present area of ogden to winter at following the decline of the

fur trapping industry by 1840 greer etal pg 81 goodyear settled near ogden river where he constructed a crude cabin for he and his indian wife and their two children goodyear also built an animal stockade visitor cabins and planted a garden that did very well utah state institute of fine arts pg 203

108 109 it was claimed by goodyear that he obtained his cabin site and a large tract of land between ogden and weber rivers from the base of the wasatch mountains to the eastern edge of the great salt lake from a mexican land grant no record of a deed or title to the

property was produced but the mornmormonon pioneers believed goodyear

to be the legal owner and paid goodyear a handsome price for his cabins and property james brown a church member returning

from california purchased the goodyear home at the instruction of

brigham young and quickly moved his family to brownsvilleBrownsville

named in his honor other families soon settled in brownsvilleBrownsville and

it grew quickly A few years later in 1850 young and other church

leaders enlarged and laid out the city and changed its name to

ogden for the ogden river hunter pg 352 like salt lake valley the ground in and near ogden was very fertile and gardens and other crops grew very well word quickly

spread of agdensogdens agricultural success and many other members relocated to ogden and surrounding areas to establish farms following the formal organization and name changing of ogden brigham young advised the members to build good log homes and community buildings to serve as churches and schools As indian 110 troubles increased with the encroaching settlers a wall was built

surrounding the homes and buildings bancroft pg 307308307 308 from a humble frontier village ogden has grown to a modern industrial and governmental support center the following statistics in table 10 titled ogden city statistics will indicate the extent of employment population health care and education that ogden has

selecting the ogden temple site

the first hand account of how the ogden temple site was chosen was obtained by interviewing president keith wilcox who was the chairchairmanan of the ogden temple site selection committee

president wilcox was president of the weber heights stake of ogden utah at the time he became involved with the ogden temple site iliiii111 table 10 ogden city statistics source ogden city chamber of commerce 1984 pamphlet

population 1980 6440764.407644-07 major ogden area employers

LMA population 1980 229779 hillhi-ll air force base civilianscivi-lians 15161115161 mckay dee hospital 380 beds hill air force base military 5544 st benedicts hospital 198 beds morionmorton thiokol corporation 4530 practicing physicians 258 internal revenue service 3500 practicing dentists 125 ogden and weber school dist 2850 nurses both RN and LPN 750 estimate defense depot 1800 nursing homes 12 mckay dee hospital 1500 medical clinics 20 weber state college 1200

Paraparamericparamedicmedic service yes st benedicts hospital 1100 full time firefighters 145 nice corporation 800 full time lawlow enforcers 233 levolor lorentzen 650 public libraries 3 lomegaiomega corporation 517 bon-ded indebtedness none western zirconium 450 as of 6184 elementary schools 14 williams international 413 middle schools 5 jetwaybetway abexabax corporation 380 high schools 3 GSL minerals and chem 360 alternative high schools I11 emerson electric 340 special education programs I11 TRW 260

volvo white truck corp 250

sierra lingerie co 250

bournes inc 25250 1112i 2 up until the ogden temple was completed and dedicated church members from the ogden area had to travel to the logan temple for this special worship understandably the ogden members

and their leaders greatly desired a temple site in ogden in the mid 1960s then church president david 0 mckay was in a meeting with the stake presidents of the ogden area during the meeting

president mckay was asked if a temple could be built in ogden president mckay laughed and said you all know im from this area what would the brethren say he continued by adding wee need temples all over the world dont get your hopes up with these remarks it seemed likely to all that a temple site in ogden wouldnt

be in the making for some time however president mckay

afterwards began contemplating the idea of a temple site in ogden

and initiated a study to examine the usage of temples then operating again from this study as reported earlier it was learned that if

temples were built and operating in provo and ogden utah the

amount of temple work in the entire world would double

consequently president mckay and the other leading authorities quorum of twelve apostles of the church decided to construct 113 temples in provo and ogden with this decision the question quickly raised of where to situate these holy structures

As with the provo temple site a site selection committee was formed for the ogden temple site with stake president keith wilcox

called to chair it president wilcox was a professional architect bringing valuable related experience to this calling

excitedly president wilcox and his associate committee

members began evaluating possible temple sites from many

properties in the ogden area several possible sites were also proposed to the committee by local members the committee liked the property where the mckay dee hospital occupies but this land

was sold for the hospital shortly before viewing many other

properties were examined in areas such as north ogden northwest

ogden by ogden and weber canyons near weber state college and the east bench finally the potential temple sites were narrowed down to six to ten sites and each site was thoroughly studied as to its

feasibility eventually all of the remaining sites were also eliminated as being unsuitable in some way what was learned by the site selection committee from this first search was that the temple site couldnt be built on a hill as they 114 would have liked there simply wasnt a property available at that time located on a hill or high elevation thus a second search for a temple site was undertaken but with a new framework of thought to guide the committee it was decided that the ogden temple site should be chosen to best serve those who would be the primary

patrons namely residents of the ogden area with this in mind accessibility to the temple became very important

shortly afterwards someone suggested the ogden tabernacle

block for the temple site but there wouldnt be room for the temple unless the old pioneer tabernacle was removed it was very accessible to all of ogden but the old tabernacle was a historical monument

and the selection committee at first hesitated in removing the old

tabernacle to accommodate a temple soon though it became

unanimously apparent to the committee the old tabernacle should be removed and the ogden temple be constructed thereupon this temple site recommendation was given to the first presidency and they quickly accepted it and began to proceed

worried that members and non members alike might complain about demolishing the old tabernacle president wilcox held a press conference to explain this decision in the old tabernacle president 115 wilcox pointed out that although churches are often historical the mormormonon church isnt historical per se the church is a forward looking church not backward we look and plan for future growth

when something from the past blocks the future it must go were a

church of the future this is a classic example we love this building but a temple must be made here it was a unanimous decision we

must have the ogden temple here and the old tabernacle must go

A temple in this area will greatly benefit ogden the design of the ogden and provo temples is based around the audio visual presentation of the information taught in them

As the ogden temple was built and dedicated ministers of other faiths contacted president wilcox and all observed how theres a new spiritual atmosphere in ogden all of the members of the ogden temple site selection committee felt inspired by the lord it was the right site

figure 15 ogden temple site shows the temple site in

relation to the city of ogden and nearby communities table 11 population statistics of ogden utah and adjacent communities indicates population figures for these cities from table 11 it is observed that ogden has maintained a substantial lead in population 116 numbers compared to other cities close by the completion of the transcontinental railroad in 1869 helped ogden to grow as well as hill air force base and other employers the ogden temple site is skirted on the north by twenty first

street which connects with interstate 15 to the west and state highway 203 to the east washington boulevard that fronts the

temple site is also US highway 89 and can carry considerable numbers of vehicles north and south with these main thoroughfares are additional highways that afford area members excellent access to the temple site from both immediate and suburban areas by using

any one of several available routes the temple site can be reached

within 20 to 25 minutes of driving from the most distant point in

ogden or its suburbs consequently the temple site is very centrally

located both geographically and in terms of transportation also the temple site is a stopping point for many of the public bus routes that

service ogden

another important aspect of placing the ogden temple where it

is was the fact that the property it occupies ogden tabernacle square was already owned by the church thus an outlay of considerable money to purchase a temple site was avoided although 117 the church owns a considerable amount of real estate throughout the

united states and the world and is well accustomed to purchasing

expensive land when needed it was probably deemed very advantageous by the first presidency at the time to use property

already owned one reason why the church is able to spend large

sums of money for property or operating expenses is because of tight

frugal financial management of its monetary resources every penny

given to the church is considered as the widows mites luke 2124212 4 and wisely conserved and dispensed church funds were also saved by using this site as large capacity utilities were directly adjacent to the site expensive and lengthy connecting lines for high volume electricity water sewage and communication systems were unneeded 118 figure 15 ogden temple site source adapted by author fifromom ogden city chamber of commerce map

north ogden N

115I1 15j15 1841 84

highway 39

highway 104 21st21 st ogden temple site wo tabernacletabemade solaresauaresouaresagare

79 3 9 508NOB 0 0 a 0 0 C a CD 1 Ie CL CL

1151 15 119 table I111I1 population statistics of ogden utah and adjacent communities source moffat utah population section

CENSUS YEAR population

otyCITY 1980 1970 1960 1950 1940 1930 1920 1910 1900 1890 1880 1870 1860 1850

clearfieldcieCleorfield 17982 13316 8833 4723 1053 799 400 210 187

N ogden 9309 5257 2621 1105 687 932 800 800

ogdenogan 64407 69478 70197 57112 43688 40272 32804 25580 16313 14889 6069 3127 1464 500

pleasantPleosaniantont viewvew 3983 2021 927 420 214 100 150

RiRiververdaledole 6031 3704 1848 871 600 316 300 300 156

roy 19694 14356 9239 3723 998 557 500 250 195

S ogden 11366 9991 7405 3763 1407

sunset 5733 6268 4235 993 276 600 200

washington terrace 8112 7141 6441 5841 please note A blank entry indicates no data givencogivennogivenlnogivenno population at that time 120

and finally being constructed in a flat well travelled geographical area winter commuting to and from the temple site will be enhanced snow removal should occur quickly for the main transportation arteries that border the temple site and without steep grades to traverse a safe winter environmental perception of

tratravellingvelling to the site could be viewed by attending members resulting

in continued use chapter 9

the jordan river temple site

historical backbackgroundaundound of south jordan utah

the jordan river temple site is located in south jordan utah a growing suburb of salt lake city again it was mormon pioneers who settled this area arriving in 1849 originally the founding pioneers concentrated on farming and cultivating orchards this rural atmosphere has continued to this day with much of south

jordan consisting of beautifully fenced acreages

it is believed that alexander beckstead was the first white

settler to move permanently to south jordan holt pg 1 however andrew jensen a historian for the church states that issac J

wardle holt pg 1 accompanied beckstead into south jordan

121 122 whether it was one or two founding settlers and their families

the population of south jordan grew very slowly but is now

increasing significantly A few years following initial settlement

seven more families came to south jordan and cultivated the land

with hay and orchards crops grew very well due to the good soil of the area and water for irrigation from the jordan river nearby at first a single diversion ditch the south jordan canal from the jordan river supplied adequate crop watering but later in 1876 the utah and salt lake canal was completed to service additional crop lands at first the early settlers lived in dugout homes they fashioned in side hills later when a kiln was built the pioneers made brick homes

from adobe holt pg 1 2 the slow but recently increasing

population growth is indicated in table 12 123

table 12 south jordan population growth source moffat utah section

year population

1910 istastust1st entry 50 1920 no data given 1930 480 1940 869 1950 1048 1960 1354 1970 2942 1980 74927.49274-92

the current estimated population february 1992 of south jordan

is 14500 south jordan economic development committee pg 11

As can be noted in figure 16 south jordan is located in the

south southwestsouth west of salt lake valley topography of the area is generally rolling hills with an exception being the jordan river valley which is one hundred feet lower than the surrounding elevation

currently south jordan enjoys many positive aspects of modern living in a rural setting these enviable characteristics are possibly 124 being negated though due to increasing urban growth in south jordan that is expected to continue table 13 provides an overview of population and employment statistics for south jordan 125 figure 16 salt lakeke valley vicinity map source south jordan economic development committee pg 7 salt lake international airport north tempietemple 1801 80 temple square temple site salt lake city 2100 south

west valley city south salt lake

murray 2a5

west jordan midvalemidvalevaie to10 N jordan river temple site sandy 1q600snuth street 606S0 south jordan 0CO

D draper riverton 0 CO 8r 126 table 13 south jordan statistics source south jordan economic development committee population estimated 1992 14500 population growth 1990 singlesingie family dwellings 7047.0470-4 percent expected annual population growth to 2010 10 percent elementary schools 4 middle schools 2 high schools I1 universitiescollegesUniversities colleges within 30 miles 6 gross incomereturnIncome return 3235-323540032354.00400 gross incomereturnIncome return for utah 2327-232740023274.00400 residents employed As professionalsmanagersProfessionals Managers 30 percent residents employed as salesclericalSales Clerical 18 percent residents employed as skilled blue collar 19 percent residents employed as unskilled blue collar II11 percent residents retired 13 percent other 9 percent median age of residents 19919.919-9 years median age of utah 25525.525-5 years household size highest in utah 4324.3243-2 people per household hospitals within 4 miles 2 emergency medical service yes full time police 8 full time fire fighters yes parks total acreage 153 acres 127 selecting the jordan river temple site

inforninborninformationatlon concerning the jordan river temple site and how a temple was built on that particular property was gained by

interviewing the individual who offered the church the 15 acre plot

the temple sits on this gentleman who I1 shall refer to as brother hitH desires to remain anonymous but kindly offered the following

inforninborninformationatlon

the jordan river temple site is located on a 15 acre rectangular property at 10200 south 1300 west street in south jordan utah the narrow dimension of the property borders 1300 west while the greater length extends westward from 1300 west street the property is moderately sloped rising from east to west allowing the temple to be twenty feet higher in elevation than 1300

west street visibility of the temple site is mostly unobstructed to the north east and south of passing interest is the fact that in aerial photographs the temple site is very nearly halfway between the

wasatch and oquirrh mountains and also nearly halfway between the salt lake city temple site and point of the mountain vehicular access to the temple site is good as 1300 west street 128 connects to the north and south with arterial routes that quickly join

interstate 15 to the east elevation of the temple site is 4438 feet

above sea level

the 15 acre temple site had been in brother Hs family for approximately 100 years before being deeded to the church originally it was part of a mexican land grant of the early 1800s and was later sold to one of brother Hs ancestors in 1876 the property was first recorded at the salt lake city and county building the property changed ownership in the H family several times and was eventually acquired by brother H in 1948 the

entire 15 acres is actually comprised of two smaller deeded sections the smallest section adjoins 1300 west street with the larger section being west and up slope from the smaller section the fact the 15 acre property is in two sections may not seem important but as plans

were finalized to develop a temple site there this aspect became

significant

when the 15 acres were formally deeded to the church the

church had complete blueprints of the temple and its orientation on the site architecture parking etc when the property was transferred it was discovered by the churchs lawyer that maximum 129 building heights were designated for each of the two sections of land

that made up the 15 acres fortunately the smaller section closest to 1300 west street that restricted building height considerably would be occupied by only a small part of the front of the temple the planned height of the temple roof for the restricted zone was within the height restriction whereas the bulk of the temple that contained

the high spire and angel moroni statue was planned for the area

where the height restriction wasnt imposed such a turn of events

could have been costly for new blueprints would have been needed if the temple was required to be situatedresituatedre to meet the height restrictions non members would say this was a fortunate

coincidence members would say it was the hand of god preventing an

expensive change of plans

in december of 1977 brother and sister H offered their 15 acres to the church for possible consideration as a temple site also at this time a stipulation to accepting the property was that there wasnt to be any mention by the church who donated the land this stipulation was acknowledged and strictly followed by president spencer W kimball and other officials of the church unfortunately several news reporters discovered that brother and sister H had 130 donated this land by examining public land documents and disclosed

this to the public in december of 1977 the church accepted the

property on february 6 1978 president kimball publicly announced that another temple site of the church of jesus christ of latter day saints would be developed in south jordan utah also president kimball gave the temple site location but again didnt mention that brother and sister H had donated this land to the church in many respects the jordan river temple site was a very appropriate property for a temple it has good transportational access

to major thoroughfares is centrally located near large numbers of

church members affords good visibility of the temple and is surrounded by a rural setting conducive to spiritual worship this property has remained practically undisturbed throughout its human

ownership there were never any buildings on it it has never been

mortgaged or involved in any legal disputes canals or transmission devices of any sort havent traversed it and only shallow crop farming has occurred there following initial contact with the church to donate their property to it brother H had many subsequent meetings with 131 church officials these meetings allowed brother H to see first hand how the church operates in these matters and left him with some interesting observations it became apparent very quickly that

the church operates in a very meticulous and incognito manner A small army of lawyers engineers and other professionals employed by the church scrutinized brother Hs property and the transfer of it to the church many details uncommon to land transfer had

been investigated by the church concerning this property in a

secretive fashion many times when church officials would visit

brother H they would park behind the H home and nearly always would announce themselves and leave by the back door brother H

was always impressed by the competence and confidentiality of the

church leaders and employees he associated with

currently the jordan river temple is the temple most frequented by members in the church averaging approximately one

million cormonsmormons a year through its services table 14 population statistics of south jordan utah and adjacent communities indicates the slow establishment and growth of this area compared to

surrounding vicinities from table 14 its shown that south jordan was settled after other communities in the salt lake valley or that 132 a lack of population data gives this impression south jordan has experienced steady growth especially from 1970 on 133 table 14 population statistics of south jordan utah and adjacent communities source moffat utah population section

CENSUS YEAR population

CITY 1980 1970 1960 1950 1940 1930 1920 1910 1900 1890 1880 1870 1860 1850

draper 5530 4000 2000 2000 1080 1190 700 1000 900 700 540

midvale 10144 7840 5802 3996 2875 2451 2209 1760

murray 25750 21206 16806 9006 5740 5172 4584 4057 2137 1000 200

riverton 7293 2820 1993 1666 1404 1130 600 700 318

salt lake city 163033 175885175885189454189454 182121 149934 140267 1181101181109277792777 53531 448434484320768128548236615720768 12854 8236 6157

sandy 50546 6438 3322 2095 1487 1436 1208 1037 1030 749 400

south jordan 7492 2942 1354 1048 869 480 50

south salt lalokeqtyke city 10561 7810 9520 7704 5701

west jordan 27192 4211 3009 2107 1220 1500 1337 1271 300

west valley city 72378

11 I1 L please note A blank entry indicates no data givennogigivencogiven1novenno popu-lation at that time chapter 10

the bountiful temple site

historical background of bountiful utah

bountiful utah has the distinction ofbeing the second mormon settlement in utah in september of 1847 Perriperrigrinegrine sessions and samuel brown travelled ten miles north of present day temple

square salt lake city and camped where bountiful is now located their purpose was to winter range 300 head of cattle on the better grass of that area the following spring five more families joined them and the settlement grew steadily hunter pg 350 351 originally bountiful was called sessions settlement but this

name was later changed to bountiful in honor of a book of mormon place name and because of the abundance of fruit and crops grown there

134 135 growth of bountiful has paralleled the growth of other wasatch front communities not only has the population increased at a steady rate but several time periods experienced considerable enlargement

table 15 shows the population changes for bountiful from 1850 to

1980

bountiful has become a bedroom community for salt lake city and other cities nearby at present over 70 of bountiful residents work elsewhere city of bountiful contributing to the daily exodus

of workers from bountiful are the many area employers listed in

table 16 bountiful city statistics

approximately 50 percent of bountiful is on level or slightly

sloping foothills while the remaining 50 percent is found on the

moderate and steep slopes of the west facing wasatch mountains many expensive homes have recently been constructed on the high east slopes of bountiful overlooking the great salt lake further west the map in figure 17 shows the city of bountiful utah the area of the bountiful temple site is outlined by the rectangular box on the right side of the map an enlarged map of the temple site is given in figure 18 136

table 15 bountiful population statistics 185019801850 1980 source moffat volume II11

year population 1850 100 1860 86 1870 1000LOOO 1880 1000 1890 12001200 1895 2438

1900 14421 p-442 1910 16771677 1920 2063 1930 257129-571 1940 3357 1950 6004 1960 17039 1970 27751 1980 32877 137 table 16 bountiful city statistics sources bountiful city bountiful chamber of commerce

population 1980 3287732.877328-77 nursing homescareHomesCare centers 6 lakeviewLakeview hospital 150 beds major hospitals within 15 minutes of bountiful 6 church denominations 11 elementary schools 10 junior high schools 4 high schools 3 parochial schools 1 university extensions I1 vocational schools several pre schools several recreation CentercenterparksParks II11 golf courses within 15 minute drive 7 MAJOR AREA EMPLOYERS EmemployerpIffer employees hill air force base 17059 davis school district 4715 lagoon corporation 2250 davis county corporation 533 lakeviewLakeview hospital 470 albertsons distribution center 450 JC penny marketingtelemarketingTele 450 USAF hospitalhillhospital hill field 371 staker paving & construction co inc 290 beehive business & leisure 165 bountiful city corporation 165 138 figure 17 map of bountiful utah source adapted by author from bountiful chamber of commerce to ogden utah I1 goo N 900 north center street s 8 bountiful c templetempie s ite w M elevationElev elevatioelevatioratioatlo ln 440v9 500 south la a 0M W E r laoo south CO

3

OQ0

2600 south 0 CD

bountiful boulevard 139 figure 18 bountiful temple site source barlow pg xi

temdleternstempietemplele site elevation 51605.160 feet above sea level

z0 11I z z Q

hl-F-

uj llLLJ UM j D z Q- z M LLJ 1 4 hl-F- 0 CLL CO j

lLL Fz LL W M0

0 0 0 S 0 140 history of the bountiful temple site

the bountiful temple site is part of forty acres of land that was deeded to john barlow sr as described in US patent number

1303 signed november 161618971897 by US president william mckinley barlows father israel barlow was a bodyguard for the prophet joseph smith and was the first to inform smith that 20000 acres of

land was available on which the city of nauvoo was founded israel

barlow worked on the nauvoo temple from start to finish and moved

west with some of the first groups of mormon pioneers settling at

bountiful in october 1848 for the next 95 years about one third of

the original 40 acres were retained by descendants and relatives of john barlow sr with smaller portions being sold off to non relatives

what property was sold outside of the barlow family some was later purchasedrepurchaserrepurchasedre by the barlows leo a grandson of john barlow sr and harriet barlow held deed to most of the temple site property

from 1938 until it was sold in 1988

john barlow srsarssr s wife elizabeth died on january 17 1922 shortly after she died it is claimed that she appeared to john sr in a dream in this dream elizabeth vigorously emphasized how all of 141 their property should be equally divided between their two children and an unadopted boy who they raised as a son to this end john sr followed through eighty one days after elizabeth died john sr died

and each passed away in the same hospital room after their deaths

22 acres of land which includes the temple site was divided into three

shares among the children and unadopted son of john sr and elizabeth barlow in the many years leo and harriet barlow owned two thirds of the twenty two acres that the temple site came from they always had

a feeling to reserve the property for something special many times

people offered to purchase the barlows fifteen acres but many times these offers were refused alienallenailen barber owned the other one third of the twenty two acres the temple site came from and its important to mention him for one reason in particular for many years mr barber had contemplated a temple on the east bench of bountiful at one point mr barber even considered trading his one third interest seven

acres to the church to be used as a temple site but health problems prevented this finally by 1987 both leo barlow and alienallenailen barber decided to sell their combined twenty two acres and their lands were purchased by the ellis ivory development company 142 selecting the bountiful temple site

ellis ivory a real estate developer by profession and regional

representative for the church had purchased the barlow and barber properties earlier knowing that the church was looking for a temple

site in bountiful in the fall of 1987 while at a dinner party attended by president thomas S monson of the first presidency mr ivory mentioned to president monson he had property in bountiful that would make a good temple site president monson replied he wanted to see it but it took five months before president monson was able to do so in march of 1988 mr ivory was finally able to take president monson to see the barlowbarberBarlow Barber properties he had purchased earlier president monson liked the property and suggested mr ivory take president gordon B hinckley to see it also two weeks later president hinckley accompanied mr ivory to the property and asked a lot of questions about it another two weeks passed and the entire first presidency viewed the property at which time church president ezra taft benson stated this will be a beautiful site for the house of the lord barlow pg 53 on may 5 1988 the church purchased

10210.210-2 acres of land from ellis ivory of the original barlowbarberBarlow Barber 143 property that became the bountiful temple site president monson later remarked that in the modern history of the church he knew of

no other time when a temple site had been selected with all three members of the first presidency making the decision together barlow pg 53 the bountiful temple site is a property located on the east bench of bountiful utah the property is roughly rectangular in shape with the length being nearly four times the width the length of the property is oriented nearly true north and south the east edge of the temple site borders bountiful boulevard the west edge borders 1600 east streettempleStreet Temple view drive the southern limit of the temple site ends at 700 south street while the northern end of the site is a curved continuation of temple view drive that diagonals into bountiful boulevard the width of the temple site is approximately 350 feet and the length is nearly 1400 feet resulting

in a total acreage of 10210.210-2 acres barlow pg 53 the entire temple site slopes downward from east to west dropping approximately ten feet in elevation in 350 feet of horizontal distance average elevation of the temple site is 5160 feet above sea level which is nearly 700 144 feet higher than the business district of bountiful the view of and from the temple site will be unrestricted and extensive to the west

another interesting aspect of this property is that at one time the northern edge of the property terminated at holbrook canyon

following the floods of 1983 in bountiful the city fathers arranged with mr barlow and mr barber to dam holbrook canyon the dam extended from the future temple site north to the opposite canyon

rim and the adjoining hills of bountiful following completion of the

dam bountiful city paved a street across the dam thus connecting

bountiful boulevard that had previously been separated by the canyon with bountiful boulevard fully extended north and south better access to the later temple site was ensured the population changes for bountiful utah and its neighboring cities are given in table 17 although bountiful was settled the same

time period 121 2 years as centervilleCenterville and farmington it took twenty years 185018701850 1870 before bountiful became the most populous city in the area 145 table 17 population statistics of bountiful utah and adjacent communities source moffat utah population section

CENSUS YEAR population

CITY 1980 1970 1960 1950 1940 1930 1920 1910 1900 1890 1880 1870 1860 1850 fboung bountifulboungul 32877 27751 17039 6004 3357 2571 2063 1677 1442 1200 1000 1000 86 100

centervillecentervi-Centervilleervi-lle 8069 3268 2361 1262 691 670 500 540 500 450 450 450 475 250

farmingtonformington 4691 2526 1951 1468 1211 1339 1170 1231 968 950 950 750 591 250

norihnorthnorik salt lake city 5548 2143 1655 255 515 500

val verdo 6422 1200

west bountifulbounti-ful 3556 1246 945 682

woods cross 4263 3124 1098 273 211 1200 700 400 please note A blank entry indicates no data givencogivennogivenlnogivenno population at that time chapter 11

summary of the provo ogden jordan river and bountiful temple sites

the provo ogden jordan river and bountiful temple sites will be summarized together because of the closeness they share in

terms of location date of selection and symbolism these four temple sites were announced to be developed within

a relatively short time period of approximately twenty years 1969-

1988 and are within 50 miles of each other As with temple sites of

any age they each represent important features and symbols on the mormon landscape

these four temple sites and the completed temple of each a temple is the vertical extension of the temple site indicate the

spreading and the strengthening of the church especially near salt lake city due to the increase in numbers of church members in the

146 147 provoogdenprovo ogden corridor and their willingness to attend temple worship church leaders determined after temple studies of the 1960s and 1970s that additional temple sites would be needed in this corridor

As temple worship is in addition to weekly sabbath worship these

new temple sites reflect a religion of high devotion and self sacrifice

by its members

when viewing one of these temple sites the temple of each are nearly square or rectangular in shape this external feature of the temples reflects the internal function internally these temples have

incorporated an audio visual wilcox interview presentation of

instruction that can teach large numbers of church members more quickly and efficiently than older temples of these four temples two ogden and provo symbolize the beginning of this audiovisualaudio visual form of instruction and the other two jordan river and bountiful represent its continuation collectively they send a strong message

from the world capital of mormonism that the church desires to

teach as many members as it can the higher doctrines found only in its temples the exteriors of these temples are also a clear departure in architecture from the first four temple sites in utah instead of a AR 1148kowo11.11 castle like fortification or a symbol of landscape dominance these

temple sites are more subdued in expression but still exhibit a central

message in the single spire that is directed towards the heavens indeed the message ofmormonismofmormonism is as these temple spires suasuaaestsuggestaest look upwards to the true and living god also these recently completed temple sites illustrate the ability and desire of church

architects and the religion they represent to blend temple sites

comfortably into any environment or culture A temple site

additionally indicates the surrounding area and culture is acceptable

unto the church and its teachings as well because of close proximity to church headquarters in salt lake city and the desire and need by church leaders to share duties with

more and more local leaders these temple sites also help to show that

now other leaders and members other than a select few can participate in selecting a temple site for each of these temple sites the selection of each was initiated or significantly assisted by local

leaders and members outside the group of general authorities who have world wide jurisdiction

in each case the temple site selection was finalized after

investigating other possible temple sites and by a unanimous decision 149 of those delegated to recommend or choose the site more

importantly for every temple site there was a claimed firnfirm spiritual consensus or revelation of those involved that god had guided and confirmed the selection process these four temple sites strengthen the perception that salt lake city is the world capital ofMormonismofmormonismmorn onismeonism by fortifying the provo ogden mormon corridor with such unmistakable symbols of strength and determination chapter 12

conclusion

symbolisms of temple sites on the momormonon landscape

the great little known secret of the world is the multitude of meanings that mormon temple sites define both individually and collectively when writing of these sites its imperative the reader understand the authors definition of a temple site A temple site is

a specific element in religious geography separated from the secular world by human perception and definition with a completed and

functioning temple intertwined with the earth directly below and the open space above also important temples are defined by the author as the vertical extension of the temple site that extends both above and below grade level to enable the entire program of temple worship

150 151 to be completed A temple site must rise above the ground

significantly to direct mans attention to the heavens of god and how

man can and must spiritually rise above mundane earth life conversely a temple site must penetrate the earths surface to denote the opposite of heaven namely filth death burial hell and darkness

As temple sites occupy space above and below ground level they

represent religious rites that occur in the earthly and atmospheric realms cormonsmormons may be unique in that they perforsperfornperform religious worship below the ground in their temples temple sites signify the presence of a considerable number of church members in a definable area to these members the temple site constitutes a protected refuge of god where he and other

heavenly messengers may appear temple sites also express an

attitude the church desires to convey to its surrounding environment early temple sites in utah were french and gothic architecture that resembled castles of europe strikingly announcing the arrival and

dominion of cormonsmormons on that landscape such temple sites became boundary markers and points of arrival and departure for literally millions of church converts the salt lake city temple site has and continues to greet and bid farewell to countless scores of members 152 and non members to a degree overshadowing that of mecca jackson

pg 53

of great importance a temple site is a monument to those members who sacrificed for its completion As a temple site was the

focus of early mornmormonon towns that had them the cost of creating a

town was justified by the resulting temple site As over 600 church

members died on the march to the great basin the salt lake city temple site may be said to be the gravestone for these perished members

A temple site also symbolizes life in many aspects A fullness

of mortal life is available to those who learn advanced truths at the

temple site and thereafter fully live them until death eternal life

awaits all men following death which life will either be a reward or

punishment for mortal behavior

early temple sites in utah often became regional strongholdsstrongholds of the church which trend continues today also A temple site is the visual marker ofmormonismofmormonism providing a gathering place in times of need or for personal instruction by church leaders such visibility

suggests that as a temple site is made manifest to the world so must members present themselves to mankind to help spread what they 153 believe is gods true doctrine As temple sites never change from

what they represent so must church members who cherish their religion be steadfast only man pollutes a temple site just as only he can ruin himself

much of religion is based on hope hope for relief in this life

and hope of a better eternal life after death A temple site is the

greatest physical embodiment of the church for hope on earth church members derive great hope from a temple site as great

strength is believed to reside there from gods overshadowing

presence strength is also displayed at temple sites by design and

materials used rock work and metal is ever present at temple sites

hopefully reminding man that god is the only sure foundation in this life that guarantees mortal and eternal happiness temple site design

also alludes to strength through exact measurements by skilled

craftsmen and the finest of building materials although temple sites are beautiful and constructed with excellent materials they arent elaborate or extrusive as church members should present themselves

also

A temple site is symbolic of every virtue members are expected by god to possess and display temple sites also convey messages of 154 god to man and greatly define and strengthen the mornmormonon landscape

the selection process of temple sites in utah

from 1847 until 1988 the church has chosen and completed or at least begun development of eight temple sites in utah with each having or planned a large and extending temple the process whereby these temple sites have been designated brings to light several important religious and geographical teachings firstly

church leaders and general members all recognize the critical

importance and need for temple sites to be accessible to as many members as possible at temple sites church doctrine teaches that family lines can be linked together for all eternity and that the

highest of gods teachings essential for life and exaltation can only be taught and received there only a short time after arriving in salt lake valley brigham young declared where a temple site was to be and quickly gained the approval and recommendations of other leaders for it As to why he chose the temple site he did he frankly 155 claimed god had shown it to him earlier in a revelation and that this

same revelation of the temple site continued with him afterwards secondly youngs actions in choosing the salt lake city temple site served as a general blueprint of how he chose three other temple sites in utah and significantly resembles the selection process later church presidents employed young personally investigated the general area salt lake valley to put a temple site he claimed god revealed the exact site to him he was personally involved in the major

aspects of site development but he allowed lower level church leaders

to offer suggestions one of which is recorded that he accepted and

allowed all attending leaders to vote on either accepting or rejecting

his decision however he was firm as to the exact location of the site

and the vote was unanimous to accept it

young used the foregoing temple site selection process afterwards with slight variations to save time the second temple site at st george utah was the beginning of involving local leaders more in site selection before arriving young sent word to leaders there to scout the area and have several possible sites preselected for him to judge this took place but young rejected them and soon chose a site considered undesirable by the local leaders young stood 156 firm and the temple site was fully developed although several site problems had to be mitigated during the construction process young

wouldnt compromise on moving the site as he clearly indicated god

had told him to put the temple site where it is today at manti the process was repeated with a few variations that being the local leaders came to an agreement on one site that was later approved by young and that another church leader parley P

pratt also claimed god had inspired him where the temple site was

to be as young did later pratt is said to have prophesied the temple

site to the original founders of manti as they chose the city location

when the logan temple site was chosen again by brigham young the selection was preceded by two church members

prophesying that a temple site would be placed on the east bench of logan there arent public records to the authors knowledge that indicate why young chose the logan temple site other than just

mentioning young chose it

brigham youngs site selection process for temples has carried over in large part to the twentieth century however local church leaders were required to recommend possible sites under more complicated conditions 157 the provo and ogden temple sites were recommended by separate site selection committees after several diffdifficultiesiculties were

overcome A key factor of the provo temple site was how a common member of the church claimed god had revealed to him the provo

temple on land he owned and this property was eventually chosen by the first presidency for the temple site for the ogden temple there wasnt any specific revelation that prompted the site choice there but

all members of the selection committee felt sure it was gods will

also the ogden temple site involved important locational analysis

features like transportation access in deteriideterminingining its location the jordan river and bountiful temple sites were chosen in a similar manner as the provo temple site in that two average

members contacted church officials about possibly putting temple

sites on land they owned both proposed properties were eventually

accepted and developed as temple sites it can be observed that the selection process ofmormon temple sites has evolved from one where control of this process has always remained with the first presidency of the church but where assistance in choosing these sites has increased among local leaders over time also claimed personal revelation has been an important 158r a factor in several situations such as salt lake city st george manti logan and the provo temple sites proportedProported revelation to concerned individuals often proved the deciding or greatly influencing

factor also modern temple sites involve much more location analysis questions than older temples it seems likely that the site selection process that has matured to this point will continue to be used

test of hypothesis

to test the hypothesis that mormon temple sites conform to definitions of sacred space by various authors each definition will be

examined separately in point form and discussed as to support or negation of the hypothesis the definitions of sacred space will be compared with church doctrines and practices for its temple sites to establish or disprove the hypothesis again its mentioned that a temple site is the land immediately associated with the temple and 159 the temple itself to speak of either the temple or the ground its surrounded by is to speak collectively of the entire site

1 mormon temples are distinct from mornmormonon chacharelschaoelschanelschapelsoels and non

cormonsmormons as well as some cormonsmormons cannot enter a temdletempletempie as they

can a chapel turner 41

As a noted general authority of the church has written A

temple is and ever has been that of a place specially set apart for service regarded as sacred and of real or assumed sanctity in a more

restricted sense a temple is a building constructed for and exclusively

to sacred rites and ceremonies talmage pg 1 continuing and

clarifying the difference between temples and chapels temples have

never been regarded as places of ordinary public assembly but as sacred enclosures consecrated to the most solemn ceremonials of that

particular system of worship idolatrous or divine of which the

temple stood as visible symbol and material type talmage pg 2

As explained by another church authority when a worthy church

member desires to obtain a patriarchal blessing or participate in the 160 sacred ordinances of the temples he is given a recommend certifying as to his worthiness to gain the desired blessing mcconkie pg 620

2 A tempietemple is a place where god reveals himself strengstrong pg 62 many church teachings and doctrines plainly state that god does show himself in mormon temples in another manuscript of church sanction its recorded that joseph smith and several others witnessed god and jesus christ sitting on their heavenly thrones within the kirtland temple richards pgsggs igi191191192192 from historical statements to what cormonsmormons proclaim as scripture its found in nearly 70 different verses of the book of mormon and doctrine and covenants where god is mentioned in or with temples lundwall 316317316 317

3 A sacred oaceplacemace is first of all a defined ilaceplaceliace a space distinguishable from other spaces eliade pg 526 all temple sites are distinctly separated from neighboring surroundings as exemplified by the salt lake city temple site A richard jackson pg 43 has explained the sacred nature of the square temple square is symbolically and physically emphasized by 161 the presence of a fifteen foot high wall built in 1857 the logan temple site is also surrounded by an eight foot high wrought iron

fence olsen pg 231 additionally the logan manti provo and

bountiful temple sites are on hillsideshillsides or terraces amid residential or natural surroundings that contrast strikingly

4 sacred space may also reproduce the successive steps through

which the world came into being eliade pg 533

in very descriptive form talmage pg 204206204 206 describes several rooms in the salt lake city temple that show with painted murals that cover entire walls the churches explanation of the creation of the world beginning with the creation room then the

garden room and finally the world room the author relates the

appearance and symbolism of these rooms that help the patron to better understand how the earth came to be

5 salvation can be obtained there sacredfsacred spacespacer eliade pg 530

according to church theology a temple is absolutely essential to a persons full salvation As mcconkie has written by way of definition holy sanctuaries wherein sacred ordinances are performed 162 which pertain to salvation and exaltation in the kingdom of god are

called temples not only is salvation magnified to living individuals by attending a temple but the dead may also gain these ordinances

when living proxies stand in place for the dead in a temple

6 sacred centers are instruments for the creation of political social

economic and sacred space at the same time they were symbols of cosmic social and moral order wheatley in the pivot of the four quarters quoted by eliade pg 534

richard jackson pg 29 has determined through research and

analysis the church with its headquarters in salt lake city is a political economic and social power in a number of states their influence ranges from total dominance at both local and state scale

utah to dominance of the local but only minority influence at the

state level idaho wyoming arizona continuing jackson pg 29

states that the regional concentrations of cormonsmormons in the intermountain west has created one of the most distinct and long

lasting cultural regions in the country 163 7 even without explicit symbolsbolsbois of communication or tokens of the god a ilaceliaceplace may be understood as a point of contact between gods and humans eliade pg 529 if a place can be sacred without tokens as the foregoing statement says then with tokens of the gods it is surely within the germane of sacred space temples are where tokens of the gods are given to its patrons As brigham young has said

your endowment is to receive all those ordinances in the house of the lord temple which are necessary for you after you have departed this life to enable you to walk back to the presence of the father passing the angels who stand as sentinels being enabled to give them the key words the signs and tokens pertaining to the holy priesthood and gain your eternal exaltation in spite of earth and hell journal of discourses vol 2 pgsggs 313231 32 quoted by lundwall pg 237

8 A sacred place is tyrltyRitypicallycallycaily a place of puritydurity because puritydurity enables

people to come in contact with the gods eliade pg 529

A temple site outwardly and especially internally strives to maintain a pure environment As packer pg 71 states when we do ordinance work in the temple we wear white clothing thi clothing is symbolic of purity and worthiness and cleanliness 164 dressed in white you feel a oneness and a sense of equality for all

around you are similarly dressed

9 the sacred place0 lace is also a focus for divine dowerrowerpower eliade pg 529

early in modern day church history a leader of the church declared and verified his declaration by saying

I1 fully believe that when that temple salt lake city temple is once finished there will be a power and manifestation of the goodness of god unto this people such as they have never before experienced every work of this kind that we have accomplished has been attended with increased and wonderful results unto us as a people an increase of power and of gods blessings upon us george Q cannon journal of discourses vol 14 pgsggs 1256125 6 quoted by lundwall pg 339

10 in one way or another sacred space orders space in a socially meaningful way eliade pg 534

an example of this definition of sacred space is the influence the church has had on the downtown area of salt lake city next to temple square because church leaders want the area adjacent to the temple site to be clean and attractive the church has invested millions of dollars in upgrading this economic area As richard 165 jackson pg46 indicates the blocks surrounding temple square have all been renewed ten defining criteria have been presented and briefly compared to similar church teachings to help indicateindicatenullifynullify mormon temple sites as sacred spaces it is observed that temple sites do conform to the previous suggested guidelines of sacred space and the hypothesis

is substantiated

although only a few definitions were presented to determine

temple sites status as sacred space most were derived from the works

of mircea eliade eliade is a recognized authority on the history and development of religion to satisfy eliades paradigm is a significant test however cormonsmormons ultimately only seek the approval of god himself bibliographyBiblioablio achyaphy

alma book of the book of mormon the church of jesus christ of latter day saints salt lake city utah 1989 andrew laurel B the early temples of the Morcormonsmormonsmons state university of new york press albany new york 1978 bancroft hubert howe history of utah nevada publishing las vegas nevada 1982

bankhead S clair interview salt lake city utah july 15 1992 barlow J P interview bountiful utah july 17 1992 barlow john paul bountiful utah temple site historyhist carr printing company bountiful utah 1992

beasley murray stephen towards a metaphysimetaphysismetaphysicsI1 cs of the sacred mercer university press macon georgia 1982 berrett william edwin the restored church the department of education of the church of jesus christ of latter day saints salt lake city utah 1947 brother H interview south jordan utah july 13 1992 buttle faye jensen utah grows brigham young university press provo utah 1967 caillaiscailloisCaillois roger man and the sacred greenwood press publishers westport connecticut 1980

167 168 centennial committee editors sonesoncsong of A cencentury A centennial history and memory book of manti lithographerlithographedLithographed by community press provo utah no date city of bountiful utah bountiful pamphlet published by the city of bountiful utah no date cohn robert L the shape of sacred space scholars press chico california 1981 daughters of utah pioneers washington county chapter under dixie sun garfield county news panguitch utah 1950 dougherty james the fivesquarefivesguareFiveFivesguaresquare city university of notre dame press notre dame indiana 1980 eliade mircea the sacred and the profane harcourt brace and world inc new york 1959 editor in chief the encyclopedia of relreireligion macmillan publishing company new york 1987

ellsworth george S utahs heriherlheritage peregrine smith inc santa barbara and salt lake city 1977 francaviglia richard V the mormon landsclandeclandscape AMS press inc new york 1978

gousha road atlas simon & schuster inc san jose california 1990

greer deon C gurgel klaus D wahlquist wayne L christy howard A peterson gary B atlas of utah brigham young university press provo utah 1981 heinerman joseph tetemdletempletempiepie manifestations mountain hawkes publishing inc no address given 1974 heinterheinserHeinter milton R utah in her western sesetting 169 holt lonnie and annette Hihistorystoly of the jordan area south jordan author publishedcompiledpublished compiled no date ivory ellis interview salt lake city utah july 16 1992 jackson john B the necessity for ruins the university of massachusetts press amherst 1980 jackson richard H rinschede gisbert and knapp jill pilgrimage in the mormon church contained in pilgrimage in the unites states edited by G rinschede and S M bhardwaj dietrich reimer verloggerlog berlin germany 1990

henrie roger perception of sacred space journal of cultural geography bowling green university volume 32 springsummerSpring Summer 1983 kenner S A utah As it Is the deseret news salt lake city utah1904Utah 1904 larson andrew karl 1 I was called to dixie the deseret news press salt lake city 1961 larson gustine 0 outline history of utah and Morcormonsmormonsmons deseret book company salt lake city utah 1965

lewis president ben interview provo utah july 13 1992

livingston james C anatomy of the sacred macmillian publishing company new york 1989

luke book of the holy biblekingbiblebibie king james version published by the church of jesus christ of latter day saints salt lake city utah 1987 lundwall compiler N B temples of the most high published by N B lundwall salt lake city 1941 170 mcconkie bruce R mormon doctrine bookcraft salt lake city utahutah19791979 meinig donald W the mormon culture region strategies and patterns in the geography off the american west 184719641847 1964 annals of the association of american geographers volume 55 june 1965 number 2 pg 191 moffatmoffotmoff0t riley population history of the united states volume II11 no publication name or date given harold B lee library brigham young university first floor provo utah nelson lowry the mormon vilviivillage university of utah press salt lake city utah 1952 nielsen quig temple square crown jewel of the Morcormonsmormonsmons no publisher name or place of publishment odea thomas F the Morcormonsmormonsmons the university of chicago press chicago illiliiii111111. 1957 olsen nolan P logan temple the first 100 years keith W watkins and sons providence utah 1979 packer boyd K the holy temtempletempie bookcraft inc salt lake city utah 1980 peterson gary B and bennion lowell C sanpete scenes basin plateau press eureka utah 1987 public services church historical department temple bulBuibuildingidineldina principles As historically established by the restored church the church of jesus christ of latter day saints salt lake city utah 1974 raynor wallace alan the everlasting spires deseret book company salt lake city utah 1965 reid H lorenzo dixie of the desert wheelwright lithographingLithographing company salt lake city 1964 171 richards legrand A marvelous work and a wonder deseret book company salt lake city utah 1979 romney thomas cottam the state of deseret unpublished thesis university of california no date south jordan economic development committee economic profile south jordan city author published south jordan utah1992Utah 1992 spicer edward H and thomspon raymond H editors plural society in the west Interinterbookbook inc new york 1972 sutton editor wain utah A centennial history lewis historical publishing company inc new york 1949 talmage james E the house of the lord deseret book salt lake city utah 1968 the church of jesus christ of latter day saints the mormon templetempie manti utah published by the church of jesus christ of latter day saints salt lake city utah 1961 pamphlet tuan yi fu space and place university of minnesota press minneapolis 1977

landscapes of fearfean pantheon books new york 1979 turner harold W from templetempie to Meetinmeetinghouseehouseahouse mouton publishers the hague 1979 united states geological survey salt lake city north and south madsmarsmaps 124000124.000 scale reston virginia 1975 united states geological survey salt lake city north quadrangleA uadranbadrangiegle 124000 scale reston virginia 1975

st gewgemgeorge uadranglequadrangleq-uauadrangledrangle 162500 scale denver colorado 1954 172 logan utah quadranglequadra 124000 scale denver colorado 1986

mantimantl utah quadrangle 124000 scale denver colorado 1965

provo utah topographic map 124000 scale denver colorado 1975 utah institute of fine arts utah hastings house publishers new york 1945 utah state historical society the valley of the great salt lake reprinted from utah historical quarterly volume XXVII nov 3 july 1959 salt lake city 1967 wilcox president keith W interview ogden temple site september 4 1992 young brigham the journal historyHistoy off the mormon church microfilm CR 100137 8 c2ca church archives and history department the church of jesus christ of latter day saints salt lake city utah various dates young edgar levi the founding of utah charles scribners sons new york 1923 the geographical analysis of mormon temple sites in utah

garth russel liston department of geography

MS degree december 1992

ABSTRACT the first eight temple sites in utah were studied to determine important geographical characteristics of each and to test the hypothesis that mormon temple sites conforconform to definitions of sacred space president brigham young of the church greatly influenced the selection of the first four temple sites and the construction of each until his death in 1877 claimed revelation from god to young and other leaders and members of the church was evident concerning the temple sites the later four temple sites of the twentieth century were approved by the first presidency of the church but local church leaders and members were involved more in the site selection and construction process than nineteenth century temple sites the hypothesis was proven correct by comparing sacred space definitions of various authors with teachings and practices of the church concerning its temple sites in all comparisons mormon temple sites met the stated criteria of sacred space

COMMITTEE APPROVAL I- L richard H jackson committeesmitteemmittee chair n 7 alan H grey commi4zecommittee anbermobermnber

y daiejdacej steynswo-o A dedepartmentartmentartmont chair