Different Trails

DRIVE (Day 15 - part 3)

In St. George, we stopped for a visit at the Mormon temple. Inside was a small visitor center with displays of the temple's construction.

A map of St. George in 1886, 25 years after the first settlers arrived. It was no longer a tiny frontier town.

In 1861, Brigham Young (1801 - 1877) called 300 families to begin a new settlement here in the desert, origionally with the hope of growing cotton. It would be a hot, dry, isolated existence. In 1871, the construction of the temple was announced and architectural drawings were created. Work began in 1873, with the first 18 months spent stabilizing the ground and laying the foundation. The walls were finshed in 1875, and the following year, the tower was completed. Once the exterior walls were plastered, the dedication took place in 1877.

Unfortunately in 1878, the tower was hit by lightning and had to be replaced. A new taller one was completed in 1883. Ironically, Brigham Young had never liked the original tower. The people had promised they'd changed it, but he returned to Salt Lake City and died two weeks later. When lightning promptly hit and destroyed it, they rebuilt it how he had wanted it!

The temple under construction, 1875

Various stone and woodworking tools

Building a firm foundation with a cannon pile driver. When workmen broke ground for the temple foundation, they found a thick layer of soft wet clay that would not support a wall. Rather than build on another site, the drove volcanic gravel into the soil. This cannon was filled with lead, encased with timers, and then dropped from a 35-foot scaffold. In some places, they had to dive the gravel five feet deep before the ground became firm.

We were then led into another center with photos of temple. We couldn't go into the actual temple though. Supposedly it's even super difficult for non-local Mormons to get in. They must first be approved by the president and the bishop.

We learned about the sealing room (where a married couple is bound together for all eternity, not just "until death do you part"); the baptizing room (apparently one can baptize one's ancestors long after they are dead); the reflection room and the learning room.