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Temple Square - Salt Lake's Most Popular Attraction

Visiting historic temple square.

Historic Temple Square and the headquarters of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (aka Mormons) are located in the heart of downtown Salt Lake City. While the Salt Lake temple is under renovation there are still many places you can visit on and near Historic Temple Square, including the Conference Center, FamilySearch Library, The Tabernacle, and The Church History Museum . Get the latest information on the renovation

History 

Temple square renovation update.

If you’ve heard of Salt Lake, you’ve likely heard of Temple Square. This recognizable center for the buildings of worship are located in…

Just four days after arriving in the Salt Lake valley following an arduous trek across the Great Plains, early church pioneers designated the location where they would build their church's first temple in this valley. Although the Salt Lake Temple took 40 years to complete once ground was broken, the area surrounding the temple became the center of the city, due to activity at the tabernacle and ongoing construction on the temple. Salt Lake's gridded street system places Temple Square as its origin; each address is an indication of how many blocks north, south, east or west an that address lies from Temple Square.

Temple Square  originally referred to the single square block on which the temple stood, but today it refers to a 35-acre area, including the original block in which with the temple, tabernacle, assembly hall, and visitors centers are located; the city block to the east—the site of several historic residences, the  Joseph Smith Memorial Building , and the Relief Society Building and Church Office Building; and areas to the north and west where the  Museum of Church History and Art , the  FamilySearch Library , and the  Conference Center  are located. In 2001, the original Temple Square block was connected to the block due east by a pedestrian plaza that includes a reflecting pool. 

Both the Salt Lake Temple and Conference Center are constructed of quartz monzonite (which looks like granite) sourced from  Little Cottonwood Canyon , located 20 miles away. Originally, it took four days for each one of the quartz monzonite blocks to make the journey from the canyon, transported by teams of oxen. When the Transcontinental Railroad was completed in 1869, travel from Little Cottonwood Canyon to Temple Square became much quicker, as the blocks were transported by rail. The walls of the temple, built of those quartz monzonite blocks, measure nine feet thick at the base and six feet thick at the top.

In 2001, the Conference Center was completed, featuring 21,000 seats in the main auditorium and occupying an area big enough to hold two Boeing 747s side by side. It's believed to be one of the largest theatre-style auditoriums ever built. The roof of the Conference Center features approximately three acres of landscaped grass and trees.

Activities 

Temple Square is the most visited attraction in Utah, with an estimated 3 to 5 million regional, national, and international visitors each year.

Free tours  of the grounds, Conference Center, and historical residences are available in over 40 languages, and you can make your visit to Temple Square a complete historical journey with the  Pioneer History Walking Tour.  The Salt Lake Temple is regarded by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints as sacred and is not open for tours. 

During the spring and summer, the gorgeous gardens, flowers, and landscaping are reason enough to stroll through the grounds. The  holiday lights  adorning Temple Square attract tens of thousands of visitors from Thanksgiving to New Years.   

One of the most popular activities available at Temple Square is Family History research. For beginners, the  Family Discovery Center  is staffed with volunteers who can assist you in getting started. For more in-depth research, the  FamilySearch Library  has more than 2.4 million rolls of microfilmed genealogical records—it's the world's largest genealogical repository.  

Currently closed for renovations,  The Lion House Pantry , located in the original home of Brigham Young, the LDS church's second president and Utah's first governor, offers home-style meals made from recipes passed down through generations. The menus rotates daily, featuring such mouth-watering comfort food as pot pie, prime rib, corn chowder, crab-stuffed tomato salad, and the famous Lion House rolls.

The Roof Restaurant , located on the 10th floor of the Joseph Smith Memorial Building, is a gourmet dining buffet offering views as amazing at the international cuisine and desserts.

The Garden Restaurant  is also located on the 10th floor of the Joseph Smith Memorial Building, and offers a full menu in a semi-casual setting, where you'll dine surrounded by a historic open-air gardens, fountains, and a retractable glass roof.

The Nauvoo Cafe  is an inexpensive and wonderfully satisfying spot to stop in for breakfast or lunch items such as omelets, sandwiches, soups, and salads.

The Tabernacle Choir at Temple Square  holds rehearsals (free and open to the public) on Thursday evenings, and broadcasts its Music and The Spoken Word program (also free and open to the public) on Sunday mornings. Various other performances, including concerts, events, and theatrical productions, take place at Temple Square throughout the year. Check out the official  Temple Square Event Calendar  for more details.

If you're looking to  host an event of your own at Temple Square  the Lion House building is available for kids' parties, and the Joseph Smith Memorial Building can be reserved for reunions. 

All Temple Square Attractions

Church history library and archives.

Chronicling the history of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from its beginning in 1830 to the…

City Creek Park

Picturesque park features a stone-lined stream, serene pond, triple-arch bridge, and pedestrian paths leading…

Deuel Pioneer Log Home

When the pioneers arrived in the Salt Lake Valley in July 1847, they immediately began constructing simple…

Eagle Gate Monument

Erected in 1859 at the entrance to Brigham Young’s property which led to the mouth of City Creek Canyon…

FamilySearch Library

Bring the whole family for free, fun, engaging, interactive family history experiences. Here are just a few of…

Historic Temple Square

The centerpiece of this beautifully landscaped 10-acre plot in the heart of downtown is the 6-spired Salt Lake…

Joseph Smith Memorial Building

This building is currently under renovation. It will be closed to the public until 2025. This beautifully…

Conference Center for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints

Home for the semiannual general conferences of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Free tours…

Constructed in 1855 as a residence for Brigham Young and his family. No tours, but The Pantry Restaurant is on…

Mormon Pioneer Memorial Monument

In a grassy plot near downtown Salt Lake City are the gravesites of Brigham Young and others, including Eliza…

Church History Museum

The history of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints comes alive in exhibits about various aspects…

From Salt Lake City Utah, The Church Extends Humanitarian Aid to Samoa

The manti utah temple is opening for public tours, renovation completed on pioneer-era house of the lord.

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The open house for the Manti Utah Temple of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is underway in Manti, Utah, following renovation.

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Media attended a news conference and tour of the house of the Lord on Monday, March 11, 2024. Those participating in the event included Elder Hugo E. Martinez , General Authority Seventy and First Counselor, Utah Area Presidency; Elder Jonathan S. Schmitt , General Authority Seventy and assistant executive director, Priesthood and Family Department and the Temple Department; and Relief Society General President Camille N. Johnson .

“Our main message is to be sure that we share the message of the importance of the temple in growing in our discipleship of Jesus Christ,” said Elder Martinez.

“The temple will help us fulfill the purpose of our existence here on earth. We come here to acquire a body and to be tested and to grow and to become better persons. As we become disciples of Jesus Christ, we can fulfill that purpose,” said Nuria Martinez.

“There is a beautiful depiction of the Savior as the shepherd holding a lamb and, of course, He is the Lamb of God, a beautiful reminder of why we're here in the house of the Lord, to make covenants with God and through the ordinances that are performed here have the opportunity to return to our heavenly home because of our Savior,” shared President Johnson.

“What a wonderful opportunity as we come to this temple, which is so beautiful to see beyond the artwork and the furnishings and to see into the hearts of these pioneers,” added Elder Schmitt.

“We regard a temple as the most sacred structure in the Church,” said Church President and Prophet Russell M. Nelson at the April 2019 general conference after announcing the Manti Utah Temple renovation. “As we speak of our temples old and new, may each of us signify by our actions that we are true disciples of the Lord Jesus Christ. May we renovate our lives through our faith and trust in Him.”

The public open house for the historic temple in central Utah will run from Thursday, March 14, through Friday, April 5, 2024, excluding Sundays. The temple rededication will be held on Sunday, April 21, 2024.

Free reservations can be scheduled online .

“This is a wonderful opportunity to invite everyone. Certainly, we want to invite members of the Church, but also all of our friends, all of our neighbors, all of the members of the community,” said Elder Schmitt.

Most of the current renovations have been to upgrade building systems and support spaces in the annex and to preserve the sacred structure. A new entrance and gathering space were added on the north side of the annex along with a bride-and-groom exit. The landscape was upgraded with new plants and trees throughout the site.

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Most interior improvements were completed in support areas of the temple, including a new marriage waiting room; additional lockers in dressing areas; and refreshed carpet, paint, and furniture in selected areas. Other interior changes included updated mechanical and plumbing systems and laundry equipment.

Highly skilled art conservators meticulously restored historical murals throughout the temple.

Manti Temple History

Church President Brigham Young sent a group of more than 220 Latter-day Saints to settle in the Sanpete Valley in 1849. They first camped where the Manti temple would eventually stand.

"One thing I love about the Manti temple is the way that it sits in this valley, that when you drive in, you have this beacon, this light on the hill," said Emily Utt, Church historic sites curator. 

The Manti Utah Temple has served the Latter-day Saints of the Sanpete Valley in central Utah for over 135 years. Architect William Folsom designed the pioneer-era temple. It was originally dedicated in 1888 after 11 years of construction.

The Manti Utah Temple is one of the Church’s 28 houses of the Lord dedicated or under construction or renovation in Utah. A new temple is being built in the nearby community of Ephraim .

Temples of the Church of Jesus Christ are different from meetinghouses or chapels where members gather for Sunday worship services. A temple is considered a house of the Lord, where the teachings of Jesus Christ are reaffirmed through marriage, baptism and other ceremonies that unite families for eternity.

Additional Resources

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Utah’s newest LDS temple has a Presbyterian touch. See photos.

The layton temple opens to public tours this week..

(The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints) The Layton Temple opens to public tours Friday.

Another new Latter-day Saint temple opens this week to public tours, and its design was partly inspired by farming and — Presbyterians.

According to a Monday news release from The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, the Layton Temple “includes design motifs that were influenced by the agricultural heritage” of the area, with seedlings, leafy branches and cherry blossoms inside and outside the structure.

(The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints) The entrance of the second-floor patron waiting area in the Layton Utah Temple features this Tiffany Studio window, circa 1915, which was purchased from a United Presbyterian Church in Armenia, New York. That church was demolished in 2015.

The second floor boasts a 1915 Tiffany art piece, titled “The Resurrection.” It was purchased from a United Presbyterian Church in the small town of Amenia, New York, about 100 miles north of New York City. That church was torn down in 2015.

The Layton Temple will open to the public Friday. Free tours will continue Mondays through Saturdays through June 1. Reservations are recommended and can be made online.

Church President Russell M. Nelson announced the temple in April 2018 . “We want to bring temples closer to the expanding membership of the church,” Nelson said at the time. A ceremonial groundbreaking in May 2020 launched official construction on the 11.87-acre site at 1400 Oak Hills Drive.

(The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints) The Angel Moroni statue atop the Layton Utah Temple of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

The three-story, nearly 94,000-square-foot structure features a golden Angel Moroni statue atop one of its twin spires. The temple is constructed of precast concrete panels over a structural steel frame and cast-in-place concrete shear walls.

Church apostle David A. Bednar will preside at the dedication of the temple June 16.

(The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints) The Celestial Room in the Layton Utah Temple.

It is the second temple in Davis County, joining Bountiful, which opened in 1995. A third Davis County temple, in Syracuse, is under construction. The Layton Temple will be the 195th operating Latter-day Saint temple in the world, according to the news release, and the 22nd temple completed in Utah.

(The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints) The baptistry inside the Layton Utah Temple.

It will be the second to be dedicated in the Beehive State in June. Apostle Gerrit W. Gong is poised to perform those honors for the Taylorsville Temple, now open to tours through May 18, on June 2.

Layton and Taylorsville will join 17 other temples currently functioning in Utah. They are Bountiful, Brigham City, Cedar City, Draper, Jordan River (South Jordan), Logan, Monticello, Mount Timpanogos (American Fork), Ogden, Oquirrh Mountain (South Jordan), Orem , Payson, Provo City Center (converted from the former Provo Tabernacle ), Red Cliffs (St. George — dedicated in March ); Saratoga Springs, St. George and Vernal.

(The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints) A chandelier in the Celestial Room of the Layton Utah Temple.

The iconic Salt Lake Temple is undergoing extensive renovation and is expected to reopen in 2026. The space-age Provo Temple closed in February , and — despite the efforts of some community members and preservationists — is being overhauled. (It will be renamed the Provo Rock Canyon Temple.) Renovations were recently completed for the Manti Temple, another pioneer-era architectural gem, which is set to be rededicated Sunday by apostle Ronald A. Rasband.

(The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints) The main staircase in the Layton Utah Temple.

Eight more — Deseret Peak (Tooele), Ephraim, Heber Valley, Lehi , Lindon, Smithfield, Syracuse and West Jordan — are either under construction or in planning stages. When all are completed, that will bring the number of temples in Utah to a whopping 30.

Nelson has announced 168, or 48%, of the global faith’s 350 planned or existing temples around the world.

(The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints) A mural above a window pane in the Layton Utah Temple. The mural shows the baptism of Jesus.

Latter-day Saints view a temple as a House of the Lord, a place where devout members participate in their religion’s most sacred rituals, including eternal marriage.

Donate to the newsroom now. The Salt Lake Tribune, Inc. is a 501(c)(3) public charity and contributions are tax deductible

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Manti Utah Temple reopens for tours after 2 years of renovations

By emily ashcraft, ksl.com | posted - march 11, 2024 at 5:05 p.m., the manti utah temple is opening for public tours this week after being closed for over two years for renovations. (the church of jesus christ of latter-day saints).

Estimated read time: 5-6 minutes

MANTI — Scott and Janice Hintze said the Manti Utah Temple can be seen from their home, and at one point their window perfectly framed its view. Each day, they look toward the temple and exercise around it.

"It's just a part of us," she said.

As the Hintzes now help run the temple open house, they're excited to show the pioneer heritage of the building to others. She described the temple as an icon for Manti and said the community feels a lot of enthusiasm about its reopening.

The Manti Utah Temple, built by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, was the third dedicated temple in operation. It is open for private tours through Wednesday, with public tours beginning Thursday, after the facility was closed for renovations in October 2021.

The public open house begins Thursday and runs until April 5, before a rededication of the temple on April 21.

Janice Hintze said the murals inside the temple look lighter, and more of its artwork now focuses on Christ.

"Everyone loves our little town, and it is because of the temple," she said.

Sacrifice from early members

Elder Jonathan S. Schmitt, general authority seventy and assistant executive director of the church's temple department, invited everyone to come feel love from the Lord, in the temple, during the open house.

He said the unique artwork and murals are "stunningly beautiful," with intricate detail in craftsmanship and needlepoint chairs, but the building is not a museum.

Elder Schmitt said the pioneers sacrificed to build the temple in Manti because of their faith in Jesus Christ — and because they knew the temple was a place where they could receive heavenly power to help them with life's trials, and because families could be sealed for eternity in temples.

"I stand in awe as I think about the pioneers in the Sanpete Valley at that time, most of them living in small homes with dirt roofs, but out of their poverty, they sacrificed and consecrated everything ... to build this magnificent house," he said.

President Camille N. Johnson, of the Relief Society presidency, invited media members at the temple on Monday to think about how Latter-day Saints "constructed a temple worthy of the presence of the Lord" while establishing farms, nurturing their families and managing livestock. She said they sacrificed their time and wealth to build the house of God.

"Their craftsmanship is exquisite, but perhaps more compelling to me is their faith in Jesus Christ and the power in making and keeping promises with God," she said.

She said the saints wanted to make promises with God in the temple and give that same opportunity to their ancestors and their posterity.

"In their sacrifice to keep the promises they had made with God, these people were sanctified and made holy themselves," President Johnson said.

She said she finds the evidence of those members' commitment to the Savior "remarkable," and hopes anyone who tours the temple will notice their attention to detail.

President Johnson said Jesus Christ is the center of everything members see and do in the temple, and she talked about the artwork of him, specifically one example in the lobby of the temple, which was painted by a local artist.

Maintaining historical detail

Emily Utt, historic sites curator with the Church History Department, said workers did "just enough work" during the renovation to help the temple stand for another 100 years.

She said people familiar with the temple won't see many differences, just some new carpet and paint, but a lot of work went into its maintenance.

"These murals took months, as a lot of detailed hard work from conservators working in 1-inch squares, cleaning these murals and getting them bright and clean and just the way they looked," she said, adding that each of the murals needed different preservation methods due to condition.

One room, known as the creation room, took three months to restore as workers cleaned original paintings from 1886, the oldest murals in the church. A bird was found covered up, and Utt shared how the painter used current research on dinosaurs from books to paint dinosaurs into his mural.

The murals in the baptistry required the most extensive work, including removal and off-site cleaning and preservation, while the damaged plaster underneath needed replacement.

Although the Manti temple looks different from other newly built temples, Utt said the local temple helped define how temple ordinances in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints are done in every temple.

One unique aspect of the Manti temple is the lack of an elevator. The page to reserve tickets to the open house says a limited tour of just the first floor can be given to those who cannot walk up stairs.

Utt said the church looked carefully at ways to improve accessibility, but determined adding elevators or lifts would damage the historical rooms. She said the church chose to preserve the building, acknowledging the decision could make it harder for some people to get through the temple.

She said they look forward to the opening of the temple in Ephraim, just a few miles from Manti, which will be fully accessible.

The renovations to the outside of the Manti temple included a new entry, a new loading dock replacing the old one at the front of the building and the repair of a waterproofing problem on the east site of the temple.

The temple, like other early temples, has an assembly room for members to gather, which is accessed by using a unique spiral staircase. Everything in the room is original except for some upholstery on the seats.

Original glass panes hang in the assembly room, and President Johnson said the light fixtures were added later, when electricity became available, but the temple was built with natural light in mind.

Now, she said the temple serves as a beacon and that can be seen around the valley, especially when it lights up at night.

"We're so pleased that all of our neighbors and friends will have an opportunity to see what's happening and what's inside that light on the hill that they've observed," President Johnson said.

Scott Hintze said sometimes, when he worked in the field at night, he could turn lights on the tractor off because of how bright the temple lights are.

He said the difference with the Manti Temple's open house and other temple open houses, people visit this temple because of connections they have whether through family history or their own experiences. He said everyone has a connection.

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PHOTOS: Check out the inside of the Layton Temple before it opens for public tours

by Matthew Jacobson, KUTV

LAYTON, Utah (KUTV) — The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints on Monday hosted a media tour of the latest of its new local temples to be complete.

The Layton Utah Temple, 1400 Oak Hills Drive, will open its doors to the public beginning Friday, with open houses every day except Sundays through June 1.

It's the second temple in the state to host open houses this month.

Related stories from KUTV

• Taylorsville temple open house begins Saturday
• PHOTOS: Take a look at the interior of the Taylorsville Temple
• 15 new temple locations, including 2 in Utah, announced at spring 2024 general conference

Public tours began at the Taylorsville Temple on Saturday.

Following tours at both temples, the houses of worship will be dedicated, after which only members of the church who meet certain requirements will be allowed inside.

Layton's dedication will take place June 16.

First look inside the newest LDS temple in Layton

LAYTON, Utah — Just days after the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints opened the Taylorsville temple for tours, another temple is nearly ready to open its doors to the public.

The Layton Temple, located at 1400 Oak Hills Drive will open to the public on Friday, April 19, with tours extending through Saturday, June 1.

PHOTOS: Take a first look inside the Layton temple

While an LDS temple opening may not be rare in Utah, it is unique to have two locations open for public tours at the same time.

The Taylorsville temple began its open house on April 12, with tours running through May 18 .

Church officials said the newest temple was inspired by "Latter-day Saint and other religious architecture" and includes nods to heritage of the Layton area.

Additionally, a glass piece titled "The Resurrection" can be found on the second floor of the building and dates back to 1915. The piece was bought from a United Presbyterian Church in New York, which was torn down in 2015, church leaders said.

Ground was broken on the temple in May 2020, with only a small gathering due to COVID-19 restrictions.

The Layton temple is the 22 of its kind in Utah, with additional buildings under construction in Deseret Peak (Tooele), Ephraim, Heber, Lindon, Smithfield and Syracuse. At the church's most recent general conference, the president announced additional temples to be built in Lehi and West Jordan.

After the public tours are concluded in June, the Layton temple will be dedicated by church leaders and then will only be open to members in good standing.

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Open-house reservations available for the Taylorsville Utah Temple

The public open house will run from saturday, april 13, to saturday, may 18, excluding sundays; reservations are recommended.

Reservations are now available online to tour the Taylorsville Utah Temple during the public open house, via reservations.ChurchofJesusChrist.org .

The public open house will run from Saturday, April 13, through Saturday, May 18, excluding Sundays. Reservations , which are recommended, are from 9 a.m. to 8 p.m.

The free tour includes a walking tour through the temple. Comfortable shoes and modest dress are recommended. The walking tour will last approximately one hour.

Parking is at 2780 W. 4700 South, Taylorsville, and attendees will ride a shuttle to the temple. Please plan to arrive at the shuttle lot about 30 minutes prior to the reservation time. Shuttles will run every 15 minutes.

In advance of attending the open house, attendees are invited to watch an introductory video about temples, available online.

After a temple of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is built or has undergone an extensive renovation, it is opened for public tours prior to being dedicated or rededicated. After the dedication or rededication, Church members with temple recommends can enter to perform sacred ordinances.

The Taylorsville Utah Temple will be dedicated by Elder Gerrit W. Gong of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles on Sunday, June 2, in two sessions scheduled at 10 a.m. and 1:30 p.m. MDT. The sessions will be broadcast to all units within the temple district.

About the Taylorsville Utah Temple

The Taylorsville temple was announced by Church President Russell M. Nelson during the women’s session of the October 2019 general conference . Less than 10 weeks later, the First Presidency identified the site location , centrally located within the Salt Lake Valley just west of Interstate 215 and southwest of the Belt Route’s 4700 South interchange.

The house of the Lord is a three-story, 70,000-square-foot building with a center spire, on a 7.5-acre site at 2603 W. 4700 South. Elder Gong presided over the temple’s groundbreaking services on Oct. 31, 2020.

Temples in Utah

The Taylorsville temple is one of 28 total temples in operation, under construction or under renovation in Utah, home to more than 2.1 million Latter-day Saints spread throughout some 5,400 congregations.

Houses of the Lord in Utah that are operating are the Bountiful , Brigham City , Cedar City , Draper , Jordan River, Logan , Monticello , Mount Timpanogos , Ogden , Oquirrh Mountain , Orem , Payson , Provo , Provo City Center , Saratoga Springs , St. George and Vernal temples.

Two dedicated temples are under renovation — the Manti and Salt Lake temples; the Provo Utah Temple closed for reconstruction i n late February.

In addition to the Taylorsville Utah Temple, two more houses of the Lord in Utah have dedication dates: The Red Cliffs Utah Temple in St. George is scheduled to be dedicated on March 24, and the Layton Utah Temple on June 16. (See below for open house information.)

Other houses of the Lord under construction are the Deseret Peak , Ephraim , Heber Valley , Lindon , Smithfield and Syracuse temples.

Recent and upcoming temple open houses

Other recently concluded, ongoing and announced temple open houses include:

• The Red Cliffs Utah Temple open house concluded Saturday, March 2. President Henry B. Eyring , second counselor in the First Presidency, will dedicate the temple on Sunday, March 24.
• The Manti Utah Temple open house will be Thursday, March 14, to Friday, April 5, except Sundays. Reservations , which are recommended, are available online . The Manti Utah Temple will be rededicated on Sunday, April 21.
• The public open house for the Urdaneta Philippines Temple will be Friday, March 15, through Saturday, March 30, excluding Sundays. Reservations are not needed for the open house . The house of the Lord will be dedicated on April 28, by President Dallin H. Oaks , first counselor in the First Presidency.
• The Puebla Mexico Temple public open house will be Friday, March 29, through Saturday, April 20, excluding Sundays, and April 6 for general conference. Reservations are recommended. The house of the Lord will be dedicated on Sunday, May 19, by Elder Gong .
• The Cobán Guatemala Temple public open house is scheduled for Thursday, April 25, through Saturday, May 11, excluding Sundays. Elder Dale G. Renlund of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles will dedicate the house of the Lord on Sunday, June 9.
• The Salta Argentina Temple public open house will be Friday, May 3, through Saturday, May 18, excluding Sundays. Elder D. Todd Christofferson of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles will dedicate the house of the Lord on Sunday, June 16.
• The public open house for the Layton Utah Temple will be Friday, April 19, through Saturday, June 1, excluding Sundays. The house of the Lord will be dedicated on Sunday, June 16, by Elder David A. Bednar of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles.
• The Casper Wyoming Temple public open house will be Thursday, Aug. 29, through Saturday, Sept. 14, excluding Sundays. The second house of the Lord in Wyoming will be dedicated to the by Elder Quentin L. Cook of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles.

Information about tour reservations will be available later on reservations.ChurchofJesusChrist.org .

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Layton Utah Temple set to open its doors to the world

By rob nielsen - | apr 16, 2024.

Rob Nielsen, Standard-Examiner

LAYTON — One of the newest temples in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is preparing to open its doors to the public this week.

The Layton Utah Temple — set to be the 195th operating temple of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and the 22nd to open in Utah — is set to begin its open house period on Friday.

But Monday, church officials gave regional media a glimpse into the temple with a press briefing and tour.

Lynette Checketts, co-coordinator for the Layton Utah Temple open house and dedication, said the announcement of the new temple came at a special time.

“On April 1, 2018, President (Russell M.) Nelson announced that Layton would have a temple, and there was so much rejoicing in our home,” she said. “It also happened to be my husband’s birthday, so it was an especially special day for us.”

Ground ultimately was broken on the nearly 94,000-square-foot temple on May 23, 2020, with construction beginning soon after.

Elder Christophe G. Giraud-Carrier of the General Authority Seventy took time Monday to explain the importance of temples like the one in Layton.

“For members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, temples are the great symbol of our memberships,” he said. “In the temples, we learn about our divine identity and destiny better than any other place. In the temples, we make promises to our Father in heaven about how we will act and how we will treat one another. And most importantly, in the temple, the things that start in this life can go beyond the grave as husbands and wives, parents and children are united together, not only til death do us part, but for time and all eternity.”

Sister Amy Wright, first counselor in the Primary General Presidency, spoke about how children from the community were invited to paint rocks with something “near and dear to their hearts” and return them to the future home of the Layton Utah Temple.

“I had the privilege of seeing many of these rocks, and the illustrations were illustrations of God’s beautiful creations,” she said. “There were illustrations of our savior, Jesus Christ, of other temples. There were also illustrations of children and youth with their families. They had also taken the time to paint names of those that they loved as well as shared a scripture or two that was dear to their hearts. Then those rocks were mixed into the foundation of this beautiful house. The symbolism is not lost on me. When you think about the fact that our children and youth in this community literally are part of the foundation of the house of the lord, and that foundation is built upon their faith in Jesus Christ — to me, this speaks volumes of our faith in the future and, most specifically, our faith in the rising generation and the significant role they play in helping to gather and build the Kingdom of God.”

Elder Kevin R. Duncan, executive director in the church’s Temple Department, said there’s a reason The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints continues to build temples all over the world, in Layton and beyond.

“The answer is the ability for more members of our faith to have access to the wonderful things that we feel that we learn inside the temple,” he said. “My friends, I hope that as you’re inside this temple, you’ll really feel that it is a place of refuge from the storms of life for all of us.”

Following the tour, Duncan told the Standard-Examiner that the temple will give members from the area a new place to go.

“All of these members were going to Bountiful, which was very crowded all the time,” he said. “This temple will relieve a lot of that crowdedness, and also puts a temple closer to the youth who will serve in the temple as well.”

He said this will be the second temple in Davis County and that a third is under construction in Syracuse.

Duncan said it’s exciting to see the Layton Utah Temple coming to fruition after its 2018 announcement.

“Just as we were getting started, COVID came, so it caused a little bit of a slowdown in construction because of supply chain issues. But we continued to work all the way through that and we’re so pleased that it’s finally ready to go,” he said.

The temple will be open from morning until night beginning Friday through June 1, with the exception of Sundays. Dedication of the temple is set for June 16.

For more information on the Layton Utah Temple, visit https://tinyurl.com/5zmxs4nx .

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President Nelson announced new 29th and 30th temples for Utah in Lehi and West Jordan

Utah now has 17 dedicated and operating temples, with 11 under construction or renovation.

By Tad Walch

President Russell M. Nelson announced plans to build two more Latter-day Saint temples in Utah — in Lehi and West Jordan — during an announcement Sunday of plans to build a total of 15 more temples around the world.

“The temple is the gateway to the greatest blessings God has for each of us,” he said in the final talk at Sunday’s 194th Annual General Conference of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

A full list of the 30 Utah temples and their construction and operation status is provided below.

Lehi’s population is booming, and the Latter-day Saints are devoted to attending church meetings, going to the temple and paying tithing.

“Activity rates in this area are just incredible,” said Bryan Atwood, president of the Lehi East Stake. “It’s a very dense area of high activity and a lot of temple patrons here. I don’t have a lot of church-wide context, but visitors who come talk about the high percentage of current temple recommend holders or full tithe-paying, Melchizedek priesthood holders.”

Atwood’s congregations use the very busy Mount Timpanogos Utah Temple to the west in American Fork, where the baptistry is so busy that many youth who do proxy baptisms for those who have died now go to the Draper Utah Temple to the north to perform the ordinances before school in the morning.

“My first thought at the announcement was, ‘I’m so excited.’ The next one was, ‘let’s overwhelm that temple, too. Let’s get everybody there.’ There was a heavy slant toward temple attendance throughout conference and this just gives us another reason to emphasize that.”

Church leaders have said repeatedly that the reason there are so many temples in Utah is because church members in the state participate in family history and temple work at high rates.

“If everybody in this area would go to the temple as often as they could, they’d have to build more and more and more,” Atwood said.

Both Atwood and Tim Sloan, president of the Lehi Utah Cedar Hollow Stake, grew up in California, where they lived far from the nearest temple.

“So having a temple that’s five miles away in American Fork is like a dream come true,” Sloan said. “Having one in Lehi is like literally having one in our backyard.”

He said having a temple in Lehi will be an honor and blessing.

“There’s a sense of a pioneer heritage here in Lehi that goes back since its founding, and there is a deep, deep sense of faith in this community,” he said. “For Lehi to have its own temple is just an honor and a blessing to all of us.”

The West Jordan temple will give the church four temples on Salt Lake Valley’s westside. It will be sandwiched between temples already built in the cities directly north and south.

To the north, the Taylorsville Utah Temple’s construction is complete and a public open house will begin Saturday. The open house will run through Saturday, May 18, excluding Sundays.

South Jordan is home to the Jordan River Utah Temple and Oquirrh Mountain Utah Temple.

Temples differ from meetinghouses where Latter-day Saints worship on Sundays. Temples are where worthy church members can be sealed together in marriage for eternity and make covenants, or commitments, to God.

For example, during the endowment ceremony, church members commit to 1) live the law of obedience, 2) obey the law of sacrifice, 3) obey the law of the gospel of Jesus Christ, 4) keep the law of chastity and 5) keep the law of consecration, according to the church’s General Handbook .

Each temple is considered a house of the Lord Jesus Christ.

“In his house, we are literally endowed with heavenly power,” Elder Neil L. Andersen of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles said Sunday. “Our faith in Jesus Christ and our love for him is confirmed and fortified. We are spiritually assured of our true identity and the purposes of life. As we are faithful, we are blessed with protection from temptations and distractions. We feel our Savior’s love as he lifts us from our difficulties and our challenges, our sorrows and our heartaches. We are armed with the power of God.”

The church’s doctrine is that temple covenants are required for the highest kingdom in heaven.

“The ordinance of baptism and its associated covenants are the essential requirements for entrance into the celestial kingdom. The ordinances and associated covenants of the temple are the essential requirements for exaltation in the celestial kingdom, which is eternal life, the greatest of all the gifts of God,” President Dallin H. Oaks, first counselor in the First Presidency said Sunday.

Members also believe they can be saved together with their families, a largely unique Christian doctrine. They go to temples to perform baptism, sealings and endowment ordinances for ancestors as a free-will offering that can be accepted or rejected.

17 dedicated and operating temples in Utah

• Logan Utah Temple (1884, 1979)
• Ogden Utah Temple (1972, 2014)
• Provo Utah Temple (1972)
• Jordan River Utah Temple (1981, 2018)
• Bountiful Utah Temple (1995)
• Mount Timpanogos Utah Temple (1996)
• Vernal Utah Temple (1997)
• Monticello Utah Temple (1998, 2002)
• Draper Utah Temple (2009)
• Oquirrh Mountain Temple (2009)
• Brigham City Utah Temple (2012)
• Payson Utah Temple (2015)
• Provo City Center Temple (2016)
• Cedar City Utah Temple (2017)
• Saratoga Springs Utah Temple (2023)
• St. George Utah Temple (1877, 2023)
• Red Cliffs Utah Temple (2024)
• Orem Utah Temple (2024)

3 temples under renovation in Utah

• Salt Lake Temple (1893)
• Manti Utah Temple (1888; 1985; April 21, 2024)

8 temples under construction in Utah

President Nelson announced all of these temples.

• Layton Utah Temple (announced April 1, 2018)
• Deseret Peak Utah Temple (announced April 7, 2019)
• Taylorsville Utah Temple (announced Oct. 5, 2019)
• Syracuse Utah Temple (announced April 5, 2020)
• Lindon Utah Temple (announced Oct. 4, 2020)
• Smithfield Utah Temple (announced April 4, 2021)
• Ephraim Utah Temple (announced May 1, 2021)
• Heber Valley Utah Temple (announced Oct. 3, 2021)

2 temples announced for Utah

These are the temples President Nelson announced on Sunday. These temple names are unofficial. They will be named later.

• Lehi Utah Temple (announced April 7, 2024)
• West Jordan Utah Temple (announced April 7, 2024)

Temples of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints

Smithfield utah temple.

Stone cladding underway; sheathing and waterproofing the exterior; structural framing nearing completion; construction estimated to be completed in late 2025

© Intellectual Reserve, Inc. All rights reserved.

Announcement: 

Groundbreaking and site dedication: , site: , architectural features: , ordinance rooms: , total floor area: , elevation: , groundbreaking ceremony.

"I love this beautiful valley," said Elder Quentin L. Cook of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles on a windy Saturday morning at the groundbreaking ceremony for the Smithfield Utah Temple. "I have seen much of the world, but this peaceful valley surrounded by these majestic mountains always feels like home to me. It is among the most beautiful places on earth." Elder Cook was accompanied by Elder Gary E. Stevenson of the Quorum of the Twelve, both of whom were raised in Cache Valley. They expressed their delight in the construction of a second temple for the valley, joining the historic Logan Utah Temple . Plans call for the construction of a three-story temple on a 13.3-acre parcel at N 800 West and W 100 North in Smithfield, which had been farmed by the LaMont Poulsen family for more than 160 years. In his site dedicatory prayer, Elder Cook said, "Our hearts are full of appreciation for those who have gone before us and who have laid the foundation for a temple in northern Cache Valley." He added, "We pray that this temple will be a beacon light for the communities it serves." 1

Temple Rendering

On November 24, 2021, an official exterior rendering was released for the Smithfield Utah Temple.

Temple Site

On June 10, 2021, the site for the Smithfield Utah Temple was announced as a 13.3-acre parcel located at the intersection of N 800 West and W 100 North. Plans call for a three-story temple of approximately 81,000 square feet. 2

Temple Announcement

Plans to construct the Smithfield Utah Temple were announced by President Russell M. Nelson on April 4, 2021, at the 191st Annual General Conference. The temple will be the second to be constructed in the Cache Valley, joining the Logan Utah Temple —dedicated in 1884. At the time of the temple's announcement, Utah had 2.1 million Church members, which was roughly two-thirds of the state’s population of 3.3 million residents. It was the 26th temple announced for the state of Utah. 3

Temple Facts

• Trent Toone, "Apostle prays Smithfield Utah Temple will be ‘a beacon light’ at groundbreaking near his hometown," Deseret News , 18 Jun. 2022.
• "New Temple Site Locations Announced in Three Western US States," The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints News Release, 10 Jun. 2021.
• The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints News Release, "At April 2021 Conference, Prophet Announces 20 More Temples to Be Constructed," 4 Apr. 2021.