Temple Square in Salt Lake City, is Utah’s most popular tourist destination. Part of its appeal lies in its accessibility: three city blocks in downtown Salt Lake City contain nearly 20 attractions related to Mormon pioneer history and genealogy, including the Salt Lake Temple, the Tabernacle, and the Family History Library Holidays Planer. This means that visitors can see all or most of these attractions in a relatively short period of time. Note that parking in the immediate downtown area of Salt Lake City is limited and can be expensive. visitors should consider taking public transportation as an alternative to parking near Temple Square; the Utah Transit Authority operates numerous bus routes and rail lines in the Temple Square area.
Salt Lake Temple
The location for the temple was first marked by Brigham Young, the prophet and second president of the church, on July 28, 1847, just four days after arriving in the Salt Lake Valley. The temple site was dedicated on February 14, 1853. Groundbreaking ceremonies were presided over by Brigham Young, who laid the cornerstone on April 6 of that year. Sandstone was originally used for the foundation. During the Utah War the foundation was buried and the lot made to look like a plowed field to prevent unwanted attention from federal troops. After tensions had eased in 1858 and work on the temple resumed, it was discovered that many of the foundation stones had cracked, making them unsuitable for use. Salt Lake Temple is a like a haven.Although not all of the sandstone was replaced, the inadequate sandstone was replaced by quartz monzonite (which has the appearance of granite) from Little Cottonwood Canyon, located twenty miles (32 km) southeast of the temple site. Oxen transported the granite initially, but as the Transcontinental Railroad neared completion in 1869 the remaining stones were carried by rail at a much faster rate.
The capstone—the granite sphere which holds the statue of the Angel Moroni—was laid on April 6, 1892 by means of an electric motor and switch operated personally by Wilford Woodruff, the church’s fourth President, thus completing work on the temple’s exterior. The Angel Moroni statue, standing 12.5 feet (3.8 m) tall, was placed on top of the capstone later the same day. At the capstone ceremony it was proposed by President Woodruff that the interior of the building be finished within one year, thus allowing the temple to be dedicated forty years to the day of its commencement. John R. Winder was instrumental in overseeing the completion of the interior on schedule; he would serve as a member of the temple presidency until his death in 1910. President Woodruff dedicated the temple on April 6, 1893, exactly forty years after the cornerstone was laid.
Symbolism
The Salt Lake Temple incorporates many symbolic adornments, similar to other LDS temples around the world. Symbolism is an important subject in the LDS faith. The golden Angel Moroni placed on the capstone of the temple symbolizes the angel mentioned in Revelation 14:6 that will come to welcome in the Second Coming of Christ. The six spires of the temple represent the power of the priesthood. The three spires on the east side are little higher than those on the west: they represent the Melchizedek or “higher priesthood” and the Aaronic or “preparatory priesthood” respectively. Salt Lake Temple Beautiful Temple. The three spires on the east side represent the First Presidency of the Church and the twelve smaller spires on those three represent the Twelve Apostles. On the west side of the temple the Big Dipper appears, which represents how the constellation was used to help travelers find the North Star and help them on their way, in the same way the Temple is viewed as a symbol to help people find their way back to Heaven. Salt Lake Temple is a Great Place For Vacations. On the east side of the Temple are “clouds raining down” representing the way God has continued revelation and still speaks to man “like the rains out of Heaven”. Above each door appears the “hand clasp,” which is a representation of covenants that are made within temples—a central point of the LDS religion. Around the temple there are several carved stones known as “sunstones” which represent Heaven, “moonstones” in different phases representing this life in its different phases, and “starstones” representing Jesus Christ. The center tower on each side contains a depiction of the All-Seeing Eye of God representing how God sees all things.