The Nauvoo Bell , also known as the Relief Society Memorial Campanile , is a bell tower in Salt Lake City 's Temple Square , in the U.S. state of Utah .
90-631: It is also the name of the 1,500-pound bell in that tower, also known as the Hummer Bell . This bell is frequently confused with the bell from the Nauvoo Temple that was brought from Nauvoo, Illinois by Charles C. Rich ’s company of pioneers. The original Nauvoo Bell was used as a signal bell in Nauvoo, Winter Quarters and then at Temple Square in Salt Lake City. It cracked in the harsh winter of 1849–50 and
180-660: A "Prophet, Seer, and Revelator", as had all other members of the First Presidency and of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles of the Church. Rigdon returned to Nauvoo on August 3, and the next day he announced at a public meeting that he had received a revelation appointing him "Guardian of the Church". The president of the central stake , William Marks , supported Rigdon. At an August 8 conference, Rigdon argued that he should be made
270-501: A Special Conference was called to consider "the case and standing of Elder Sidney Rigdon". Joseph Smith "stated his dissatisfaction" with Rigdon. Charges were leveled that Rigdon had disloyal correspondences with John C. Bennett , former Governor Carlin, and "the Missourians". Rigdon was also accused to "leaguing with dishonest persons in endeavoring to defraud the innocent". In "indirect testimony" from Porter Rockwell 's mother, Rigdon
360-562: A band and choir. The room could accommodate up to 3,500 people. Because there were pulpits on both ends of the room, the pews had movable backs which could be swung to face either direction, depending on who was presiding - the Melchizedek Priesthood or the Aaronic Priesthood. Access to the first floor mezzanine was directly from landings of the two staircases in the west end of the building. A foyer, corresponding in size to
450-464: A conference of the Church of Christ, which he claimed was the rightful continuation of the church founded by Smith. He then reorganized the First Presidency and called his own Quorum of Twelve Apostles. Although Rigdon's church briefly flourished through the publication of his periodical, The Messenger and Advocate , quarrels and bickering among the Rigdonites led most members of the church to desert
540-535: A date that coincided with the 158th anniversary of the death of Joseph and Hyrum Smith , the temple was dedicated by the LDS Church as the Nauvoo Illinois Temple . The Latter Day Saints made preparations to build a temple soon after establishing their headquarters at Nauvoo, Illinois, in 1839. The 4-acre land for the temple was purchased in late 1840, for $ 1,100. On April 6, 1841, the temple's cornerstone
630-422: A decorative element beneath a vase or something similar. They may have been part of a feature planned, but not used, in the final construction. Every visitor who wrote about the temple mentioned the baptismal font. It was clearly the most impressive feature of the temple. There were actually two fonts built during the lifetime of the temple, a temporary wooden one, and a permanent limestone one. The first font
720-429: A large baptismal font in the center of the main room. The basement was accessed by spiral staircases at the northwest and southwest corners of the temple. The staircase landing was made of wood and opened to a short hallway heading east, leading to the basement proper. Between the two hallways was an unfinished room sealed off from the rest of the temple, containing an old well that had been dug but never used. The room
810-568: A local church presidency in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania . He was also in poor health. In the summer of 1842, John C. Bennett , accused Smith of attempting to take Rigdon's daughter Nancy Rigdon as a plural wife. According to Bennett, Nancy rejected the proposal. The accusation led to a confrontation between the Rigdon and Smith families wherein Smith denied having raised the issue with Nancy. In October 1843,
900-620: A lot of men to break the Sabbath day in that manner". Smith "dragged him from the ring, bareheaded, and tore Rigdon's fine pulpit coat from the collar to the waist". Reportedly, "after that Rigdon never countermanded the orders of the Prophet, to my knowledge—he knew who was boss". As spokesman for the First Presidency, Rigdon preached several controversial sermons in Missouri, including the Salt Sermon and
990-604: A revelation counseling members of the church in New York to gather to Kirtland, Ohio . Many of the doctrines Rigdon's group had experimented with found place in the combined movement, such as living with all things in common. In August 1831, Smith announced that he had received a revelation admonishing Rigdon for exalting himself: "And now behold, verily I say unto you, I, the Lord, am not pleased with my servant Sidney Rigdon; he exalted himself in his heart, and received not counsel, but grieved
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#17328523381201080-609: A schism split the congregation, with each side disfellowshipping the other. On October 11, Rigdon was "excluded from the Redstone Association Baptist Denomination", of which the First Baptist Church was a member. From 1824 to 1826, Rigdon worked as a journeyman tanner in Pittsburgh, while preaching Campbell's Restorationism on Sundays in the courthouse. He also worked as a journeyman printer for
1170-400: A set of double pulpits and pews, but the room was never completed. Doors were never hung, the plastering was unfinished, and the floorboards were only rough timber, not the tongue and grove finished hardwoods of the other floors. The room, when used for an occasional meeting, was furnished with wooden benches. The second mezzanine was similar to the first floor mezzanine. It was accessed via
1260-475: A sheriff on their way to stand trial. Smith went on to found the city of Nauvoo, Illinois . Rigdon continued to act as church spokesman and gave a speech at the ground-breaking of the Nauvoo Temple . On June 1, 1841, Sidney Rigdon was ordained as a " Prophet, Seer, and Revelator ". However, Smith and Rigdon's relationship began to deteriorate in Nauvoo. Rigdon's participation in church administrative affairs became minimal. He did not reside in Nauvoo and served in
1350-402: A stairway leading to a room in the mezzanine below. Rising from the plateau of the attic is an octagonal tower. The tower was divided into three sections, each accessible by a series of stairways leading from the attic to an observation deck at the top. The lowest section was the belfry. The bell was rung for various occasions. Between the observation deck and the belfry was a section containing
1440-465: A very fine grammarian. He was very precise in his language." Rigdon remained on the farm until his mother sold it in 1818. On May 31, 1817, Rigdon was baptized by Rev. Phillips, and he became a member of the Peter's Creek Baptist Church of Library, Pennsylvania. In 1818, Rigdon moved to North Sewickley to become an apprentice to Baptist minister Rev. Andrew Clark. Rigdon received his license to preach for
1530-549: Is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . Nauvoo Temple The Nauvoo Temple was the second temple constructed by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints . The church's first temple was completed in Kirtland, Ohio , United States , in 1836. In the winter of 1846, when the main body of the church was forced out of Nauvoo , the church attempted to sell the building, finally succeeding in 1848. The building
1620-620: Is displayed, along with the only moonstone on display, at the Joseph Smith Historic Center of the Community of Christ . From 1937 to 1962, the LDS Church reacquired and restored the lot on which the temple stood. The church bought the portion that initially housed the temple in an uncontested public auction on February 19, 1937, for $ 900, after previously being listed and protected by the bank at auction several times because prices were lower than expected. Wilford C. Wood then bought
1710-450: Is inconclusive. However, Joseph Smith's youngest son, David Smith, rendered a painting of the temple's damaged facade, clearly shows half-circular windows at the basement level in the north and south corners of the facade. The staircase in the northwest corner was never completed. It was roughed in with temporary boards resting on the risers. Workmen used this staircase to gain access to the building during its construction, especially during
1800-714: Is often mistakenly thought that these stones represent the three degrees of glory in the Latter Day Saint conception of the afterlife, but the stones appear in the wrong order. Instead, Wandle Mace, foreman for the framework of the Nauvoo Temple, has explained that the design of the temple was meant to be "a representation of the Church, the Bride, the Lamb's wife". In this regard, Mace references John's statement in Revelation 12:1 concerning
1890-503: The History of the Church records that Smith replied to the vote by saying, "I have thrown him off my shoulders, and you have again put him on me. You may carry him, but I will not." When Smith began his campaign for the presidency of the United States in 1844 , Rigdon was selected as his vice-presidential running mate. After Smith's death, Rigdon was the senior surviving member of
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#17328523381201980-715: The July 4th Oration . These speeches have sometimes been seen as contributing to the conflict known as the 1838 Mormon War in Missouri. As a result of the conflict, the Mormons were expelled from the state , and Rigdon and Smith were arrested and imprisoned in Liberty Jail . Rigdon was released on a writ of habeas corpus and made his way to Illinois , where he joined the main body of Mormon refugees in 1839. Smith and his followers were allowed to escape from Liberty Jail in Missouri as ordered by Governor Boggs, and so they were released by
2070-701: The Regular Baptists in March 1819. Rigdon moved in May to Trumbull County, Ohio , where he jointly preached with Adamson Bentley from July 1819. He married Bentley's wife's sister, Phoebe Brooks, in June 1820. Rigdon remained in Ohio until February 1822, when he returned to Pittsburgh to accept the pastorate of the First Baptist Church there under the recommendation of Alexander Campbell . Rigdon and Bentley had journeyed to meet Campbell in
2160-581: The "Protector" of the church." Brigham Young , president of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles , opposed this motion and asserted a claim for the primacy of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles. The Quorum of Twelve Apostles were scattered throughout the United States and Europe at the time of Smith's death. The members of the quorum available in Illinois, in addition to a gathered assembly, voted to deny Rigdon his claim for church leadership. Rigdon felt this action
2250-483: The "architect's room." Their eventual intended use is not clear. At the east and west ends of the hall were two sets of similar pulpits. Resembling the pulpits used in the Kirtland Temple, and repeated in later temples, they were arranged with four levels, the top three consisting of a group of three semi-circular stands. The lowest level was a drop-table which was raised for use in the sacrament . The pulpits to
2340-427: The "woman clothed with the sun, and the moon under her feet, and upon her head a crown of twelve stars." This explains why the starstones are at the top of the temple ("crown of twelve stars"), the sunstones in the middle ("clothed with the sun") and the moonstones at the bottom ("moon under her feet"). Construction was only half complete at the death of Joseph Smith in 1844. After a succession crisis , Brigham Young
2430-523: The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. The Hummer Bell remained in storage until 1939, when it was put on display in a church museum in Salt Lake City. At that time, it was confused with both the original Nauvoo Bell and a bell at Brigham Young's schoolhouse and began to be used as a pioneer relic. When the Relief Society planned and constructed their centennial celebration memorial, the Hummer Bell
2520-418: The First Presidency. (The other members were John Smith , who was an assistant counselor, and Amasa Lyman , who was a counselor.) During this time, Rigdon was strongly opposed to polygamy and other innovations within the church. Joseph Smith was killed in 1844. Prior to Smith's death, the First Presidency had made nearly all the major decisions for the church. In 1841, Rigdon had been ordained by Smith as
2610-736: The High priests Quorum, and the folding table had the inscription P.E.Q. standing for President of the Elders Quorum. Above the Eastern pulpits, written in gilded letters, along the arch of the ceiling, were the words,"The Lord Has Seen Our Sacrifice - Come After Us." The pulpits to the West end were reserved for the Aaronic Priesthood . Each pulpit similarly had initials identifying the priesthood officers who occupied that stand. The highest three pulpits bore
2700-401: The Kirtland Temple. Like Kirtland, the temple contained two assembly halls, one on the first floor and one on the second, called the lower and upper courts. Both had classrooms and offices in the attic. Unlike Kirtland , it had a full basement which housed a baptismal font. The limestone used for the original temple was quarried from a site just west of the temple. Much of that quarry, however,
2790-589: The LDS Church's agents sold the building to David T. LeBaron, for $ 5,000. Finally, the New York Home Missionary Society expressed interest in leasing the building as a school, but around midnight on October 8–9, 1848, the temple was set on fire by an unknown arsonist. Nauvoo's residents attempted to put out the fire, but the temple was gutted. James J. Strang , leader of the Strangite faction of Latter Day Saints, accused Young's agents of setting fire to
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2880-649: The Nauvoo-era endowment , sealings in marriage, and adoptions . The Nauvoo Temple was in use for less than three months. Most of the Latter Day Saints left Nauvoo, beginning in February 1846, but a small crew remained to finish the temple's first floor, so that it could be formally dedicated. Once the first floor was finished with pulpits and benches, the building was finally dedicated in private services on April 30, 1846, and in public services on 1 May. In September 1846
2970-606: The Philadelphia publisher Paterson. In 1826, Rigdon became the pastor of the more liberal Baptist church in Mentor, Ohio , in the Western Reserve . Many prominent early Latter Day Saint leaders, including Parley P. Pratt , Isaac Morley , and Edward Partridge , were members of Rigdon's congregations prior to their conversion to the Church of Christ founded by Joseph Smith . In early September 1830, Rigdon's associate, Pratt,
3060-483: The Spirit; Wherefore his writing is not acceptable unto the Lord, and he shall make another; and if the Lord receive it not, behold he standeth no longer in the office to which I have appointed him. ... Wherefore, let all men beware how they take my name in their lips—For behold, verily I say, that many there be who are under this condemnation, who use the name of the Lord, and use it in vain, having not authority. Wherefore, let
3150-421: The basement floor. The rooms were dressing rooms for those using the font. The floor was made of red brick laid in a herringbone pattern. The walls were painted white. The floor sloped down to the center of the room to allow water to run toward a drain beneath the font. During an archaeological investigation of the temple site, two highly polished limestone blocks were discovered. Approximately twelve feet east of
3240-654: The bell to use in Hummer's new church in Keokuk, Iowa . During the attempted theft, a group of men from Iowa City stole the bell from Hummer and Margrave, hiding it in the Iowa River near the mouth of Rapid Creek. When the Iowa City men traveled west to join the California gold rush in 1850, they took the bell with them and sold it to Asa Calkin in Salt Lake City, who purchased it in behalf of
3330-563: The building were completed, they were used for performing ordinances (basement and attic) or for worship services (first floor assembly hall). The Nauvoo Temple was designed in the Greek Revival style by architect William Weeks , under the direction of Joseph Smith. Weeks became disaffected from the church in 1847 and Truman O. Angell later took his place as the primary architect. His design made use of distinctively Latter Day Saint motifs, including sunstones, moonstones, and starstones. It
3420-490: The church dedicated the Nauvoo Illinois Temple , whose exterior is a replica of the first temple, but whose interior is laid out like a modern LDS temple . At its base the Nauvoo Temple was 128 feet (39 m) long and 88 feet (27 m) wide with a tower and weather vane reaching to 164 feet (50 m). The second temple of the Latter Day Saint movement was built 60 percent larger in dimensions than its predecessor,
3510-546: The church in Kirtland in Smith's absence, and taught at the Kirtland School. Rigdon and Smith moved to Far West, Missouri , and established a new church headquarters there. According to one report, while the Mormons were encamped at Adam-ondi-Ahman , Rigdon criticized Smith and others who were engaged in recreational wrestling on Sunday. Rigdon reportedly "rushed into the ring, sword in hand, and said that he would not suffer
3600-533: The church repent of their sins, and I, the Lord, will own them otherwise they shall be cut off." Smith relocated to Hiram, Ohio , in September 1831. Smith and Rigdon were tarred and feathered at the John Johnson Farm on March 24, 1832. Smith recorded: "The next morning I went to see elder Rigdon, and found him crazy, and his head highly inflamed, for they had dragged him by his heels, and those too, so high from
3690-488: The congregation were highly excited". A vote was called, and the congregation held that Rigdon would be permitted to retain his position. According to the Times and Seasons , Smith had "wholly removed suspicion from elder Sidney Rigdon" and "expressed entire willingness to have elder Sidney Rigdon retain his station", despite a "lack of confidence in his integrity and steadfastness, judging from their past intercourse". Alternately,
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3780-511: The death of Joseph Smith in 1844, a succession crisis led to schisms within the movement. The Brigham Young branch traveled west to Utah, while Rigdon traveled eastward to Pittsburgh. Rigdon's branch faced less success, modernly accounting for only a small fraction of practicing Latter Day Saints. As early as 1834, skeptics were promoting what has become known as the Spalding-Rigdon theory of Book of Mormon authorship , in which Rigdon plays
3870-462: The earth he could not raise his head from the rough frozen surface, which lascerated it exceedingly; and when he saw me he called to his wife to bring him his razor. She asked him what he wanted of it? and he replied to kill me. Sister Rigdon left the room, and he asked me to bring his razor. I asked him what he wanted of it, and he replied he wanted to kill his wife, and he continued delirious some days." On July 5, 1832, Rigdon taught that "the keys of
3960-652: The east wall of the vestibule was an entablature, similar to the one in the facade, which read in bright gilded letters, "THE HOUSE OF THE LORD - Built by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints - Commenced April 6th, 1841 - HOLINESS TO THE LORD." The two stairwells were constructed of dressed limestone walls. One rose from Northwest corner and the other at the Southwest corner of the temple. They were not true circles but were flatted on four sides. Nor were they symmetrical, being sixteen feet in diameter from East to West and seventeen feet in diameter from North to South. This
4050-550: The east wall opened to the first floor assembly hall of the lower court, known as the "Great Hall". Two doors, one on the North wall, and another on the South opened to the landing of two spiral staircases, one in the Northwest corner, and the other in the Southwest corner which led all the way to the attic. These were the only access points to the rest of the building. One report stated that on
4140-579: The east, standing between the windows, were reserved for the Melchizedek Priesthood . Accordingly, each pulpit had initials identifying the priesthood office of the occupant. The top most pulpits read P.H.P. , which stood for President of the High Priesthood. The next level down had P.S.Q for President of the Seventy Quorums. Below that, the labels were P.H.Q. which stood for President of
4230-426: The entrance to the baptistry and ten feet from either the side of the support piers rested the blocks, roughly fourteen inches square, which projected seven inches (178 mm) above the brick floor. These objects are not mentioned in any account of the basement, and their purpose is unknown. They may have held some type of support columns, dividing the font from the entrance to the basement, or they may simply have been
4320-520: The façade. Soon afterwards, all evidence of the temple disappeared, except for a hand pump over a well that supplied water to the baptismal font. Three of the original sunstones are known to have survived and are on display—one is on loan to LDS Church's Visitor Center in Nauvoo, one is in the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, D.C, and the third and only one that has not been restored
4410-453: The first floor and one on the second, called the lower and upper courts. Both had classrooms and offices in the attic. Unlike Kirtland, the Nauvoo Temple had a full basement which housed a baptismal font . Because the Saints had to abandon Nauvoo, the building was not entirely completed. The basement with its font was finished, as were the first floor assembly hall and the attic. When these parts of
4500-446: The font easier. A well on the east side of the font provided the water supply. There may have been some kind of tank at the eastern end of the baptistry to store and heat water. A flight of eight broad steps led to a landing where two more steps entered three archways. These archways led to the vestibule, the formal entrance to the temple. The archways were approximately nine feet wide and twenty-one feet high. The vestibule itself
4590-562: The four clockwork mechanisms. Sidney Rigdon Sidney Rigdon (February 19, 1793 – July 14, 1876) was a leader during the early history of the Latter Day Saint movement . Rigdon was born in St. Clair Township , Allegheny County, Pennsylvania , on February 19, 1793. He was the youngest of four children of William and Nancy Rigdon. Rigdon's father was a farmer and a native of Harford County, Maryland . He died in 1810. According to an account by his son John M. Rigdon, young Rigdon "borrowed all
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#17328523381204680-457: The foyer area where the vestibule would be. This made the room about seventeen feet longer. A 41-foot-long (12 m) stone arch ran north and south between the circular stairwells supporting the massive timbers for the tower above. It had seven large windows along the north and south wide, with four windows along the east wall. The floor would have a similar configuration as the Great Hall with
4770-491: The histories he could get and began to read them. ... In this way he became a great historian, the best I ever saw. He seemed to have the history of the world on his tongue's end and he got to be a great biblical scholar as well. He was as familiar with the Bible as a child was with his spelling book. He was never known to play with the boys; reading books was the greatest pleasure he could get. He studied English Grammar alone and became
4860-619: The initials P.A.P. , which stood for President of the Aaronic Priesthood. The next lower pulpits had P.P.Q. , for President of the Priests Quorum. Again, the next had P.T.Q. , for President of the Teachers Quorum and on the table at the bottom was written P.D.Q. , for President of the Deacons Quorum. Similar to the Kirtland Temple, the hall was fitted with enclosed pews with two aisles running down its length. There were also pews for
4950-462: The interior of the temple; however, on May 27, 1850, Nauvoo was struck by a major tornado which toppled one of the walls onto eight stone masons. One source claimed the storm seemed to "single out the Temple", felling "the walls with a roar that was heard miles away". Cabet ordered the demolition of two more walls in the interests of public safety, leaving only the façade standing. The Icarians used much of
5040-422: The kingdom were taken from us. On hearing this, many of his hearers wept, and when some one undertook to dismiss the meeting by prayer he said praying would do them no good, and the meeting broke up in confusion." In response, Hyrum Smith traveled to retrieve Joseph Smith, who returned to Kirtland on July 7. Joseph Smith rebuked Rigdon, and publicly prophesied that "[n]o power can pluck those keys from me, except
5130-507: The majority of the remainder of the temple square in 1940, 1941, and 1951 and transferred it to Corporation of the Presiding Bishop of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints . The Corporation bought the remainder of the property with purchases in 1959, 1961 and 1962. In 1999, church president Gordon B. Hinckley announced the rebuilding of the temple on its original footprint. After two years of construction, on June 27, 2002,
5220-532: The matter, and found him going from one side of the room to the other, from the effects of which Sidney was laid up for five or six weeks. Thus was Joseph's prediction in regard to him verified." On July 28, Smith re-ordained Rigdon to the high priesthood after Rigdon had "repented like Peter of old". On March 18, 1833, Smith organized the church's First Presidency and set apart Jesse Gause and Rigdon as his first two counselors. Smith and Rigdon became close partners, and Rigdon tended to supplant Oliver Cowdery ,
5310-549: The original " Second Elder " of the church. Rigdon became a strong advocate of the construction of the Kirtland Temple . He gave a "powerful discourse" in March 1836 at the temple's dedication. When the church founded the Kirtland Safety Society , Rigdon became the bank's president and Smith served as its cashier. When the bank failed in 1837, Rigdon and Smith were both blamed by Mormon dissenters. Rigdon supervised
5400-401: The power that gave them to me; But for what Sidney has done, the devil shall handle him as one man handles another." Reportedly, "About three weeks after this, Sidney was lying on his bed alone. An unseen power lifted him from his bed, threw him across the room, and tossed him from one side of the room to the other. The noise being heard in the adjoining room, his family went in to see what was
5490-489: The remainder of the floor space East of the vestibule. The room was flanked on either side by seven large, arched windows, with four similar windows along the east wall. An arched ceiling spanned some fifty feet in breadth, in the center. the floor was stained wood and the walls were painted white. There were two rooms to the north just past the entrance. It has been suggested that these rooms were used initially by William Weeks , because they are referred by Thomas Bullock as
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#17328523381205580-511: The remaining Latter Day Saints were driven from the city and vigilantes from the neighboring region, including Carthage, Illinois , entered the near-empty city and vandalized the temple. Initially the church's agents tried to lease the structure, first to the Catholic Church , and then to private individuals. When this failed, they attempted to sell the temple, asking up to $ 200,000, but this effort also met with no success. On March 11, 1848,
5670-464: The second floor assembly room, there is no evidence that these rooms were ever completed, except perhaps for the partitions dividing each room. There was a staircase in the second room from the Southeast corner leading to a room above, providing another access method to the attic. At the top of the two stairways, opening to a foyer, was the attic floor. The attic was not built of limestone but of wood. It
5760-414: The senior leader by 1847. A few loyalists, notably William Bickerton , eventually reorganized the church in 1862 under the name The Church of Jesus Christ . Rigdon lived on for many years in Pennsylvania and New York. He maintained his testimony of the Book of Mormon and clung to his claims that he was the rightful heir to Joseph Smith. He died in Friendship, New York , on July 14, 1876. Following
5850-423: The succession schism, Rigdon solidified and led an independent faction of Latter Day Saints, originally called the "Church of Christ", but at one point was called as the Church of Jesus Christ of the Children of Zion . This sect is often referred to as the Rigdonites . The Latter Day Saints who followed Rigdon separated themselves and settled in Pittsburgh , Pennsylvania . On April 6, 1845, Rigdon presided over
5940-503: The summer of 1821 to learn more about the Baptist who was encountering opposition to his idea that the New Testament should hold priority over the Old Testament in the Christian church. They engaged in lengthy discussions, with both men joining the Disciples of Christ movement associated with Campbell. On January 28, 1822, Rigdon arrived in Pittsburgh to become a minister at the First Baptist Church. Rigdon's ministry met with opposition from member Rev. John Winter, and on July 11, 1823,
6030-424: The temple's stone to build a new school building on the southwest corner of the temple lot. By 1857, however, most of Cabet's followers had left Nauvoo and over time many of the original stones for the temple were used in the construction of other buildings throughout Hancock County . In February 1865, Nauvoo's City Council ordered the final demolition of the last standing portion of the temple—one lone corner of
6120-399: The temple. However, Strang's charges were never proven. On April 2, 1849, LeBaron sold the damaged temple to Étienne Cabet for $ 2,000. Cabet, whose followers were called Icarians , hoped to establish Nauvoo as a communistic utopia . After the fire of October 9, 1848, only the four exterior walls remained standing. Cabet and his followers began clearing rubble and trying to reconstruct
6210-410: The two staircases at the West end of the building. There was no foyer connecting the two stairwells. The second floor mezzanine is also presumed to have been divided into fourteen small rooms, seven rooms along each side of the North and South walls of the building, between the arched ceiling of the second floor. Circular windows in the entablature of the building allowed for illumination. Just as with
6300-421: The vestibule below, connected the two stairway landings. Evidence suggests that this mezzanine had fourteen small rooms, seven along each side of the North and South wall. Each room had a small circular window supplying light. These rooms may never have been completed, except perhaps some kind of partition dividing them. The second floor hall was similar in construction to the Great Hall, except that it included
6390-478: The water caused a mildew odor, and possibly because the wood had begun to rot. The new limestone font followed the pattern of the wooden one. Twelve oxen held up the basin, four on each side and two at each end. The oxen were solid stone and similarly were placed and appeared sunken into the floor. Where the oxen met the basin, the stone was carved to suggest drapery. The ears of the oxen were made of tin. The stairs were moved to an east/west orientation making access to
6480-430: The window and beholding what all in the room could not see. Then he would relate what he had seen or what he was looking at. Then Sidney replied, 'I see the same.' Presently Sidney would say 'what do I see?' and would repeat what he had seen or was seeing, and Joseph would reply, 'I see the same.' This manner of conversation was repeated at short intervals to the end of the vision". In December 1830, Smith said he received
6570-421: The winter of 1845-1846 when persons were using the other staircase to reach the attic for ordinance work. The southwest staircase was completely finished for use. It included lamps for night illumination, and may have been carpeted near the attic landing. Entrance to the first floor assembly hall, called the "Great Hall", was through two large double doors at the east end of the vestibule. The Great Hall occupied
6660-494: Was accused of having had been responsible for informing others about Smith's visit to Dixon and instructing them to arrest him while there. Smith told the conference that, in light of the charges, Smith requested Rigdon be replaced as First Counselor. The Times and Seasons and the History of the Church both record that Rigdon addressed the conference, denied the charges and made a "moving appeal"; they record "the sympathies of
6750-608: Was baptized into the Church of Christ founded by Smith. In October, Pratt and Ziba Peterson began a mission to preach to the American Indians . They visited Rigdon and his wife, Phoebe, in Ohio. Rigdon read the Book of Mormon in fourteen days, proclaimed its truthfulness, and was baptized into the church on November 14, 1830, in Mentor, Ohio . He proceeded to convert hundreds of members of his Ohio congregations. In December 1830, Rigdon traveled to New York, where he met Joseph Smith. He
6840-474: Was built out of tongue and grooved white pine and painted white. It was sixteen feet long, twelve feet wide and four feet deep. The lip of the font was seven feet from the floor. The font's cap and base were carved molding in an "antique style" and the sides were finished with panel work. Two railed stairways led to the font from the north and south sides. The font was held up by twelve oxen as are almost all temple fonts. They were carved from pine planking that
6930-427: Was composed of two sections. The West end of the temple was a flat roofed section that supported the tower. The rest of the attic was a pitched-roof section running the length of the temple. The flat-room section was further divided into two sections, the foyer on the west side, and a suite of rooms to the east. When the attic was used for ordinance work, they were used as a pantry, wardrobe and storage rooms. The area
7020-405: Was damaged by arson and a tornado before being demolished. In 1937, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) reacquired the lot on which the original temple had stood. In 2000, the church began to build a temple on the original site with an exterior that is a replica of the first temple, but whose interior is laid out like a modern Latter-day Saint temple . On June 27, 2002,
7110-466: Was discovered by an anti-Mormon mob who broke through the floor of the vestibule above. The basement proper was one hundred feet long and forty feet wide with six rooms of varying sizes on either side. The sides of the rooms were stone and abutted the massive stone piers that supported the floors above. With the exception of the two rooms at the western end of the basement, reportedly used for clerical purposes, each side room rose two steps in height from
7200-411: Was done to support landings and other support structures. The staircases, made of wood, provided access to all of the temple from the basement to the attic with a landing at each floor. They had lamps for illumination at night, and had windows for daytime illumination. William Weeks' elevation of the front facade does not show windows at the basement level of the two stairwells, and photographic evidence
7290-459: Was done without proper order. One month later, on September 8, Rigdon was excommunicated from the church by a Common Council of the Church , which had been convened by Presiding Bishop Newel K. Whitney . Rigdon refused to attend this trial, after which he, in turn, likewise excommunicated the members of the Twelve. Rigdon fled Nauvoo, claiming that he felt threatened by Young's supporters. After
7380-403: Was forty-three feet by seventeen feet in dimension. It was composed of limestone on all four of its walls. The floor has been speculated to be made of wood, because when the mob occupied the temple briefly in late 1847, they broke through the floor to reach a sealed off room in the basement. Had the floor been limestone, it seems unlikely that they would have dug it up. Two large double doors on
7470-409: Was glued together. They were patterned from the most beautiful five-year-old steer that could be found in the region. The head, shoulders and legs protruded beyond the base of the font, and they appeared to have sunk to their knees into the pavement. The most perfect horn that could be found was used to model the animals' horns. A decision was made to replace the wooden font in 1845, apparently because
7560-405: Was illuminated by six windows along the foyer's west wall. Outside windows also provided light along the north and south sides. The roof had four octagonal skylight windows to provide light to the interior rooms, in addition to a twenty-foot arched window. The incline of the roof prevented a six-foot-tall man from standing erect along the outside wall. The second room from the south-east corner had
7650-682: Was incorporated. The 35-foot tower displays multiple sculptures, including 1942 works by Avard Fairbanks . Benevolence depicts women and children and measures approximately 4 feet tall by 3 feet wide. Pioneering has the same dimensions and depicts a family with one man, one women, and two children. Both works, collectively known as the Bell Tower Plaques , were surveyed by the Smithsonian Institution 's Save Outdoor Sculpture! " program in 1993. 40°46′12.2″N 111°53′37.2″W / 40.770056°N 111.893667°W / 40.770056; -111.893667 This Utah -related article
7740-434: Was laid under the direction of Joseph Smith, the church's founder and president; Sidney Rigdon gave the principal oration. At its base the building was 128 feet (39 m) long and 88 feet (27 m) wide with a clock tower and weathervane reaching to a total height of 165 feet (50 m)—a 60% increase over the dimensions of the Kirtland Temple. Like Kirtland, the Nauvoo Temple contained two assembly halls, one on
7830-598: Was likely melted down in an attempt to recast the bell. The Hummer Bell was originally purchased from the Meneely bell foundries in Troy, New York for the First Presbyterian Church of Iowa City . Rev. Michael Hummer oversaw the construction of the building and the purchase of the bell, but was expelled by the church. During a dispute over his final pay from the church, Michael Hummer and James W. Margrave attempted to steal
7920-460: Was submerged by rising water behind the Keokuk Dam in 1912. Therefore, Russellville, Alabama, subsidiary of Minnesota's Vetter Stone Company, was chosen by the Church to provide stone for the new temple. Church officials say the quarry was selected because it provided stone that is a close match to the limestone originally used. The basement of the Nauvoo Temple was used as the baptistry , containing
8010-456: Was sustained as the church's leader by the majority of Latter Day Saints in Nauvoo. As mob violence increased during the summer of 1845, he encouraged the Latter Day Saints to complete the temple even as they prepared to abandon the city, so portions of it could be used for Latter Day Saint ordinance , such as baptisms for the dead in the basement font. During the winter of 1845–46, the temple began to be used for additional ordinances, including
8100-455: Was then ordained a high priest on June 3, 1831. Rigdon was a fiery orator, and he was immediately called by Smith to be the spokesman for the church. He also served as a scribe and helped with Smith's re-translation of the Bible . Rigdon reportedly received visions jointly with Smith. According to one account: "Joseph would, at intervals, say: 'What do I see?' as one might say while looking out
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