Nauvoo, Illinois is an extremely significant place in the history of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. After being expelled from Missouri, the Saints established this beautiful city on the banks of the Mississippi River between 1839-1846. Under the leadership of the prophet Joseph Smith, Nauvoo became a thriving settlement and headquarters of the Church, with over 12,000 inhabitants.

Here the impressive Nauvoo Temple was built, a majestic limestone structure where the first endowments and sealing ordinances of the restored Church were performed. Tragically, after the martyrdom of Joseph and Hyrum Smith in 1844, increasing conflicts forced the Saints to abandon the city in 1846 to undertake their epic exodus westward.

Today, the restored ruins of the Nauvoo Temple and other historic properties commemorate the great achievements and sufferings of the Mormon pioneers in this crucial city for establishing the Church in its early years.

NAUVOO TEMPLE

The imposing Nauvoo Temple, built of limestone by pioneer Latter-day Saints between 1841-1846, was the setting where the sacred ordinances of the endowment and eternal family sealings were introduced, establishing temple work in this dispensation. Within its hallowed walls, the prophet Joseph Smith also received keys of priesthood authority from heavenly messengers, paving the way for the fulness of saving ordinances of the restored gospel.

Despite its brief use before the Saints were forced to abandon Nauvoo, the Nauvoo Temple stands as a monument to the sacrifice and dedication of the early Latter-day Saints in reestablishing eternal covenants and divine priesthood authority on the earth. The temple's remarkable story bears witness to the restoration of plain and precious truths long lost to the world.

CARTHAGE JAIL

The Carthage Jail in Illinois is a solemn commemorative site for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Here, on June 27, 1844, the prophet Joseph Smith and his brother Hyrum were brutally murdered by a violent mob while unjustly incarcerated. The shedding of these martyrs' blood marked a critical juncture in the Saints' westward movement, and their supreme sacrifice allowed the Church to press forward under new leadership. The old stone jail, with bullet marks still visible, is now a place of pilgrimage where visitors contemplate Joseph's courage and pay tribute to these faithful pioneers of the Restoration.

INDEPENDENCE, MO

Independence, Missouri is a historically significant place for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. It was here in 1831 that the Lord designated Independence as the center place of Zion and the location to build a temple in the dispensation of the fulness of times (Doctrine and Covenants 57:3).

Although opposition forced the early Saints to temporarily abandon their efforts to establish Zion in Missouri, they looked forward to one day returning and building the prophesied temple. Today, while the Church does not have an official visitors' site in Independence, the area's pivotal role in early Church history is commemorated. Latter-day Saints view it as a place where important promises await future fulfillment when the backsetting Saints gather to build the New Jerusalem and temple foretold by ancient and modern prophets.

NAUVOO

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