Visitors Center (Latter-day Saint)
In a revelation he said was received on January 19, 1841, Joseph Smith, the founder of the Latter Day Saint movement, was commanded to build the Nauvoo House a waypoint for travelers and immigrants and a place for them to learn about the church.
[6] When railroad tourism began to become popular in the 1870s, Salt Lake City became a popular tourist destination because of the natural tourist attractions like the Great Salt Lake, combined with negative and mostly false publicity associated with polygamy and perceived anti-American sentiment.
The new residents who were not church members would take visitors on carriage tours from the train station where the drivers would point out houses built for polygamous families and tell "yarns" about what went on inside the temple.
[7] Local youth were recruited to give tours and provide information from a small booth under the direction of Ben Goddard.
[9] In 1893, the LDS Church participated in the Chicago World Columbian Exposition to counter the negative press it received.
The site was dedicated on March 27, 1963 by George Harding Mortimer JD (1903-1998) with Harold B. Lee, Richard L. Evans and Delbert L. Stapley of Quorum of the Twelve Apostles in attendance.
[11] In a stroke of luck for the church, the adjoining site was left empty and Irvin T. Nelson was able to design a garden that later won an award from the American Association of Nurserymen.
[12] This was the first time where several themes used in later visitors' centers were introduced including: Thorvaldsen's Christus, Man's Search for Happiness, and missionary tour-guides.
The program featured church president, Spencer W. Kimball, and various dance performances from local youth.
[17] After the positive reception at the 1964 New York World's Fair, the church began to mirror visitors' centers similar to the Mormon Pavilion.
Aspects from the design were piloted on Temple Square and then later used in visitors' centers at the Los Angeles California, Mesa Arizona, and Laie Hawaii temples, as well as Liberty Jail in Liberty, Missouri, and the Joseph Smith Birthplace Memorial in Sharon, Vermont.
[23][13][24] Richards first saw the statue in Forest Lawn Memorial Park in Glendale, California and later saw the original in Copenhagen, Denmark in September 1950.
In meetings around the construction of a new bureau of information and creation of a tour of Temple Square, he suggested that a copy of the Christus would clearly show that church members believe in Jesus Christ.
[23] Richards worked with Hubert Lewright Eaton (1891-1966) at Forest Lawn Memorial Park to commission a replica made by the workshop of Rebechi Aldo & Gualtiero in Pietrasanta, Italy from white Torrone Marble.
[23] Before the North Visitors' Center was completed, the church considered incorporating the statue into the 1964 New York World's Fair Mormon Pavilion.
[23] Another smaller statue was commissioned for Expo '70 and after the fair was shipped to the visitors' center at the Hamilton New Zealand Temple.
[23] Between 1979 and 1988, four more copies were made for visitors' centers in temples in Laie, Hawaii, Mesa, Arizona, Mexico City, and Washington D.C.[23] In 1990, 3-D Art, a fiberglass company in Kearns, Utah was asked by the church's Missionary Department to make a lighter weight replica of the Christus.
The proselyting film explains the doctrines around Plan of Salvation and seeks to provide answers to the questions, "Where do I come from?"
Musical performances were held in every major place that the church had its members from its organization to the present day.
[29][30] Jacinda Ardern, the former Prime Minister of New Zealand, grew up around the Hamilton Temple and visitors' center.
[32] The visitors' center was remodeled and expanded in 1983 to add two new theaters and exhibit rooms to teach about the Book of Mormon and Solomon's Temple.
[32] The center hosts guided tours and was named a 2022 TripAdvisor Travelers’ Choice award winner.
[38] The visitors' center includes a replica of the Christus statue carved by Aldo Rebachi for the 1964 New York World's Fair Mormon Pavilion.
[39] On March 9, 2020, the visitors' center hosted the fourth annual Women-In-Diplomacy Day with Reyna I. Aburto as the keynote speaker.
[43] The center also has a scale model of the Mesa Arizona Temple, coloring walls, and a play area for children.
The center was opened in 2012 and features a small movie theater, a Christus statue replica, and four displays.
[47][48] One of the focal points of the center is a life size replica of the Christus, with the accompanying statues of the original apostles carved out of Carrara marble.
[51] The dedication of the temple and the visitors' center was the first time in history that all 15 members of the First Presidency and Quorum of the Twelve Apostles were in the same place outside of the United States.
