Temple Square

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Temple Square is a ten acre (40,000 m²) area located in Salt Lake City, Utah, owned by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. In 1847, when Mormon pioneers arrived in the Salt Lake Valley, Church president Brigham Young selected a plot of the desert ground and proclaimed, "Here we will build a temple to our God." When the city was surveyed, the block enclosing that location was designated for the temple, and became known as Temple Square. It also became the headquarters of the LDS Church. Other buildings were built on the plot, including a tabernacle (prior to the one occupying Temple Square today) and endowment house, both of which were later torn down. The Salt Lake Tabernacle, home of the Mormon Tabernacle Choir, was built in 1867 to accommodate the conferences of the church, with a seating capacity of 6,000. Another church building called the Assembly Hall was later built with a seating capacity of 2,000. Today, Temple Square also features two visitors' centers, one of which houses a replica of a statue of Jesus Christ by Danish artist Bertel Thorvaldsen called The Christus. The visitors' centers and grounds are staffed by Church missionaries; in contrast to the typically greater proportion of young male missionaries, Temple Square is staffed almost entirely by women and married couples.

Image:Christus statue temple square salt lake city.jpg

As the Church has grown, its headquarters has expanded into the surrounding area. In 1917, an administration building was built on the block east of the temple, to be followed in 1972 by the twenty-six story LDS Church Office Building. Another building on this block, the Hotel Utah was remodeled as additional office space in 1995, and in 2000, the Church purchased the street between this complex and Temple Square and replaced it with the West Church Plaza, connecting the two. A museum and genealogy library are located on the block west of Temple Square, and in 2001, the Church completed a new, 21,000 seat Conference Center.

Because of these facilities, Temple Square has become a popular tourist destination, with five million visitors annually, more than the Grand Canyon or Yellowstone National Park. The grounds, which feature a number of gardens, often host concerts and other events; during the Christmas holiday season, thousands of lights sparkle from trees and shrubs around Temple Square. The lighting of Temple Square at this time is a popular event, attended by hundreds.

Temple Square is surrounded by a high, granite wall that was built shortly after the block was designated for the building of the temple. Due to its high volume of visitors, the gates outside of Temple Square are popular places for those critical of the church. Critics do occasionally picket, but they mostly hand out tracts and literature critical of the LDS Church.

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