Ogden Utah Temple

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Ogden Utah Mormon Temple

The Ogden Utah Temple is the 14th operating temple of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

The Ogden Utah Temple is much like its twin, the Provo Utah Temple. In the mid-sixties it became apparent that more temples were needed to reduce the crowding in the Salt Lake, Logan, and Manti temples. Fifty-two percent of all endowments in the Church were being done in these three temples. The First Presidency decided to build two new temples, one at each end of the Wasatch Front, in Ogden and Provo. The Ogden Temple serves more than 135,000 members. On September 7, 1970 a cornerstone laying ceremony was held for the Ogden Temple.

The site for the Ogden Temple was a ten-acre lot called Tabernacle Square that the Church had owned since the area had been settled. In 1921, President Heber J. Grant had inspected the site as a possible place for a temple but had decided that the time was not right for a temple in the area. When the time was right, the Ogden Temple was dedicated on January 18, 1972, by President Joseph Fielding Smith.

The Ogden Temple is different from the previous temples built by the Church in many ways. The design is extremely contemporary. The lot chosen for the Ogden Temple is in downtown Ogden, surrounded by businesses and offices. For many this temple helps remind them that while they may walk everyday in the world of man, their goals, dreams, and actions should be higher, and focused on the temple. The Ogden temple is also significant because it was the first temple built in Utah since the Salt Lake Temple was dedicated in 1893. The Ogden temple is 115,000 square feet; it has four floors, one below ground, and 283 rooms. The design was made to be extremely efficient and six ordinance rooms surround the celestial room in a circle. This design allows endowment sessions to start every fifteen to twenty minutes. There are also eleven sealing rooms. The stone on the Ogden Temple is fluted, and between the stone decorative metal grillwork has been added. Gold windows with directional glass also add to the beauty of the temple. About thirty years after its construction, a statue of the angel Moroni was added to the spire.

Temple Renovation

In February, 2010, the Church announced an extensive renovation for the Ogden Temple:

Built nearly 40 years ago, the Ogden Temple is in need of upgrading -- to feature the latest technology and material, to meet seismic requirements, to have more energy-efficient and modern mechanical systems and to reflect the redevelopment occurring in downtown Ogden.
"It will be redone in a way that will be like a brand-new temple. This temple will be magnificent and beautiful in every way when it's redone."
David B. Hall, director of temple and special projects, called the renovation "a project of opportunity," with the new exterior design more "temple classical," similar to the recent Draper Utah Temple.

The Ogden temple will be stripped of its pre-cast "skin," and replaced with an exterior of new stone and more glass. The center tower in the new design is consistent with the center spire of the temple's current design.

"It's not as invasive as it appears," Hall said of the redesign. "It's still the same bonelike structure."

The core building design will remain the same, although the floor layout may be changed for what has been one of the busiest, highly utilized temples in the LDS Church.[1]


External links

Temples in Utah

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