Hallowed Ground, Sacred Journeys

Seeing history from home

People in countries around the world can now visit church history sites in Salt Lake City without ever traveling to the United States, through online virtual tours.

The online virtual tours are meant to provide an interactive experience for members who are unable to come to the United States and visit sites of historical importance to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. It is hoped these members will grow in their testimony, appreciation and understanding of the early pioneers and the history of the Church.

Hallowed Ground Sacred Journeys is a multimedia platform featuring Religious Educators from BYU. It consists of a website, virtualtours.byu.edu, a hardcover book, “Salt Lake City, Ensign to the Nations,” a Salt Lake City church history tour guide and a DVD-ROM that includes the virtual tours also found on the website. The educators teach about various sites’ significant to the church.

“We’ve got more members now outside the U.S. than we do inside, and we thought, ‘Wouldn’t it be wonderful if people could actually see the church history sites and kind of be introduced to them and interact with them and see what they wanted to see?’ ” said John Livingstone, executive producer of BYU Virtual Tours and associate professor of church history and doctrine.

Read The entire article at Universe.BYU.edu

The relief society building is located between the Church Office Building and the Salt Lake Temple. Dedicated in 1956, it was built using funds donated by Latter-day Saint women which were then matched by the Church.

The main doors of the Relief Society Building face west, and visitors can cross a stone walkway to the entrance to the Salt Lake Temple entry area.
David M. Whitchurch

This building houses the general offices for three auxiliary organizations of the Church: the Relief Society, for adult women eighteen years and older; Young Women, for girls ages twelve to seventeen; and the Primary, for children under eighteen months to eleven years.

The inscription below the statue says, “All that I have to give to the poor, I shall give to this Society.”
Robert L. Hall

The Prophet Joseph Smith organized the Relief Society, the largest and oldest women’s organization in the world, in 1842. Of the organization, the Prophet said: “This Society shall rejoice, and knowledge and intelligence shall flow down from this time henceforth; this is the beginning of better days to the poor and needy, who shall be made to rejoice and pour forth blessings on your heads.”

The interior of the Relief Society Building is beautifully appointed and presents a restful atmosphere for meetings and visitors.
David M. Whitchurch

Eliza R. Snow (sitting, right) served as general president of the Relief Society from 1866 to 1887. Elizabeth Ann Whitney (sitting, left) served as second counselor to Sister Snow from 1880 to 1882. Emmeline B. Wells (standing) later served as fifth general president of the Relief Society from 1910 to 1921.
Daughters of Utah Pioneers

Belle S. Spafford, general president of the Relief Society, breaks ground for the Relief Society Building. Note President David O. McKay, left, and his counselors in the First Presidency, Stephen L. Richards and J. Reuben Clark Jr., right.
© by Intellectual Reserve, Inc.

Today the Relief Society, directed from this building, continues to follow its motto, “Charity Never Faileth,” as it serves the needy and poor of the world with relief efforts and through the education and training of women and children everywhere.

Honored for his roles as pioneer, colonizer, governor, and religious leader, Brigham Young (1801–77) was best known as simply “Brother Brigham.”

Brigham Young on his 70th birthday, June 1, 1871.
© by Intellectual Reserve, Inc. 

The entrance to the Brigham Young Historic Park.
Kathie and W. Jeffrey Marsh

A beloved leader and wise counselor, he served as President of the Church from 1847 until his death in 1877. This historic park is a representation of the lives and industry of Brigham Young and the early pioneers. Statues in the park depict pioneering efforts.

The waterwheel in the Brigham Young Historical Park is powered by City Creek.
David M. Whitchurch

Items such as the waterwheel powered by City Creek, a portion of the old wall of Brigham Young’s farm that stands in place, and the gardens are all reminiscent of the farm once found here. The Young’s family estate, which included this site, extended north of Eagle Gate nearly three blocks. It included the eastern half of the block where the Lion and Beehive Houses are located and continued east up the hill for approximately two blocks. The property was large enough to accommodate carpenter and shoe shops, as well as a pigeon house, barns, sheds, and corrals. What they called the “upper garden” had vegetables, fruits, and an orchard of apple, peach, pear, and walnut trees, as well as beehives.

Statues in the park depict various pioneering activities. Stonecutters are shown at work with hammer and chisel.
David M. Whitchurch

On October 2, 1995, President Gordon B. Hinckley jointly dedicated City Creek Park (across the street to the north) and the Brigham Young Historic Park as places that would “afford refuge from the rush and hurry of the city [and] provide a place where the weary may sit and rest with the soft music of moving water [and] provide an oasis for contemplation and reflection.” Besides the pleasant surroundings, a variety of concerts are held in the evenings during the summer months, making this park a unique oasis in downtown Salt Lake City.

Brigham Young’s layout of Salt Lake City began at Temple Square, and surrounding ten-acre blocks were subdivided for homes.
David M. Whitchurch

On the inside of the west wall of the Brigham Young Historic Park are two plaques honoring the Prophet Joseph Smith for his ingenious design in laying out a city. Following the pattern established by Moses in the Old Testament, Joseph proposed a city with a temple in the center and streets running north-south and east-west from there. Farming areas were located on the outskirts of town, allowing the farmer and his family to enjoy all the urban advantages of schools, public lectures, and social gatherings.

This plaque notes an award for city design. Salt Lake City was laid out according to the pattern revealed to the Prophet Joseph Smith for the city of Zion.
David M. Whitchurch

Brigham Young Historic Park contains several statues of individuals engaged in activities typical of the era.
David M. Whitchurch