A visitors' center is a building often near a temple or historic site of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) where missionaries teach visitors about the tenets of their faith and other community events are held. Visitors' centers often include a replica of Bertel Thorvaldsen's Christus statue, exhibits, musical performances, devotionals, and a Family History Center (FHC).

History

Nauvoo House

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. To construct the project stock was sold but the ownership remained under the Smith family. The project was not completed before the death of Joseph and Hyrum Smith and the 1847 Exodus from Nauvoo. In later years, Emma Smith and Lewis C. Bidamon would complete the building as the Riverside Mansion. In 1909, it was bought by the Community of Christ and currently is lodging for tourists to Nauvoo.

Early tourism in Salt Lake City The LDS Church published essays in the 1850s to explain the doctrine and logic behind polygamy, but they were received poorly and by the 1870s the church did not try to explain itself to anyone not interested in becoming a member. 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. Between 1869 and 1890, the population of Salt Lake City decreased from church members being 90–95% of the population to about 50%. 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. Some tourists would stop to look in the windows of Lion House and make guesses on how many wives were home.

In 1860, James Townsend, a polygamist church member, built a bed and breakfast called the Townsend House and offered tours of the city. In 1875, Charles J. Thomas was made the first official guide to Temple Square. He primarily performed groundskeeping, but also gave tours of the Salt Lake Temple's construction site. In 1877, The Salt Lake Tribune published an editorial criticizing tourists to Salt Lake and compared their visits to Temple Square and Brigham Young's house with a visit to a Brothel in any other city.

In 1887, William. S. McCornick, Patrick Lanahan, and Heber J. Grant founded the Salt Lake Chamber of Commerce. In 1888, the organization published an open letter stating that the negative press was hurting investment in the state, and in 1890 spent $4,000 to counter negative press in the East.

In 1893, LeRoi Snow, son of Lorenzo Snow, a future church president, stopped a tour and invited the group to meet his father and tour their house. This is said to be the origin of the first official efforts to proselyte in and around Temple Square. Active organized proselyting efforts towards tourists began in 1902.

Temple Square Bureau of Information

The bureau of information was established in 1902 because church leadership recognized the need for clear information about the church in and around Temple Square. It was right next to the south gate of Temple Square. Local youth were recruited to give tours and provide information from a small booth under the direction of Ben Goddard. In 1904, the booth was replaced by a brick building and in 1918 there was another renovation including a museum and a gift shop. Over time the bureau began to publish their own pamphlets and distribute church supplies as well.

World's Fairs In 1893, the LDS Church participated in the Chicago World Columbian Exposition to counter the negative press it received. The church also participated in World's fairs in Dresden (1930), Chicago (1933–34), San Diego (1935–36), San Francisco (1939–40), and others.

1964 New York World's Fair Mormon Pavilion George Stanley McAllister Jr (1900–1970; a missionary in the church's Eastern States Mission from 1920 to 1923) had the idea for an LDS Pavilion while reading an article in The New York Times on August 10, 1959, about the upcoming 1964 New York World's Fair. As president of the New York Stake in 1961, he approached LDS Church leaders with his idea. This coincided with the creation of the church's publicity department, the Church Information Service (CIS) and a church deficit of $9 million. The church saw it as a good opportunity to proselyte and went forward with the site selection where the church was able to get a place next to one of the entrances. 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.The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints Groundbreaking at the New York World's Fair March 27, 1963. New York World's Fair Commission, Fleshing, NY. 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. Overall, 51,607,307 people visited the fair, 6 million visited the LDS Pavilion, and 100,000 copies of the Book of Mormon were sold. The church attributed 1,030 baptisms in 1965 to contacts made through the pavilion.Church Information Service Report. (March 1966). The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 1. Available through L. Tom Perry Special Collections Library

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.

Mormon Pavilion at Expo '74 The church had a pavilion modeled after the golden plates made for Expo '74. The local congregation created what was later to be known as the Mormon Expo choir for the event. They performed many times a week for the duration of the Expo and released an album entitled I Love Life. During this time, July 18–26 was designated Mormon Events Week, the Tabernacle Choir the performed in the coliseum on July 18–19 to sold-out audiences. There was a large celebration on July 24 to commemorate Pioneer Day. The program featured church president, Spencer W. Kimball, and various dance performances from local youth. A special edition of the Book of Mormon was printed with a gold cover for the event.

Advent of the visitors' center 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.

Christmas lights on Temple Square The LDS Church began its annual tradition of lighting Temple Square with Christmas lights in 1965.Church Information Service Report. (February 1967). The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, available through L. Tom Perry Special Collections Library. The first years included life-size displays of the manger and the inn, performances of Gian Carlo Menotti's Amahl and the Night Visitors, and a one night performance of Handel's Messiah. The tradition spread to other temples including the Washington D. C. Temple in 1978 and Los Angeles in 1979. Church meetinghouses around the world began to similar Christmas lighting programs around the same time.

Common elements

Christus Replica This section only deals with the Christus as used by the LDS Church. For a complete history see Christus (statue). The LDS Church's first replica of Thorvaldsen's Christus was a gift to the church by Stephen L Richards and placed in the North Visitors' Center. 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. The statue was originally planned to be left outdoors, but because of concerns that the marble would deteriorate the statue was moved to the rotunda of the North Visitors' Center.

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. The statue was finished in January 1959, Richards died on May 19, and the statue arrived in Salt Lake City in June. The replica was 11 feet 1/4 inch tall, weighed 12,000 lbs., and cost $10,000. The statue was the focal point in the design of Temple Square's North Visitors' Center.

Before the North Visitors' Center was completed, the church considered incorporating the statue into the 1964 New York World's Fair Mormon Pavilion. However, because the costs were so similar, the church had Rebechi Aldo & Gualtiero create another copy. Initially some people were concerned that the statue would be worshipped as an Icon, but the fears were assuaged by people's behavior during the world fair. After the fair, the statue was slated to end up in Joseph Smith Birthplace Memorial, but ended up in the Los Angeles California Temple's Visitors' Center.

Another smaller statue was commissioned for Expo '70 and after the fair was shipped to the visitors' center at the Hamilton New Zealand Temple. 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. 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 first was sent to the Oakland California Temple Visitors' Center in 1992. The fiberglass process was then used to make a traveling model that is sent around the world for temple open houses. Over time the statue became a clear symbol of the LDS Church and is used frequently in its visitors' centers.

On April 4, 2020, church president Russell M. Nelson announced the Christus would become a part of the church's official symbol to emphasize "the centrality of the Savior."

Exhibits The first use of museum-like exhibits was in the 1964 New York World's Fair Mormon Pavilion.Church Information Service Report. (May 1966). The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 1. Available through L. Tom Perry Special Collections Library After the end of the World's Fair, the exhibits were taken and modified to fit visitors centers in temples in Los Angeles, California, Laie, Hawaii, and Mesa, Arizona; along with Temple Square, Liberty Jail, and the Joseph Smith Birthplace Memorial. Outdoor signs and advertisements were also made.

The first visitors' center with completely bilingual exhibits is at the Mesa Arizona Temple.

Theaters

Films The first film to be used in a visitors' center was Man's Search for Happiness. The proselyting film explains the doctrines around Plan of Salvation and seeks to provide answers to the questions, "Where do I come from?" "What is the purpose of life?" and "Where do I go after I die?"

Musical performances Musical performances play a significant role in the culture of the church. Musical performances were held in every major place that the church had its members from its organization to the present day. Musical performances were and are held in the Salt Lake Tabernacle.

Temple visitors' centers

Hamilton New Zealand Temple