On January 19, 1841, Joseph Smith received a revelation commanding the building of the Nauvoo Temple and the Nauvoo House. William Weeks was hired as temple architect, and designed a building 88 feet wide by 128 feet long, with a tower reaching 156 feet high. On April 6, 1841, the four cornerstones for the Nauvoo Temple were laid.
The full-time crew of workers were assisted by Latter-day Saints who donated 1 day in 10 as volunteers in the construction. As portions of the building were completed, they were dedicated to the Lord. On November 8, 1841 the baptismal font in the basement was dedicated. There, Saints were baptized on behalf of relatives who died without the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
On November 30, 1845, Brigham Young dedicated the attic story for the purpose of endowing Saints with blessings from God, as well as sealing ordinances to bind loved ones together for eternity.
Brigham Young recorded his attempt to end ceremonies in the Nauvoo Temple on February 3, 1846. He told a crowd that he was anxious to start across the Plains, and was going home to start. “I walked some
distance from the Temple supposing the crowd would disperse, but on returning I found the house filled to overflowing. Looking upon the multitude and knowing their anxiety, as they were thirsty and hungering for the word, we continued at work diligently in the house of the Lord.”
Five days later Young officially ceased performing ceremonies in the Temple, with 5,615 people having received their endowment.
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