Deseret Peak Utah Temple

Utah has 31 temples announced, under construction, under renovation, or in operation. In addition to the Deseret Peak Utah Temple in Tooele, temples have been announced, are under construction or renovation, or are waiting for dedication in Ephraim, Heber Valley, Lehi, Lindon, Provo (reconstruction), Salt Lake (renovation), Smithfield, Syracuse, and West Jordan.

On 7 April 2019, during the Sunday afternoon session of the 189th Annual General Conference of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, President Russell M. Nelson announced that a temple will be built in Tooele Valley, Utah.

On 19 January 2021, the First Presidency renamed this future house of worship from the Tooele Valley Utah Temple to the Deseret Peak Utah Temple. After considering current circumstances and opportunities, an alternate site for the temple was also selected. The temple is constructed west of the intersection of 2400 North 400 West in Tooele.

There are eleven stakes organized in the valley with stake centers located in the communities of Tooele, Stansbury Park, Grantsville, and Erda. Church membership has grown steadily in the county with members driving over 30 miles to participate in temple worship at the Salt Lake Temple.

An exterior rendering of the three-story, 70,000 square foot temple was released on 7 April 2020. Brent Roberts, managing director of the Church’s Special Projects Department, commented, "These beautiful renderings depict the care and attention to detail that will go into the construction of this House of the Lord. The temple is our holiest place of worship. We believe this will be a place where Latter-day Saints in the Tooele Valley and beyond can go to obtain peace and divine direction in their lives."

Speaking about the design of the temple, Bill Williams, Director of Temple Design for the Church said that the design of this temple features a cast stone exterior with copper shingles done in a pioneer-style. In planning the Deseret Peak Utah Temple, Williams and other architects drew details from nearby historic tabernacles. Additionally, several flowers native to the Tooele Valley—including cliffrose and silvery lupine—are featured throughout the temple in various rooms as well as on art glass and the building’s exterior. The temple will have four ordinance rooms (stationary) and four sealing rooms. Plans also call for the construction of an adjacent 20,000-square-foot meetinghouse.

The Deseret Peak Utah Temple will be the twenty-first temple built in Utah and the first temple built in Tooele County.

Groundbreaking Ceremony Is Held for the Deseret Peak Utah Temple

Elder Brook P. Hales of the Seventy turns over dirt with grandson Clark Hales, 4, during the Deseret Peak Utah Temple groundbreaking in Tooele, Utah, on Saturday, May 15, 2021. Photo Credit: Jeffrey D. Allred, Deseret News

On Saturday morning, 15 May 2021, ground was broken in Tooele, Utah, for the Deseret Peak Utah Temple of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. The sacred edifice will be located about 30 minutes southwest of Salt Lake City. The groundbreaking ceremony was attended by a couple of hundred Latter-day Saint leaders and invited guests at the temple site.

Elder Brook P. Hales of the Quorum of the Seventy presided at the groundbreaking ceremony and offered the dedicatory prayer. In his dedicatory prayer, he said, "Help us that through the Atonement of our Savior, Jesus Christ, we might be prepared and worthy to enter Thy sacred house to receive the blessings of exaltation available for ourselves and for our ancestors . . . Please bless all that will live in this temple district that they will feel the godly power of this sacred edifice."

Tooele resident, Dianne Rose, commented, "I have prayed that we would be able to have a temple in this valley, and I am so grateful to be able to be here as we break ground for the Deseret Peak Utah Temple." Merna J. Dalton, a local Latter-day Saint, expressed, "Remember the saying that . . . temples will dot the earth someday? It’s someday. We love temples, and we love that Heavenly Father puts temples so that it will remind us that families can be together forever." And, Tooele resident, Kim A. Halladay, shared, "God the Father loves us, He knows us, He's concerned about us, and [He] wants us to be in this holy edifice."

Elder Hales further commented, "I'm so grateful that we are here today to start the construction symbolically of this great temple. We're drawn to the temple, particularly in these times of great difficulty and calamity and chaos. The temple is truly a house of peace, where we can go and feel comfort and peace."

Open House and Dedication Announced

The First Presidency of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has released the open house and dedication dates for the Deseret Peak Utah Temple.

On October 9, 2024, the First Presidency released the following statement:

The First Presidency of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is pleased to announce that the Deseret Peak Utah Temple will be dedicated in one session on Sunday, November 10, 2024, at 4 p.m. MST and will be broadcast to local meetinghouses within the temple district. The dedication will then be rebroadcast to meetinghouses in the temple district at 7 p.m. MST that same evening.

Only sacrament meeting will be held on November 10, 2024. Stake presidents and bishops are encouraged to work together to adjust the starting times for sacrament meetings in each meetinghouse so that Sunday meetings conclude well before 4 p.m.

The First Presidency has shared that beginning with the Deseret Peak Utah Temple, temple dedication events will be simplified. Seating in the temple will be limited. Members living within the temple district are invited to gather and view the dedication or the rebroadcast at their local meetinghouses.

Further information regarding the dedication broadcast will be sent to stake presidents in the near future.[1]

Prior to the dedication, a public open house began on Thursday, September 26 and continued through Saturday, October 19, 2024, excluding Sundays and Saturday, October 5, for general conference. A media day was held on Monday, September 23, 2024, while invited guests toured the temple Tuesday, September 24, through Wednesday, September 25, 2024.

Dedication of the 200th Temple

In a special news release, [2], the Church announced that Prophet and President Russell M. Nelson would dedicate the Deseret Peak Utah Temple on Sunday, November 10, 2024. This event marks a significant milestone as the Deseret Peak Utah Temple became the Church’s 200th temple in operation worldwide.

“When I contemplate the privilege of dedicating the Deseret Peak Utah Temple this weekend, I am filled with awe at all the Lord is doing for His people,” President Nelson said. “When I was born, there were just six operating temples in the Church. The Deseret Peak Temple will be the 200th in the world. Just think of it! It took the Church until the year 2000 to dedicate the first 100 temples, and now, just 24 years later, we are dedicating the second 100. The Lord is truly hastening His work. I am filled with gratitude for the Lord’s mercy in guiding us to bring temples closer to members of the Church throughout the world.”[3]

President Nelson was accompanied by his wife, Wendy, and Elder Gary E. Stevenson of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles and his wife, Lesa. Also joining them were Elder Brian K. Taylor and his wife, Jill; Elder Brook P. Hales and his wife, Denise; and Elder Kevin R. Duncan and his wife, Nancy.[4]