Bountiful Tabernacle
The Bountiful Tabernacle is the oldest continuously used religious building in the State of Utah.
The Greek Revival building was designed and built by carpenter Augustus Farnham and was begun in 1857, eight years after the first settler, Daniel C. Davis, established himself in nearby Farmington. For members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, a tabernacle was to serve several church congregations and be the center of the community. Locals who began the work used what was available: adobe and lumber from nearby canyons. Work was suspended that year and the foundation was buried to hide and protect it from the U. S. Army during the Utah War.
After work began again, it stalled again and Anson Call was the man to finish the construction. The adobe was covered in a lime-based stucco, "with the only purchased materials being nails, glass, and ingredients for the paint to beautify the building."
- The walls of the tabernacle are three feet thick adobe with a red line timber roof attached to wooden pegs in order to support the weight. Mortar was made from the lime rock hauled from the region of the hot springs and was burned in two kilns in Barton Hollow. The stairways are hand carved and the 86 foot by 44 foot structure executes the plaster casting of the building. The construction of the roof proved to be a difficult task. It was not until the most renowned architect, Augustus Farnham, returned from his mission to Australia that the completion of the roof was finished. The main builders on the project were Augustus Farnham, George Washington Lincoln, George A. Lincoln, Thomas F. Fisher, Isaac Atkinson, John Wood, and Joseph Day, Sr.[1]
The structure was finally completed and dedicated in March 1863. Nestled inside was a mural of Joseph Smith, commissioned by Brigham Young and painted by Danquart Weggeland.[2]
"The Bountiful Tabernacle was dedicated by Elder Heber C. Kimball on 14–15 March 1863. Church leaders including Brigham Young and '150 persons and 100 horses' stayed overnight at the nearby Anson Call residence to celebrate the completion and dedication."[3]
Through the years, changes were needed. "During a windstorm in 1906, the five spires of the steeple were blown off. They were replaced in 1955. In 1925, a north wing with an amusement hall and classrooms was added. In 1942, the building was 'remodeled, redecorated and modernized' and a new pipe organ was installed. In 1957, a new wing was added to the rear of the amusement hall, containing a kitchen, Relief Society room, and offices."[4]
By 1975, the building had served its purpose and the Church had decided to demolish it. But the community had grown to love their tabernacle and the public outcry was "swift and universal."[5] The Utah House of Representatives was part of the pushback and the Utah Senate passed a resolution urging preservation. The Church of Jesus Christ responded to the outcry with plans to renovate instead. The existing wing additions were demolished and new ones were made to the original building. The interior woodwork was replaced. The mural was removed and is stored in the archives of the Church. The image was reproduced on the cover of the Joseph Smith Papers volumes.
In 1976 the Bountiful Tabernacle was added to the National Register of Historic Places. In 1977 it was rededicated by Spencer W. Kimball.
