The St. George Utah Temple was the first temple built by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints after the death of Joseph Smith, Jr. Located in the city of St. George, Utah, it was the first Latter-day Saint temple built in the Rocky Mountains. It was designed by Truman O. Angell who also worked on the Kirtland and Nauvoo Temples and designed the Salt Lake Temple.
The announcement of the St. George temple was given on 9 November 1871, and a groundbreaking ceremony was held that same day. Brigham Young, the prophet and president of the Church at the time, personally chose a six-acre plot as the site for the temple. The afternoon of the groundbreaking ceremony the Saints immediately began construction for their new temple. Unfortunately, the Saints soon discovered that the site was swampy with numerous underground streams. They asked Brigham Young if perhaps they should move the site, but he remained firm that this was the site for the temple.
The Saints overcame the problem of a swampy site in an ingenious way. They decided to bring lava rock to the site then made drains to get rid of much of the water. They then crushed the lava rock and used it to create a dry foundation to build the temple on. The only problem was how to crush the rock. Someone suggested using the old cannon that the city had acquired. This old cannon itself had an interesting history. It was made in France and used by Napoleon when he laid siege on Moscow. During Napoleon’s hasty retreat the cannon had been left behind. It was later dragged to Siberia, then to Alaska, and finally, it ended up at a fort in California. Members of the Mormon Battalion acquired the cannon, had it mounted on wheels, and brought it to Utah. The Saints rigged a pulley system and used the cannon as a pile driver to create a good foundation. Today, the old cannon is displayed on the temple grounds.
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