Kirtland Temple
Kirtland, Ohio, United States
The first temple of the Latter-day Saints, dedicated in 1836 in Kirtland, Ohio, preserved for over a century by the Community of Christ and transferred to the LDS Church in 2024, now open for free tours.
The first temple of the Latter-day Saints was completed in late 1835 and dedicated on March 27, 1836 in Kirtland, Ohio, where Joseph Smith's community centered during the late 1830s. The church's own account records the April 3, 1836 vision in which, by doctrine, Jesus Christ accepted the house and Moses, Elias and Elijah appeared, restoring keys; the temple served the community's schools and worship in its early years.
After the main body's exodus westward, the building passed through several owners, and the Community of Christ owned and preserved it for over a century. On March 5, 2024, ownership of the Kirtland Temple, several Nauvoo historic buildings and a body of manuscripts and artifacts transferred from Community of Christ to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints; the temple reopened March 25, 2024 for public tours at no charge. It is an historic building, not an operating temple, and it is sacred to multiple Latter Day Saint denominations.
Visiting
The church's Kirtland page carries free tour hours (Monday to Saturday 10am to 5pm, Sunday 1 to 5pm); interior access is by tour only (440-256-9805).
Photo: [Wikimedia Commons](https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Kirtland_Temple_ext_(7-25-18).jpg), CC BY-SA 4.0, JonRidinger.
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