Church Sites

Sunday Ky and I went to all the local church sites. We started at the Independence Visitors Center. They do a tour with some videos and audio about the pioneers journey and history. There is a cabin they built to represent what the pioneers must have lived in. There were times that ten families were living in one cabin but the pioneers never complained. While we sat in the cabin listening to the journal entries being read I couldn't help but think how amazing and faithful the saints were to be living in such small quarters while going through so much trial. They also do a little video tour about families and have some messages from the church leaders playing but we had seen these back in May.



After Independence we headed to Liberty Jail. I was most excited about visiting here and it didn't disappoint. They start with giving you the history for those who don't already know and then they take you into the room where the jail is. All of it is rebuilt except the rock floor is the original. The jail was rebuilt to duplicate what the original was. You can kind of see in the pictures but the jail is inside (which I didn't know) and it is built so you can see everything without going in it.

How thick were the walls? 4 feet: 1 foot of timber, 1 foot of loose rock, 2 feet of brick shaped rock.


How did they receive and send mail? Through two of these tiny windows (there was one on each side of the jail) members living in the area would bring and take mail for the men.



A couple more interesting facts....
They also put loose rock in the ceiling to prevent escaping through the roof.
The door was only accessible from the outside.
They never had a single prisoner escape.






Next on the list.... Far West, where the Prophet Joseph Smith received revelation to build a temple. A temple hasn't been built there but there are 4 corner stones in place. They have the 4 cornerstones in glass cases and they each represent something. The 4 cornerstones are: The higher priesthood, The prophet, the lower priesthood, and the twelve apostles. There wasn't a lot to see at this site but the spirit was there and it was a great experience.





Last but certainly not least was Adam-ondi-ahman. It was beautiful there with all of the trees and flowers. There wasn't a tour at this site like there was at Liberty or Independence. You can just walk around and they have a little post with brief information. You feel the spirit and peace right when you drive in. This land isn't owned by the church so they don't have a lot of information about what has and what will take place there. Kyle did some research before about it and while we were there we read our own info. The little info they had stated that Joseph Smith found a old nephi alter on the land. There was no sign of it today.






Just to know what will take place there was an awesome feeling. I am so grateful that I know what I know and that I am able to be a member of this church. Going to see all these sites and learning more about our history was a great experience! Thanks for reading! I know that was a long post!