Nauvoo, Illinois

Many, if not all of you, know all about the Mormon faith.  It is not a religion that John or I subscribe to, but the history of Mormonism in the 1840s is what the town of Nauvoo is all about.  Visitor center, both in town and in the historic area provide plenty of information about Mormons, their faith and history.  Behind the Historic Nauvoo Visitor Center we toured a beautiful garden with statues of women at various stages in their life;  involved in activities ranging from courting, child rearing to the pursuit of the arts.

Speaking of the arts, it was interesting to see a closeup of a piece of the old temple in the visitor's center.  In the new temple, at the top, are sun moon and star stones.  They were modeled after the originals by craftsmen.  In the limestone stone pictured below is the sun shining through the clouds with trumpets surrounding it, a depiction of judgment day.

We toured the historic village of Nauvoo which has homes and buildings dating from the 1840s.  Joseph Smith and his followers came to the Indian village of Quashquema in 1839.  They renamed the village Nauvoo (beautiful city).  A successful missionary effort brought in large members from United States, Canada and England.  Nauvoo became one of the largest cities in Illinois.  The church immediately started erecting their temple, as well as other buildings and homes.

Pictured above is the Cultural Hall, which in 1840 was the Masonic Building that headquartered the Nauvoo Legion, police force, and community theater.  Inside we saw a small auditorium with a stage, and on the third floor is a ballroom with original flooring.

Also on our walking tour of the historic area we saw the Browning Home and gun shop.  Browning was the creator of the repeating rifle.

It would have taken John and I at least a good two days to tour this entire historic village.  The tour guides were quite friendly and anxious to share with us tons of information, but we were tired and hot- ready to call it a day.  We did stop to see the Smith homestead (pictured above) and family cemetery on our way out of the village.  Joseph Smith and his brother were assassinated in 1844.  Mainstream America was fearful of the Mormons and their beliefs.  In 1845 more than 200 Mormon farm buildings and homes were burned.  In 1846 many, but not all, of this religious group headed out for the Salt Lake Valley of Utah led by Brigham Young.