9 - Monday, June 16, 2025 - Another Nauvoo Historical Tour

 

 Closeup of the "Martyr Line"

Just below the temple window the stone size changes from 8" to 16".  The top of the 8" blocks was the height the temple was when Joseph Smith was martyred; hence the "martyr line."  Then Brigham Young  wanted them to hurry and finish the temple and they changed to bigger-sized blocks to do so. 

                                                                             * * * * *

We started the week with an all temple missionaries picnic.  Many "district" workers drive 2, 3, and 4 hours to serve in the temple, usually a couple of times a month.  They come and serve an afternoon/  evening shift, stay overnight in a Nauvoo historic home, serve again the next morning before returning to their homes. Some even came for the picnic. 

Enjoying the BBQ pork and the plethora of other      pot luck dishes contributed.  Tons of food.

Playing "walker" soccer. Two members of the             temple presidency in front.

Seventies Hall

Bottom floor meeting space of Seventies Hall.           Originally this floor was the second level.    There were 30 Quorums of the Seventy in Nauvoo.	Top floor meeting place used for Dr.'s office, artt         gallery, school.  Twenty-four Seventies met here    in January 1845 to discuss upcoming plans.
An ante room off the second level large room.   These books contain lists of the original Seventies.    We found a few family names.	Another ante room on the second level.

 

      Bottom floor meeting space of Seventies Hall. 
         Originally this floor was the second level. 
  There were 30 Quorums of the Seventy in Nauvoo. 

 

   Top floor meeting place used for Dr.'s office, artt         gallery, school.  Twenty-four Seventies met here
   in January 1845 to discuss upcoming plans.

 

     An ante room off the second level large room.   These books contain lists of the original Seventies.    We found a few family names.

 

          Another ante room on the second level.

Blacksmith and Farrier on one side and Wainwright on the other. 

An inside view of the blacksmith shop.  Notice all the tools and implements hanging.  Blacksmith made everything needed out of metal.  Webb Blacksmith Shop was one of 7 busy ones in Nauvoo.  He had 6 sons and taught them all the trade.  Edwin continued the tradition.	Here the missionary is making us a souvenir horseshoe:  heat to 1,800 degrees, pound and shape, cool, repeat until desired shape is reached.
The process continues.  Filing the edges. Nail holes must be made to attach the shoe.	Final shaping, and then the horseshoe is dipped in motor oil.  Why?  To give it more horsepower!

The small horseshoe is the one he gave us as a souvenir. The larger (real) one   
The larger (real) one was given to us by a teamster when we went to see the horses. 

                                    

A milk bucket!  Put the container of milk in this bucket/basket and lower it just above the water 
in the well and it will stay cool and good for several days. 

The wainwright side was where wagons were built and prepared.  Another long process: a block of wood to make the axle sleeve, 5 hours to drill a hole in it, a 2nd drill to widen the hole, send 2 x 4's home for spokes to be carved (12 for each front wheel, 14 for each back wheel),

Then the wheel arcs needed to be carved and shaped.  A metal band heated and shaped to be put tightly on the outside of the wheel.  And every 2-3 days the wheels must be removed and greased with beef tallow.  This shows a finished wagon.

Brigham Young Home is on this tour, but it is closed for inside restoration.

Nauvoo Performing Missionaries present a delightful vignette, Youth of Zion, about growing up in Nauvoo and the beginnings of the Young Gentlemen and Young Ladies organization with lessons from Heber C. Kimball.  

8 - Monday, June 9, 2025 - New Adventures

 

"There's a certain sanctity attached to a dedicated piece of ground. . . .that's where the temple stood; that's where all the hopes of the Saints rested. I believe that ground is sacred ground."  President Gordon B. Hinckley

On Monday a group of temple missionaries went to Cantril, Iowa--a small rural town/village of about 225 people, mostly Mennonites.  The attraction was lunch and shopping at Dutchman's; they had a bit of everything.  There might have been more people shopping than live in the town.  

It was very clean and spacious. . .

it reminded us a bit of going to Buc-ee's in the South.

Celebration of Elder Dale Larsen's birthday.

We are told that the Mennonites use vehicles, but there were also Amish shopping at Dutchman's.  

Not far from Cantril, we saw a sign and made a quick stop at "The Road to Zion."  A very beautiful and peaceful setting now.  Starting from Nauvoo in the late 1840's through the 1860's an exodus of more than 70,000 Mormons passed by here on their way to their 'New Zion' in Utah.  (info on the sign)

On Friday when we finished our weekly grocery shopping in Keokuk, we decided to have a look at the locks on the Upper Mississippi there. Perfect timing.  We arrived just as a tow boat was pushing a string of 15 barges through the locks.  We were grateful for a local man on the platform who "narrated" for us.  Watch the progression:

Just arriving at the lock. Notice the 'helper' tugboat on the right guiding...	In the lock; 3 abreast.  They barely fit.	Moving along in the lock. . .
Clear in the lock--right below us.	The tow boat is still pushing.

All in, and the gate was just raised.

 

 

The water is going down.. .

 

The water is now down 38'.  (I have not moved.)

 

In front of the barges the gate is opening and the barges will be pushed out into the Lower  Mississippi River. 

Notice the large Keokuk Power Plant building in several of the photos.  When it was completed in 1913 it was the largest-capacity single powerhouse electricity-generating plant in the world.  It is now the largest privately owned and operated dam and hydroelectric generating plant on the Mississippi River. 

Later that evening we attended the "Sunset By the Mississippi" production.

The Nauvoo Brass Band--17 VERY talented musicians.	The Nauvoo Performing Missionaries (NPM's) 20 young performers danced and sang and told the story of Nauvoo with  such enthusiasm and energy!!!
They brought the children up close to the stage and told a story especially for them.	The Nauvoo Brass Band performs.

Taken on Sunday, June 8th next to the church.  We thought we would watch the corn grow. 

We ended our Sabbath by attending  a special, sacred "Love of the Savior" presentation. It was the same performing missionaries and brass band turned orchestra as they told of sacred experiences showing the Savior's love in early Nauvoo.  Beautiful hymns and Christian music--"...Trust the heart of your Father when the answer goes beyond what you can see. Bow the knee..."  and "Is He worthy? Of all the blessing and honor and glory is He worthy? Is He worthy? Is He worthy of this? He is?"

See you next week....

7 - Monday, June 1, 2025 -- A Bit More History

South-facing Temple Clock

In July of 1840, before construction had even begun, Joseph Smith proposed that atop the Nauvoo Temple would stand "a great and high watch tower and in the top thereof we will suspend a tremendous bell that when it is rung shall rouse the inhabitants of Madison, wake up the people of Warsaw, and sound in the ears of men in Carthage."

True to the design of the original temple, the tower houses a bell (not to be confused with the Nauvoo bell in Salt Lake City) and four cocks, one on each of its sides. Integrated with the computerized clocks, the bell has an electronically driven striker and is pitched to sound a near F sharp on the music scale. 

* * * * *

The summer schedule and busy has begun at the temple.  That means we go earlier on one day and 30 minutes later on another, but stay later as they have now added more ordinance times for each.  Wednesday we had 110 new graduates from Highland and Alpine, Utah on a tour to do baptisms.  The endowment sessions have been full.  Those are telltale signs. 

Our tours this week:

Lyon Drug and Variety Store

"The Saints' Walmart," the Lyon Drug and Variety Store truly sold something everyone needed.  This was Windsor Palmer Lyon's second and larger store.  He purchased goods from barges on the Mississippi and required cash only--no bartering!  (He was more successful than Joseph Smith, who allowed credit for everyone.)  Lyon bought a book to learn how to mix botanical medicines to see or he would sell customers a book and they could mix their own. 

David and Patty Sessions' home was a typical temporary cabin--not very big.  David was called on a mission; Patty was called to serve as a doctor and midwife. She was known as Mother Sessions; she nurtured young and old, delivered nearly 4,000 babies, and served in the Relief Society and the Nauvoo Temple.  She said, "My greatest desire is to live my religion, trust in God, and follow the prophet." Because of her gardening skills, the Sessions Plum Tree is named after her.

Riser Boot shop, owned by George and Christiana Riser who came to America from Germany as children with their families. He apprenticed as a shoemaker Ebenezer Kerr, who George said "was a better worker than a Mormon." After marrying, the Risers began studying religions, moved to Nauvoo and listened to Joseph Smith, and were baptized. He set up a 16' x 16' shoemaking shop. It looks tall and narrow (they lived upstairs), but his shop was bigger than the typical 12' x 12' shops. He allowed many to work for him and taught them shoemaking skills. Later when they went west with the Saints, he set up the first shoemaking shop in Utah. 

Mansion House

Mansion House Reception Room	Mansion House Parlor	Mansion House Kitchen
Joseph & Emma's First Bedroom	Large Bedroom	Smaller Bedroom
Joseph & Emma Dresser	Emma's Chest	Joseph & Emma's Mirror

The Reception Room was used as a registry for the Mansion House (hotel). It originally had 22 rooms and was planned to house 300 guests. Jane Manning was greeted her after walking 800 miles with her 

family. After telling Joseph and Emma her story, Joseph told her, "God bless you. You are now among friends." Jane told them it was the first time she had been allowed to enter a white person's living space.

The Parlor was where Joseph gave his children blessings on June 23, 1844, before leaving for Carthage. At that time Emma also asked for a blessing, but Joseph did not have time as his captors were waiting for him. He told Emma to write down what she would like in a blessing and he would sign it when it returned.  He never returned. 

The first two bedroom pictures were large and spacious, and Joseph and Emma knew that they could be rented to guests for a good price, so they moved to the smaller bedroom. 

Friday evening the temple missionaries were invited to the monthly Hello/Goodbye pot luck dinner hosted by the historic site missionaries.  I think they were planning on 300.  This town is full of missionaries of all ages. 

Disclaimer:  This blog is always a work in progress.  Because I am more than a bit technologically challenged, my wonderful daughter-in-law has set up the blog format and answers my emergency calls.  You will see that the margins have been increased and the font enlarged a bit, but the photo margins did not take--yet.  Hopefully, next week. . .