Anchorage Alaska Temple

Anchorage Alaska Temple
Number	54
Dedication	9 January 1999 by Gordon B. Hinckley
Site	5.4 acres (2.2 hectares)
Floor area	11,937 sq ft (1,109 m^2)
Height	71 ft (22 m)
Preceded by	Monticello Utah Temple
Followed by	Colonia Juárez Chihuahua Mexico Temple
Official website • News & images
Additional information Announcement 4 October 1997 Groundbreaking 17 April 1998 by F. Melvin Hammond Open House 29–31 December 1998 Rededication 8 February 2004 by Gordon B. Hinckley Current President Dennis E. Cook (2013) Designed by McCool, Carlson & Green Architects and Church A&E Services Location 13161 Brayton Drive Anchorage, Alaska United States Exterior finish Stone-clad Sierra white granite quarried from near Fresno, California Temple design Classic modern, single-spire design Ordinance rooms 2 with Movie, two-stage progressive sessions Sealing rooms 1 Clothing rental No Cafeteria No services Visitors' center No

Coordinates: 61°6′5.857200″N 149°50′25.84319″W / 61.10162700000°N 149.8405119972°W The Anchorage Alaska Temple is the 54th operating temple of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church). The temple serves church members in Alaska and the Yukon Territory.

In 1997, church president Gordon B. Hinckley, announced the building of smaller LDS temples. The first of these smaller temples was built in Monticello, Utah and the second in Anchorage, Alaska. After the groundbreaking of the Anchorage Alaska Temple in 1998, the construction of this 6,800-square-foot (630 m²) temple took only nine months.

The entrance of the Anchorage Alaska Temple

The west side of the Anchorage Alaska Temple features the seven stars of the Big Dipper pointing to the North Star, a symbol found on the Alaskan flag and on the Salt Lake Temple. The temple walls are covered with gray and white quartz-flecked granite, and the temple design incorporates Alaskan motifs, such as likenesses of fir trees on the doorway pilasters. The stained glass is reminiscent of water, and stylized evergreens with patterns resembling native designs are used to adorn interior furnishings.^[1]

Hinckley dedicated the temple on January 9, 1999, with more than six thousand members from as far away as the Yukon braving the freezing weather. After remodeling that nearly doubled the size of the temple, Hinckley rededicated the temple on February 8, 2004. The Anchorage Alaska Temple now has a total floor area of 11,937 square feet (1,109.0 m²), two ordinance rooms, and one sealing room.

See also

• Comparison of temples of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
• List of temples of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
• List of temples of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints by geographic region
• Temple architecture (Latter-day Saints)

Notes

1. "Gathering of Saints", by Jasper and Lommel, p 320

References

• "Open house, dedication set for Alaska temple", Church News, November 14, 1998
• "Alaska temple opens doors to the public", Church News, January 2, 1999
• Howlett, Sandi (January 9, 1999), "Sacred edifice called a 'jewel box': Nearly 15,000 visit open house of Alaska temple", Church News
• Dockstader, Julie A. (January 16, 1999), "Northernmost temple dedicated", Church News
• Howlett, Sandi (February 7, 2004), "Icy opening and a warm welcome", Church News
• Howlett, Sandi (February 14, 2004), "The story of Alaska", Church News
• Howlett, Sandi (February 14, 2004), "Anchorage Alaska Temple rededicated by Prophet", Church News

External links

• Media related to Anchorage Alaska Temple at Wikimedia Commons
• Official Anchorage Alaska Temple page
• Anchorage Alaska Temple page