Following the 1893 dedication of the Salt Lake Temple, members waited almost a century for a second temple -- the Jordan River Temple -- to be opened in the Salt Lake Valley. Almost three decades passed before the Draper Utah Temple became No. 3.

Now, just weeks after the March 20 dedication of the Draper edifice, the valley's fourth temple is all but finished. The doors of the Oquirrh Mountain Utah Temple soon will open for public tours, marking a memorable moment in the church's prolific temple-building history. The open house begins June 1 and will run through Aug. 1, except July 4, July 24 and Sundays. The public may reserve a time to visit by contacting the reservation call center at 1-800-521-5105 or online at www.lds.org/reservations.

Elder William R. Walker of the Seventy serves as executive director of the church's Temple Department. Although 129 Mormon temples are in operation across the globe, Elder Walker admits that the simultaneous construction of two temples in such close proximity marks an unusual effort that might never be repeated again.

"It has been a unique blessing," he said.

The coming Oquirrh Mountain Temple open house also offers opportunities for area members. Some 700,000 people visited the Draper Temple during its open-house period. Elder Walker is certain many members walked the elegant, reverent halls of that building and wished they had invited a guest or two.

Now they can.


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This story is provided by the LDS Church News, an official publication of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. It is produced weekly by the Deseret News.