The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Colorado

As of December 31, 2019, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints reported 150,509 members in 35 stakes, 311 congregations (279 wards and 32 branches), 64 Family History Centers, four missions, and two temples in Colorado.[1]

The Denver Colorado LDS Temple

History

On August 7, 1846 a settlement of 61 recent converts of the church traveling from Mississippi made camp on the Arkansas River just east of present-day Pueblo Colorado.

They had come along the main Overland trail to Fort Laramie but discovered the first groups of Mormon Pioneers from Nauvoo had stopped for the winter at Council Bluffs. Rather than turn back to join them; a trapper named John Renshaw led them down to a small adobe trading fort called El Pueblo which was thought to be a more suitable place to spend the winter.

They made their camp about a half-mile south of El Pueblo.

While encamped in Pueblo the settlement was also joined by 3 different groups of the Mormon Battalion arriving between September 1846 and January 27, 1847. With the arrival in January, the population of the colony reached 289 people.

While encamped this temporary colony was the first branch of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Colorado. The settlement is also widely believed to be the first Anglo settlement in what is now the state of Colorado. The settlement also was the home of the first Anglo born child in Colorado; Sarah Emma Kartchner.

In April 1847, the first members of the settlement began their trek north to Fort Laramie where they were waiting when Brigham Young arrives in June 1847. By the fall of 1848, all the members of the church had left the Pueblo settlement.[2]

The first mission was established in the area in 1896 and the first congregation of the LDS Church in Colorado was organized in January 1897.[3]

The Denver Colorado Temple in Centennial was completed in 1986.[4]

The Fort Collins Colorado Temple was formally dedicated by Dieter F. Uchtdorf on October 16, 2016.[5][6]

In 2020, the LDS Church canceled services and other public gatherings indefinitely in response to the coronavirus pandemic.[7]

Membership history
Year Membership
1920 4,376
1930 6,435
1940 7,882
1950 10,728
1960 19,587
1970 35,613
1980 69,000
1990 88,625
1999 112,232
2008 137,145
2012 144,904
2019 150,509

Missions

The Colorado Mission was opened on December 15, 1896 with John W. Taylor as president.[8] This mission was renamed the Western States Mission on April 1, 1907, then the Colorado-New Mexico Mission on June 10, 1970, then the Colorado Mission on October 10, 1972, and the Colorado Denver Mission on June 20, 1974. It was finally renamed the Colorado Denver South Mission on July 1, 1993 upon creation of the Colorado Denver North Mission.

Colorado now contains four missions.

Mission Organized
Colorado Denver South Mission December 15, 1896
Colorado Denver North Mission July 1, 1993
Colorado Colorado Springs Mission July 1, 2002
Colorado Fort Collins Mission July 1, 2013

Temples
Temples in Colorado
Red = Operating
Blue = Under Construction
Yellow = announced
Black = Closed for Renovations

On October 24, 1986 the Denver Colorado Temple was dedicated by President Ezra Taft Benson. On April 2, 2011, the Fort Collins Colorado Temple was announced. Western portions of Colorado are in the Vernal Utah Temple and Monticello Utah Temple districts.

 40. Denver Colorado Temple

Location:
Announced:
Dedicated:
 Size:
Style:

Centennial, Colorado, United States
March 31, 1982
October 24, 1986 by Ezra Taft Benson
27,006 sq ft (2,509 m2) and 90 ft (27 m) high on a 7.56 acre (3.1 ha) site
Modern, single-spire design - designed by Church A&E Services and Bobby R. Thomas

 153. Fort Collins Colorado Temple

Location:
Announced:
Dedicated:
 Size:
 Notes:

Fort Collins, Colorado, United States
April 2, 2011
October 16, 2016 by Dieter F. Uchtdorf
42,000 sq ft (3,900 m2) and 112 ft (34 m) high on a 11.54 acre (4.7 ha) site
Announced by Thomas S. Monson on April 2, 2011[9][10]

Communities

Latter-day Saints have had a significant role in establishing and settling communities within the "Mormon Corridor", including the following located in Colorado:

See also

References
  1. "Facts and Statistics Colorado". www.newsroom.churchofjesuschrist.org. Retrieved May 28, 2020.
  2. "Your Colorado Church History Tour", Church of Jesus Christ in Colorado.
  3. "Facts and Statistics", Church News, 2020. Retrieved on 1 April 2020.
  4. Reid, T.R. "Religious Intolerance Greets Mormon Temple's Invitation", The Washington Post, 22 September 1986. Retrieved on 22 March 2020.
  5. "Fort Collins Colorado Temple Is Dedicated: 153rd Mormon temple in the world, second in Colorado", Newsroom, LDS Church, October 16, 2016
  6. "Mormons dedicate their second temple in Colorado", The Salt Lake Tribune, Utah, 4 November 2016. Retrieved on 27 January 2020.
  7. Lovett, Ian. "Mormon Church Cancels Services World-Wide Amid Coronavirus Crisis", The Wall Street Journal, 12 March 2020. Retrieved on 31 March 2020.
  8. John Whittaker Taylor. Grampa Bill's General Authority Pages
  9. "Fort Collins Colorado Temple", ldschurchtemples.com, retrieved April 2, 2011.
  10. "Site Announced for Fort Collins Temple", LDS Newsroom, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, retrieved August 10, 2011.

Further reading
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