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templestrivia ( ** )

Interesting facts, information, and data concerning the 
temples of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints

  • The tallest temple as of September 2023 is the Washington, D.C. Temple, reaching a height of 288 feet.  Interestingly, the second tallest temple is the Cedar City Utah Temple at a height of 261 feet.
  • The shortest temple is the
  • The largest temple (square-footage) is the Salt Lake Temple, with 382,207 square feet.  This could change after the recent renovation.  The Los Angeles California Temple has 190,61 square feet and the Washington D.C. Temple has 160,000 square feet.
  • The smallest temple (square footage) is the Colonia Juarez Mexico Temple with 6,800 square feet.
  • The temple with the longest name is the Kinshasa Democratic Republic of the Congo Temple, consisting of 42 letters.  Another temple which has been announced will become the temple with the longest name once it is dedicated.  That temple is the Brazzaville Democratic Republic of the Congo Temple, with its 45 letters.
  • The distinction of being the temple with the shortest name is shared by four temples.  Those temples are Lima Peru Temple, Suva Fiji Temple, Salt Lake Temple, and Yigo Guam Temple.  The Orem Utah Temple will join this group when it is dedicated in January of 2024.
  • The closest proximity of two temples currently (September 2023) is 2.4 miles, the distance between the Provo Utah Temple and the Provo City Center Temple.
  • The two temples closest together, outside of the state of Utah, are the Meridian Idaho Temple and the Boise Idaho Temple.  They are just 11.8 miles apart.
  • The northernmost temple is the Anchorage Alaska Temple with a latitude of 61.1 degrees north.  The Helsinki Finland Temple is at a latitude of 60 degrees north.
  • The southernmost temple is the Hamilton New Zealand Temple with a latitude of 37.8 degrees south.   When the Wellington New Zealand Temple is dedicated, it will become the southernmost temple.
  • The temple closest to the Prime Meridian Line is the Accra Ghana Temple, with a longitude of -0.2 degrees.
  • The temple closest to the International Date Line (IDL) is the Suva Fiji Temple, located at a longitude of 178.4 degrees east.  The IDL is at 180 degrees longitude.
  • The temple closest to the equator is the Quito Ecuador Temple, with a latitude of 0.2 south.
  • The temple which had the longest span from announcement to groundbreaking ceremony was the Los Angeles California temple, with a span of 14 years and 7 months.
  • The temple with the shortest span from announcement to groundbreaking was the St. George Utah Temple, with just one day elapsing from announcement to breaking ground.
  • The temple with the longest span from groundbreaking to dedication was the Salt Lake Temple, with that time span being 40 years and 2 months.  The span for the Fortaleza Brazil Temple was 7 years and 6 months, and the time span for the Manti Utah Temple was over 11 years.
  • The temple at the highest elevation is the La Paz Bolivia Temple, with its elevation being 10,674 feet above sea level.
  • The temple at the lowest elevation is The Hague Netherlands Temple, with its elevation being 3.5 feet below sea level.
  • The month with the most temple dedications is the month of August, with 23 temples having been dedicated in this month (as of September 2023).
  • The month with the fewest temple dedications is the month of February, with just 5 dedications occuring in that month (as of September 2023).
  • The general authority that dedicated the most temples is President Gordon B. Hinckley.  He dedicated 85 temples during his service.
  • Many temples have been renovated and then rededicated.  Only eight temples have been rededicated twice.  The Laie Hawaii temple is an example of a temple that has been renovated and rededicated twice.
  • The weathervane atop the original Nauvoo Temple was unique.  It displayed an angel in a horizontal position, as if in flight, holding an open book in one hand and a horn to his lips with the other.
  • The most common first letter of the names of our temples is the letter S.  There are 38 temples (dedicated, announced, and under construction) that start with ‘S’.
  • There are no temples, either dedicated, announced, or under construction, that begin with the letters X or Z.  All other letters are represented.
  • The first year in which more than one temple was dedicated was the year 1958.  That year, the Hamilton New Zealand Temple (April 20) and the London England Temple (September 7) were both dedicated.
  • Four former presidents of the Church did not have the opportunity of dedicating a temple during their service as President.  They are Brigham Young, Lorenzo Snow, Joseph F. Smith, and Harold B. Lee.
  • One of our sacred temples was dedicated on the 158th anniversary of the martyrdom of Joseph and Hyrum Smith, that being June 27, 2002.  That temple, fittingly, was the Nauvoo Illinois Temple.
  • The first temple dedicated outside of the state of Utah (not including the original Kirtland Temple and Nauvoo Temple) was the Laie Hawaii Temple.
  •  The first temple dedicated outside of the United States (not including the original Kirtland Temple and Nauvoo Temple) was the Cardston Alberta Canada Temple.
  • The first temple dedicated in Europe was the Bern Switzerland Temple.
  • The first temple dedicated in South America as the Sao Paulo Brazil Temple.
  • The first temple dedicated in Asia was the Tokyo Japan Temple.
  • The first temple dedicated in Africa was the Johannesburg South Africa Temple.

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