“In the afternoon I put up the veil and completed the celestial room in company with Bro. [Kimball].” — Brigham Young¹

In December 1845, the Nauvoo Temple’s attic was completed, and the Saints began to receive their endowment ordinances. The large hall was divided into several rooms with curtains, plants, murals, and sacred decorations, including the sacred celestial room, which was adorned with mirrors, paintings, and a marble clock. The apostles guided the Saints through the ceremonies, teaching them about God’s plan and placing them under covenants to live the gospel. Thousands of Saints received their endowments before the exodus west began in early February 1846. On February 8, 1846, after the first groups had already crossed the Mississippi River, the administration of ordinances in the Nauvoo Temple ceased, and the temple veils were removed.^2,3

After the Saints left Nauvoo, arsonists set the temple on fire, leaving only the stone walls standing. The following year, in 1849, religious communalists known as French Icarians purchased the temple, with the intent to make it into a community center. However, a tornado which struck in 1850 resulted in several of the walls being of temple being brought down. Eventually, the Nauvoo City Council decided to raze what little remained of the temple walls, completing its destruction.⁴

1. Brigham Young office files, Brigham Young Journals, 1832- 1846, page 81

2. Saints, Volume 1, Chapter 46, 573-583

3. “Nauvoo Temple,” churchofjesuschrist.org

4. Nauvoo Temple, churchofjesuschristtemples.org