Mesa Arizona Temple

Church President Heber J. Grant announced plans for a temple in Arizona on Oct. 3, 1919. Within a month, local residents donated around $125,000, which would be more than $2 million today.

On Feb. 1, 1920, a 20-acre temple site was selected by President Heber J. Grant as well as Elder David O. McKay and Elder George F. Richards of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles. The site was later purchased in 1921.

The Arizona Temple site was dedicated for construction on Nov. 28, 1921, by President Heber J. Grant. However, the groundbreaking did not happen until five months later.

Ground was broken for the Arizona Temple on April 25, 1922, by President Heber J. Grant.

Instead of an open house, the Church led tours through the temple during the last two years of its construction. This open house started May 1925 and continued until the building was dedicated. An estimated 200,000 people toured the building during this time.

The Mesa Arizona Temple — at the time called the “Arizona Temple” — was dedicated on Oct. 23, 1927, by Church President Heber J. Grant.

In 1951, Elder Delbert L. Stapley of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles — born in Mesa — dedicated the Bureau of Information and Genealogical Library, a building that functioned as a visitors’ center. Before this permanent edifice was created at 464 E. First Ave., a small table with literature racks was set up at the Arizona Temple’s west entrance in the late 1940s.

Church President David O. McKay dedicated a visitors’ center on Dec. 30, 1956. This took the role of the Bureau of Information and Genealogical Library, although it was built at a different location.

The temple was closed in February 1974 for extensive remodeling. This included an expansion of 17,000 additional square feet to add ordinance rooms and larger dressing rooms. New technology in the ordinance rooms and a new entrance were also added.

An open house was held from March 17 to April 3, 1975. More than 205,200 visitors toured the building throughout the event, including 527 ministers of other churches.

The Arizona Temple was rededicated in seven sessions — from April 15 to April 16, 1975 — by President Spencer W. Kimball. During the first session, after announcing the dimensions of the temple to the congregation, President Kimball said that “it was considered one of the most carefully measured structures of concrete and steel.”

The visitors’ center, at the time too small to meet the needs of the community, was closed in 1979 for expansion renovations. An addition would enlarge the building size by 3 ½ times.

Elder Boyd K. Packer of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles dedicated the new addition to the Arizona Temple’s Visitors’ Center in 1981.

The name of the Arizona Temple was changed to the “Mesa Arizona Temple” on Oct. 16, 1999, when the First Presidency announced that temples would include the city in the name.

The Church announced in June 2017 that the temple would be closed for renovations starting May 19, 2018. These renovations helped preserve the temple’s interior design, such as by restoring historical light fixtures and replicating existing millwork patterns. Massive existing murals were also cleaned and restored, and some partly damaged murals were re-created based on photographs of the originals. New heating, ventilation and air conditioning systems were also installed, and new landscaping was done around the grounds.

The visitors’ center was closed on May 19, 2018 — the same day the temple was closed. The center was then demolished to make room for extensive renovation plans with the Mesa temple and its grounds. A new visitors’ center was planned to be built across the street from the temple site’s northwest corner.

Elder Ulisses Soares dedicated the new Mesa Arizona Temple Visitors’ Center on Aug. 12, 2021. The dedication service was livestreamed online and broadcast to meetinghouses throughout Arizona. Elder Soares said the idea behind this new center was “to integrate the messages of Jesus Christ, the temple, eternal families and history in a way that helps guests understand how they are part of the restored gospel of Jesus Christ and provide them an inspired opportunity to take a new step in their spiritual journey.”

A temple open house was held during five weeks, from Oct. 16 to Nov. 20, 2021. A media day was also held on Oct. 11, with Elder Ronald A. Rasband and Elder Gerrit W. Gong of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles and other Church leaders conducting tours through the temple. Around 347,000 people attended the open house in total, including government leaders and representatives from the state’s interfaith community.

President Dallin H. Oaks, first counselor in the First Presidency, rededicated the Mesa Arizona Temple on Dec. 12, 2021. About 2,400 people came to each of the three rededication sessions.