Visitor centers are "living monuments to great chapter headings" in the history of the Latter-day Saints, President Gordon B. Hinckley said as he addressed a large gathering prior to dedicating the Mormon Trail Center at Historic Winter Quarters April 18.
The newest living monument" at Winter Quarters is the culmination of 31/2 years of work, according to the team from the Museum of Church History and Art who put together the exhibits housed in the center: Marge Conder, curator; Jennifer Lund, educator; and Reed Miller, designer."The core message of the exhibits," said Sister Conder, "is moving people from temple city [Nauvoo] to temple city [Salt Lake City]. The theme isZion in the Wilderness.'
"It is a metaphor for our larger lives," she explained. "Our journey on earth is a wilderness until we come to our heavenly home."
Brother Miller said, "We met together often and talked about the exhibit. We prayed over it, and watched miracles happen."
The exhibits take visitors through three main sections: Beginning of an American Exodus, Temporary Home in the Wilderness and Gathering to Zion.
The first section, said Sister Lund, "is prologue to our real story." Upon entering the center, visitors first see a facade of the Nauvoo Temple, and then are told about preparations for the move following the martyrdom. A corner of the council room in the Nauvoo Temple is replicated as closely as possible. "We know what maps
of the western territoryT hung on the wall and we know they studied reports for the migration in that room," she said.
Other exhibits in this section portray many of the preparations for the western trek such as the building of wagons. "Wagon shops were set up all over Nauvoo," Sister Lund said. Other items in the section include newspaper ads of the day telling the great land bargains for sale in Nauvoo because of the exodus of the Mormons and a list of goods needed for the trek.
In the second section, the visitor sees a portrayal of William Clayton sitting outside his tent on the trail in Iowa penning the words to the hymn, "Come, Come Ye, Saints."
During the Saints' temporary home in the Middle Missouri Valley, they established about 100 settlements, Winter Quarters being the best known. This section tells of life in those communities, and includes a topographical map of Winter Quarters, which was the headquarters of the Church for two years, from 1846-48. The map was created from research done by Sister Lund.
Included in this section is a re-created log cabin by Don Enders of the museum staff, which gives a sense of what living in a cabin on the frontier might have been like.
Other exhibits portray the vibrancy of the Mormon communities on both sides of the Missouri River. A Church newspaper, Frontier Guardian, was published which allowed communication between the communities. Also included is a re-created odometer. The original, then called a "roadometer," measured the revolutions of a wagon wheel so precise distances on the trail could be determined.
"We didn't want to diminish personal sacrifices, but we didn't want to focus the whole story on it," said Sister Lund.
In the final section, the gathering is portrayed. "The hallmark of the Latter-day Saint movement is organization," the team members said. "The gathering was highly organized, in physical terms, as well as monetary terms." A large map in this section gives visitors a chance to see where the Saints came from and how they got there. Included in the exhibit is a wagon and a handcart, a portrayal of a railroad car, and a model of the Wyoming, one of the early steamships. "The Wyoming carried more Latter-day Saints than any other ocean vessel. More than 10,000 came on the Wyoming," said Sister Lund.
At the end of the exhibit is a large picture of the Salt Lake Temple, which "is a beacon at the end of the trail," team members said. The message is "go to a new Zion and build a temple, and receive the covenants and blessings of the temple," said Sister Lund. Later, a facade of the Salt Lake Temple will be added.
A "sidebar" of the story, said the planners is the memorial room, which looks out over the Winter Quarters cemetery, where several hundred pioneers are buried. A large window in the room "connects people to the cemetery."
"We wanted visitors to understand the death and dying in Winter Quarters, but also to understand our view of death and the resurrection," said Sister Conder.
"O death, where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory?" (1 Cor. 15:55) is highlighted in large letters above the window. "We wanted to make reverential space," said the curator.
In this room, visitors are able to spend time contemplating and reflecting. For some it is the most special room in the center.
