The First Presidency of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has released the site for the Wichita Kansas Temple, the faith’s first house of the Lord in that state.
The temple — planned to be a single-story building of approximately 9,950 square feet — will be on a 6.42-acre site at Lot 1 Block 1 of The Moorings Plaza Fourth Addition, Wichita, Sedgwick County, Kansas.
The site was published Tuesday, June 20, on ChurchofJesusChrist.org — the same day announcements were made about the dedication and open house dates for the Orem Utah Temples and the closure date of the Provo Utah Temple for reconstruction.
President Russell M. Nelson announced a house of the Lord for Wichita on April 3, 2022. It was one of 17 new temple locations he identified at the conclusion of April 2022 general conference.
The Atchison, Kansas, area — located in the state’s northeastern corner — was an important layover site for many Church members emigrating from Europe to the Salt Lake Valley in the mid-1800s.
The state’s first congregation was organized in 1882. Today, Kansas is home to nearly 40,000 Latter-day Saints comprising about 75 congregations.
Currently, Church members in Kansas travel to neighboring states such as Oklahoma or Missouri to worship and do ordinance work in temples. The Kansas City Missouri Temple, which borders eastern Kansas, is the closest to much of the state.
More information about the temple — including an exterior rendering and the date for a groundbreaking service and the start of construction — will be released later.
