Anchorage Alaska Temple

Number

Dedication

January 9, 1999, by Gordon B. Hinckley

Site

5.4 acres (2.2 ha)

Floor area

11,937 sq ft (1,109.0 m²)

Height

71 ft (22 m)

Official website • News & images

Church chronology

←
Monticello Utah Temple

Anchorage Alaska Temple

→
Colonia Juárez Chihuahua Mexico Temple

Additional information

Announced

October 4, 1997, by Gordon B. Hinckley

Groundbreaking

April 17, 1998, by F. Melvin Hammond

Open house

December 29-31, 1998

Rededicated

February 8, 2004, by Gordon B. Hinckley

Current president

Rodney D. Metcalf^[1]

McCool Carlson Green

Location

Anchorage, Alaska, United States

Geographic coordinates

61°6′5.857200″N 149°50′25.84319″W / 61.10162700000°N 149.8405119972°W / 61.10162700000; -149.8405119972

Exterior finish

Stone-clad Sierra white granite quarried from near Fresno, California

Baptistries

Ordinance rooms

2 (two-stage progressive)

Sealing rooms

(edit)

The Anchorage Alaska Temple is the 54th operating temple of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church). The temple serves church members in Alaska and the Yukon Territory.

History

In 1997, church president Gordon B. Hinckley, announced the church would begin building smaller temples. The first of these smaller temples was built in Monticello, Utah, with the second in Anchorage, Alaska. After the groundbreaking for the Anchorage Alaska Temple in 1998, construction of the 6,800-square-foot (630 m²) building took only nine months.

The west side of the Anchorage Alaska Temple features the seven stars of the Big Dipper pointing to the North Star, a symbol found on the Alaskan flag and on the Salt Lake Temple. The temple walls are covered with gray and white quartz-flecked granite, and the temple design incorporates Alaskan motifs, such as likenesses of fir trees on the doorway pilasters. The stained glass is reminiscent of water, and stylized evergreens with patterns resembling native designs are used to adorn interior furnishings.^[2]

Hinckley dedicated the temple on January 9, 1999, with more than six thousand members from as far away as the Yukon braving the freezing weather. After remodeling that nearly doubled the size of the temple, Hinckley rededicated the temple on February 8, 2004. The Anchorage Alaska Temple now has a total floor area of 11,937 square feet (1,109.0 m²), two ordinance rooms, and one sealing room.

In 2020, like all others in the church, the Anchorage Alaska Temple was temporarily closed in response to the coronavirus pandemic.^[3]

New structure

In January 2023, the church announced plans to relocate the Anchorage Alaska Temple to the nearby spot currently occupied by a meetinghouse. The new building will be approximately 30,000 square feet, an increase from the current 11,930-square-foot temple. Construction on the new building will begin in early 2024 and is anticipated to be completed in 2026. The existing temple will remain open while the new one is constructed. Following dedication of the temple in its new location, the existing structure will be decommissioned and removed, with a meetinghouse then built on the land.^[4]

References

^ "New Temple Leaders Called to Serve in 2022", Newsroom, LDS Church, October 24, 2022 [26 May 2022], retrieved October 24, 2022
^ "Gathering of Saints", by Jasper and Lommel, p 320^{[full citation needed]}
^ Stack, Peggy Fletcher. "All Latter-day Saint temples to close due to coronavirus", The Salt Lake Tribune, 26 March 2020. Retrieved on 28 March 2020.
^ Hill, Victoria (January 23, 2023), "Plans announced to rebuild, relocate Anchorage Alaska Temple", KUTV CBS Channel 2, retrieved January 24, 2023

Additional reading

"Open house, dedication set for Alaska temple", Church News, November 14, 1998
"Alaska temple opens doors to the public", Church News, January 2, 1999
Howlett, Sandi (January 9, 1999), "Sacred edifice called a 'jewel box': Nearly 15,000 visit open house of Alaska temple", Church News
Dockstader, Julie A. (January 16, 1999), "Northernmost temple dedicated", Church News
Howlett, Sandi (February 7, 2004), "Icy opening and a warm welcome", Church News
Howlett, Sandi (February 14, 2004), "The story of Alaska", Church News
Howlett, Sandi (February 14, 2004), "Anchorage Alaska Temple rededicated by Prophet", Church News