Palmyra--Temple #4

We left Buffalo and said good bye to my parents.  We are so lucky for their contribution to this trip.  Dad took some pictures before we left, but none of the 4 of us.  Boo.

Our first stop of the day was the Palmyra Temple.  It is nestled in the woods right next to the Sacred Grove.  It is absolutely beautiful.  It is a smaller temple.  Each of the windows, with one exception, is stained glass and there is stained glass throughout the interior of the temple, too.  There is one wall that has a clear glass window.  It is actually the only temple with a clear glass window on the outside.  It is there because from that window, you can look out over the Sacred Grove.  The temple worker told us that the original plans called for a wall there with the temple office.  President Hinckley came to visit the temple during early construction and said that there needed to be a window at that place.  So, they tore down a wall and redid the plans.  It is lovely and a great addition.

Here is the view from that spot, although the picture was taken outside the temple on a balcony.

And this is a picture of the temple from the Sacred Grove

Here are some other pictures of the temple.

Our next stop was the Joseph Smith Farm and the Sacred Grove.  This was one of the most spirit filled sites we've ever visited.  The Joseph Smith log home has been rebuilt to the original specifications.  It was even rebuilt by hand.  It was rebuilt on the original site.  There are even gardens there, the apple orchard, the split rail fences, period appropriate furniture.  It is beautiful. 

The second site was a home that Alvin built for his parents.  It is 85% of the original home.  Unfortunately, Alvin died before it was completed. 

Then, we went into the Sacred Grove.  There are a lot of trails throughout the grove.  Yes, there were bees humming and sweet birds singing. 

Back in the Visitor's Center, there is a beautiful table top depicting the First Vision.  We loved how the sculpter depicted Heavenly Father with his arm around Christ. 



Our next stop was Alvin Smith's grave in downtown Palmyra.  This is the original headstone and it is inset in a larger marble headstone.

Our last church history site for the day was the Grandin Bookstore, where the Book of Mormon was printed. 

The printing press that E.B. Grandin purchased just a few months before Joseph Smith approached him to print the Book of Mormon.  It was the latest in technology and allowed them to print 5000 copies of the Book of Mormon in just less than 2 years.  It is a fascinating process.  Eileen and I got to try our hand at folding a half sheet of the printed paper.



They have two first editions of the Book of Mormon at the Grandin Store.

We are staying a couple of days with Dan and Lisa Christensen in Rochester, NY.  Lisa is Melanie's age and she and her sister spent a lot of fun times at our home when they were growing up.  It is fun to see them and their 3 children.  We'll take some pictures tomorrow!