The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Missouri
![]() The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Missouri | |
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![]() Visitors center in Independence, Missouri | |
Membership | 72,525 (2019)[1] |
Stakes | 18 |
Wards | 132 |
Branches | 22 |
Total Congregations | 154 |
Missions | 2 |
Temples | 2 |
Family History Centers | 51[2] |
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Missouri refers to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and its members in Missouri. The official church membership as a percentage of general population was 1.14% in 2014. According to the 2014 Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life survey, roughly 1% of Missourians self-identify themselves most closely with The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.[3] The LDS Church is the 8th largest denomination in Missouri.[4]
Stakes are located in Cape Girardeau, Columbia, Far West, Hazelwood, Independence, Joplin, Kansas City, Lake St Louis, Liberty, Monett, Platte City, St Louis (2), St Robert, Springfield (2), Warrensburg, and West Plains.
History[]
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/3e/Liberty-jail2.jpg/260px-Liberty-jail2.jpg)
Year | Membership |
---|---|
1974 | 13,796 |
1980 | 25,243 |
1990 | 35,084 |
1999 | 51,187 |
2009 | 63,666 |
2019 | 72,525 |
*Membership was published as a rounded number. Source: Wendall J. Ashton; Jim M. Wall, Deseret News, various years, Church Almanac State Information: Missouri[1] |
In 1831, Joseph Smith told LDS Church members that Independence, Missouri, was to be the gathering spot for the church.[5]
There were many Mormons in Missouri and it served as one of the headquarters of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in the 1830s. In 1838 Lilburn W. Boggs issued the Extermination Order to drive Mormons from the state, and for a time there was no organized Church presence here.
Later in the 1840s members of the Church, both immigrants from Britain and migrants from Nauvoo, Illinois moved to St. Louis, Missouri and a branch was organized there in 1844. In 1852 the steamship Saluda exploded near Lexington, Missouri with many of those killed being Latter-day Saints headed towards Fremont, Nebraska to then outfit to go to Utah.
By 1849 there were over 3,000 Latter-day Saints in the St. Louis area, and in 1854 a stake was organized there with Milo Andrus as president. Among those baptized in Missouri about this time was Henry Eyring a German immigrant who would later lead Latter-day Saint missionary efforts among the Cherokee in Oklahoma and many of whose descendants would be prominent later in the LDS Church. In 1858 the stake was dissolved and most of the Mormons migrated to Utah.
In the late 19th century, there was limited missionary presence. However, from 1904 a mission was headquartered in Independence. In 1911 a branch was organized there with Joseph F. Smith dedicating a chapel in 1914. Shortly after this Spencer W. Kimball, later president of the Church, served a mission in Missouri.
The church began to expand in the 1920s with five new chapels dedicated in 1926 and 1927. The first Missouri stake was organized in Kansas City in 1956 with another organized in St. Louis in 1958. Columbia, Missouri got a stake in 1970, the Independence Stake was split from the Kansas City stake in 1971 and a stake was organized in Springfield in 1973. The first LDS temple in Missouri was dedicated by Gordon B. Hinckley in the St. Louis area in 1997.[6]
For much of the early 20th century Liahona The Elders' Journal was published in Independence, Missouri this was the main LDS publication aimed at church members living in the United States outside of the Mormon corridor.
In 2010, the Kansas City Missouri Temple was dedicated—the temple stands not far from Liberty, Missouri where LDS Church founder Joseph Smith Jr. was incarcerated in the winter of 1838–39.[7]
Stakes[]
As of February 2022, Missouri was home to the following stakes:
Stake | Mission | Temple District |
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Cape Girardeau Missouri | Missouri St Louis | St Louis Missouri |
Columbia Missouri | Missouri St Louis | St Louis Missouri |
Far West Missouri | Missouri Independence | Kansas City Missouri |
Hazelwood Missouri | Missouri St Louis | St Louis Missouri |
Independence Missouri | Missouri Independence | Kansas City Missouri |
Joplin Missouri | Arkansas Bentonville | Kansas City Missouri |
Kansas City Missouri | Missouri Independence | Kansas City Missouri |
Lake St Louis Missouri | Missouri St Louis | St Louis Missouri |
Liberty Missouri | Missouri Independence | Kansas City Missouri |
Monett Missouri | Arkansas Bentonville | Kansas City Missouri |
Nauvoo Illinois Stake | Iowa Iowa City | Nauvoo Illinois |
Platte City Missouri | Missouri Independence | Kansas City Missouri |
St Louis Missouri South | Missouri St Louis | St Louis Missouri |
St Louis Missouri | Missouri St Louis | St Louis Missouri |
St Robert Missouri | Arkansas Bentonville | St Louis Missouri |
Springfield Missouri South | Arkansas Bentonville | Kansas City Missouri |
Springfield Missouri | Arkansas Bentonville | Kansas City Missouri |
Warrensburg Missouri | Missouri Independence | Kansas City Missouri |
West Plains Missouri | Missouri St Louis | St Louis Missouri |
Missions[]
Mission | Organized |
---|---|
Missouri Independence North Mission | 4 Apr 1904 |
Missouri St Louis Mission | 1 Jul 1977 |
Temples[]
Red = Operating
Blue = Under Construction
Yellow = announced
Black = Closed for Renovations
Green = Construction suspended
Missouri currently has two operating temples and three in which construction has been indefinitely suspended.
|
50. St. Louis Missouri Temple | ||
Location: |
Town and Country, Missouri, United States | ||
|
137. Kansas City Missouri Temple | ||
Location: |
Kansas City, Missouri, United States | ||
|
Independence / New Jerusalem (Efforts halted in 1830s) | ||
Location: |
Independence, Missouri, United States | ||
|
Far West (Efforts halted in 1830s) | ||
Location: |
Far West, Caldwell County, Missouri, United States | ||
|
Adam-ondi-Ahman (Efforts halted in 1830s) | ||
Location: |
Adam-ondi-Ahman, Daviess County, Missouri, United States |
See also[]
- The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints membership statistics (United States)
- Missouri: Religion
- Independence, Missouri
- Jackson County, Missouri
- Far West, Missouri
- Adam-ondi-Ahman
- Caldwell County, Missouri
- Daviess County, Missouri
- Mormon War (1838)
- Haun's Mill massacre
- Extermination order
- Liberty Jail
- Evening and Morning Star
- Joseph Smith
- Zion's Camp
References[]
- ^ a b "Facts and Statistics: Statistics by State: Missouri", Newsroom, LDS Church, retrieved 24 May 2021
- ^ Category:Missouri Family History Centers, familysearch.org, retrieved 27 August 2021
- ^ "Adults in Missouri: Religious composition of adults in Missouri". Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life. Pew Research Center. Retrieved 2021-05-24.
- ^ "The Association of Religion Data Archives | State Membership Report". Thearda.com. Retrieved May 24, 2021. Note:While it's the eighth largest denomination in Missouri, it's the ninth largest denomination when "nondenominational" is considered as a denomination.
- ^ "Facts and Statistics", Church News, 2020. Retrieved on 2 April 2020.
- ^ LDS Church Almanac, published by the Deseret News, 2011 edition, p. 360-361
- ^ Burnes, Brian. "New Mormon temple in Kansas City, North, to open in April", The Kansas City Star, 19 January 2012. Retrieved on 27 March 2020.
- ^ Mikita, Carole (October 4, 2008). "LDS Church plans temples in Rome, 4 other locations". KSL.com. Retrieved 15 October 2012.
- ^ Burnes, Brian (May 8, 2010). "Groundbreaking planned for Mormon temple in Northland" (NewsBank paywall). The Kansas City Star. p. A5. Retrieved October 15, 2012.
- ^ History of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (aka Documented History of the Church "DHC") 1:357-362 or James R. Clark, Messages of the First Presidency, Vol.1, p.6-10 where full architectural descriptions are given.
External links[]
- Newsroom (Missouri)
- ComeUntoChrist.org Latter-day Saints Visitor site
- The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints Official site
- The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Missouri
- Latter Day Saint movement in Missouri