This might have been our busiest and most interesting day of the trip. We got up early to grab tickets to a show in the evening and so we could attend a session in the Nauvoo temple. Then we drove to Carthage and came back to Nauvoo.
I love how this temple sits on the hill overlooking old Nauvoo and the river. It's so beautifully replicated as well, which is such a lovely tribute to those who built the original.
This statue sits in front of the temple on the hill. It was kind of sad because we saw this statue and then went to Carthage where they were killed.
This temple was probably the most fun to visit- I loved how they stayed fairly true to the period and enjoyed the beautiful murals. I love the Salt Lake temple for its early authenticity as well, but Nauvoo is really special.
It was also interesting to see the the similarities between the Kirtland and Nauvoo temple. Though Nauvoo is more like our temples today it still had an assembly hall like Kirtland's.
What we learned about Carthage jail is that the building itself did not remain a jail but was a residence for many years. Families that lived there added on to it and updated it so it was pretty well preserved when the church purchased the property.
It was such a nice day but the feeling there was mostly respectful and thoughtful. The point of going isn't to ogle the place where a tragedy occurred but to remember what they died for. We didn't take any group shots here because that seemed a little too touristy for this location.
Hyrum was the one barricading the door when this one came through and hit him.
That's the upper window that Joseph fell from. Seeing the jail itself and learning about the jailer and his wife made the story more understandable to me. Also it's amazing how prepared Joseph was to end his life here. He sent away friends to protect them, he said goodbye to his brethren, and even turned himself in.
History can tell us many things about Joseph Smith. I don't think he was perfect, but I do know that he was a prophet. And every time I read the Book of Mormon I am grateful for him and his sacrifice.
Here's us picking back up in Nauvoo.
We visited the brickyard, the blacksmith shop, homes, stores, and meeting places.
This is Lucy Mack Smith's bed. She stayed in Nauvoo in a little home that was given to her before the saints moved out. Her daughter lived upstairs and took care of her.
Here's a cut-out picture of the Nauvoo temple.
There were so many sweet senior missionaries teaching us things like how to make rope and other skills.
We packed our lunch the second day and ate in the visitor's center. Afterwards we hung out in the women's garden next to the visitor's center until it was time for the show we had tickets for.
We had fun imitating statues for a bit.
We went to one of the saint's meeting places to see the play. I'm pretty sure if you get called as a senior couple to this mission you have to have some kind of musical ability.
We saw everything there was to see (that the church owns) in Nauvoo and it was wonderful. I'm so glad I finally got to see the setting that I'd imagined while reading the Work and the Glory books and make the history come to life even more.
