Joseph Smith Memorial Building
 View from the south |
|
| Basic data | |
| Denomination | Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints |
| place | Salt Lake City , United States |
| dedication | Joseph Smith |
| Building history | |
| Client | Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints |
| architect | Parkinson and Bergstrom |
| start of building | June 1909 |
| Building description | |
| inauguration | June 9, 1911 |
| Architectural style | Neo-renaissance |
| 40 ° 46 '11 " N , 111 ° 53' 26" W | |
The Joseph Smith Memorial Building (originally Hotel Utah ) is a building named in honor of Joseph Smith . It is located on the corner of Main Street and South Temple in Salt Lake City . It's now a social center with three restaurants. It's also a venue for events, with 13 banking rooms, catering services and a floristry department. Some floors are also used by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints . Especially for her genealogy work . On January 3, 1978, it was listed on the National Register of Historic Places as the Utah Hotel.
history
The corner of Main Street and South Temple has always been important in Utah history. Before the hotel was built between 1909 and 1911, it housed a church tithing office, a house for the poor, and the Deseret News printing facility. Work on the construction of the hotel began in June 1909. The hotel was designed by the agency Parkinson and Bergstrom from Los Angeles . The building is built in neo-renaissance style. After two years of construction, the hotel opened on June 9, 1911. While the LDS Church was the main owner of the hotel, many Mormon and non-Mormon business people bought shares in it so that the city could own a first class hotel.
The largest and best bar in the Midwest was set up in the hotel to pay off a $ 2 million loan. Funding was secured by then Presiding Bishop Charles W. Nibley. However, he had to sell alcohol in the building so that he had enough money to pay the financier Charles Baruch.
Originally the hotel allowed black staff but not black guests. Famous black celebrities have also faced this. Lillian Yvanti, Harry Belafonte Marian Anderson , and Ella Fitzgerald were not allowed to stay in the hotel. Anderson was allowed to stay at the hotel. The prerequisite for this, however, was that she did not use the elevator and ate her food in the hotel room.
The ten-story hotel consists of a concrete and steel structure. It is covered with a glazed layer of terracotta and brickwork . Some extensions were built in the following years. For example, the north side was added and the dining rooms on the roof were changed.
The building was featured in the 1973 film Harry in Your Pocket, starring James Coburn.
The building has not been used as a hotel since August 1987. Remodeling and remodeling have been introduced so that the building can continue to be used for the church and the community. In 1993 Gordon B. Hinckley named the building with that name. This was because many buildings in Utah were named after Brigham Young , but none were named after Joseph Smith.
In 2011, the centenary of the building's completion as Hotel Utah was celebrated.
Today's use
The LDS Church now uses the building as follows:
- A large, historic lobby is home to a white statue of Joseph Smith. Classical pieces of music are often performed there.
- The genealogy center, where computers and materials are made available to the public, is there.
- There is a cinema where the public can watch church films such as Meet the Mormons for free.
- Two restaurants, The Rooftop and The Garden, are on the tenth floor and offer views of Salt Lake City.
- Inside the building are several administrative rooms of the church, especially for genealogy.
- Many rooms on the lower floors can be rented for weddings and parties.
- There is a chapel that is used for church services and contains an organ with 2484 flutes on 45 steps. The organ has a French accent.
- A pair of hawks live on the roof of the building. There are two webcams observing this.
Individual evidence
- ^ National Register Information System . In: National Register of Historic Places . National Park Service . Retrieved March 13, 2009.
- ^ Joseph Bauman: The old Hotel Utah has long storied history in Salt Lake , Deseret News. March 16, 2009.
- ^ Ronald G. Coleman: Blacks in Utah History: An Unknown Legacy .
- ↑ Archive link ( Memento of the original dated November 2, 2005 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and not yet checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ Archived copy . Archived from the original on June 28, 2011. Retrieved July 1, 2011.
- ↑ a b Archive link ( Memento of the original from August 28, 2009 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was automatically inserted and not yet checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ Archive link ( Memento of the original from July 20, 2009 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ a b https://www.mormontabernaclechoir.org/about/organs/organ-information/other-organs.html
- ↑ http://pipedreams.publicradio.org/listings/2005/0525/
- ↑ http://wildlife.utah.gov/peregrine
