EMPHRAIM — The president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints presided at the groundbreaking of the Ephraim Utah Temple on Saturday. The temple will be built on a 9.16-acre site located at the intersection of 200 North and 400 East in Ephraim. Plans call for a three-story temple of approximately 39,000 square feet, similar to the Smithfield temple, already under construction.
During the service that was by invitation only and broadcast to local members, President Russell M. Nelson said Ephraim has a rich history. The first Latter-day Saints entered the Sanpete Valley in 1849.
“My dear mother was born in Ephraim a short ways from where we stand today, said President Nelson. “My father was born in Manti. Three of my four grandparents were born in Ephraim. All eight of my great-grandparents lived in Ephraim. All were converts to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in their native countries of England, Denmark, Norway and Sweden. I don’t think they could even talk to each other.”
The Ephraim Utah Temple was announced in May 2021 by President Nelson, during a regional broadcast to members of the church, and not during the faith’s regular general conference, when most temples are pronounced.
During Saturday’s groundbreaking, President Nelson explained what led to the special temple announcement.
“Shortly after the April 2021 General Conference, I received very clear instruction that the Manti Utah Temple should be preserved and that a temple should be built in Ephraim Utah.”
President Nelson was accompanied by his wife, Wendy, and Elder Walter F. González, a General Authority Seventy, and Elder Kevin R. Duncan, executive director of the Church’s Temple Department, and their wives. Utah Governor Spencer J. Cox, a native of Fairview, Utah, located 20 miles north of Ephraim, and other government leaders also attended the temple groundbreaking.
The Ephraim temple will be the second temple in Sanpete County. The other temple is the Manti Utah Temple, which is currently under renovation. The Manti temple was first completed in 1888. The pioneer-era temple is expected to be rededicated sometime in 2023.