The Kenosha telegraph. [volume] (Kenosha, Wis.) 1860-1888, 1867-11-07
NUMBER %
The Mormon Tabernacle.
An interesting Description of the immense
Temple at Salt Lake City

Temple at Salt Lake City.
The form of the building was the design
OF President Brigham Young, who was de
sirous that the lattice work principle should
De introduced into the construction of thi,
large edifice The architect thinks tha,
any person who has not seen the buiIdino
can have very good ideal of the roof bv
imagining the back or shell of an Eastern q,
grouno turtle OF huge proportions, but il
more frequently likened to the hull of an
old fashioned ship without any keel, and
turned topsy turvy. scts2s d
Ihis immense roof--which is. in fact the
pr ncIple portion Of the building-rests up-
on forty -four piers of cut sand stone mason.
ry, each nine feet from outside to inside Of
building, by three feet the other way. and
the whole averaging twenty feet high Ia
the spring of the roof On each side of the
building are nine piers in straight line.
From these an arch of forty eight il sprung.
Thirteen arches spring from each end from
thirteen piers, which stand on a circle. The
height from the floor to the ceiling is 81 XIV.
eight feet in the eentre of the building.
There is space of nine feet from the cti.
ling to the roof. The building itself is two
hundred and fifty feet from east TO west
and one hundred and fifty from north to
south. The room is one hundred feet
straight from east to west in the centre
with setnlclrcle of seventy-fve feet at
each end 80 = a,,'"'
There are no columns in the building
fhe roof is framed of lattice arched bepts
twelve feet from centre to centre, each arch
bent converging and meeting at the bieh-
est given point of the two main Lot.tside
bents. where they are securely fastened
On the northern and southern sides of the
building are thirty Spaces between the, piers.
which are filled with windows. containing
altogether $500 lights of glass. On the
north and south sides are also twelve snaces
between the piers. filled by double doors
but it is intended to have four more sorne
time. There are two small doors an the
southwest, two on the northwest, and one
private door on the west, opening to- the
stand.
Above the piers there ia over ]. Doc. GOO
feet of lumber: in the floor, 50, 600 feet
in the joists, 100. 600; in the sleepers,e go
600; in the doors, stands, benches and 9TH
err parts not enumerated 10000 feet in
the aggregate 1000, 900 feet. The roof
is covered with 400 900 shingles, besides a
place at the top, averaging 60 by 1870 feet,
which is covered by patent roofing. The
spiral stairway from the ceiling affords ac-
cess to the outside of the roof. There ia
supposed to be hmple room in the building
to seat comfortably 5000 to 5000 persons.
The spaces between the piers are all num-
bered from one to forty, four, and the gem
tlemen will see to the best order and silence
being preserved around the tabernacle. The
for the public are on the east side,
numbered three and forty two; on the south
side, eight, niue, ten, eleven, twelve and
thirteen; on the north, thirty two, thirty
three, thirty-four, thirty-five thirty six
and thirty seven. On the southwest and
northwest are the entrances for the Bishops
and priest hood occupying the stand. The
choir enters by the door numbered twenty.
four, and the Presidents private entrance
is by the door numbered twenty two on the
west end OF the building, and covers seven
thousand five hundred feet.
The front of the stand ia segment Of a
circle. Before it are seat and a desk for the
bishop and others who administer the sac
The first seat in the centre of the
stand is for the Presidency of the State, the
next for the Quorum of the Twelve the
third for the First Presidency Back of
these are seats for choir of one hundred
and fifty singers, with the great organ, yet
unfinished behind them. On the right and
left are seat for from eight hundred to one
thousand persons. Tue Speakers desk is
sixty feet IN front Of the western piers In
front Of the stand for seventy feet the floor
Is horizontal; thence to the east end the
floor rises with grade of one foot in ten.
The horizontal portion of the floor is seated
with very comfortable permanent beuches,
the remainder temporarily with old benches
from the Bowery
The work from beginning to end. has
been closely supervised by President Young,
who in this, as iii everything else of public
character, ''has been i'll all aud through all,
and encouraged by his confidence all en-
gagged in it. President Young seems fully
satisfied with the accomplishment of his de-
sign. 1t will take great MANY men some
months yet TO make the seats and finish
other portions of tue edifce. BY the 9th
OF April next the whole will be finished and
ready for dedica tior~ 1t is a great building,
of which the saints have reason to be proud
----p . -