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The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Washington (state)

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The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Washington
The Seattle Washington Temple
Stakes62
Wards476
Branches68
Total Congregations544
Missions7
Temples3 Operating, 1 Under Construction
Family History Centers97[1]

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Washington refers to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) and its members in Washington. Washington has the 6th most members of the LDS Church in the United States.[2] The LDS Church is the 2nd largest denomination in Washington, behind the Roman Catholic Church.[3]

History

Membership in Washington
YearMembership
19201,199
19303,443
19405,113
195011,551
196035,701
197067,203
1980*138,000
1990*189,000
1999226,411
2009257,710
2019289,479
*Membership was published as a rounded number.
Source: Windall J. Ashton; Jim M. Wall, Deseret News, various years, Church Almanac Country Information: Washington[4]

The first known member of the Church moved to Washington in 1852,[5] with missionaries arriving in Washington Territory from California as early as 1854. Enough converts were baptized along the Lewis River in the southwest portion of the state that a congregation was created in that area. Tensions escalated to the death of one member in 1911, who was given a secret burial at night.

Members of the Church helped construct the Oregon Short Line Railroad in the 1880s. By 1930, nearly two thousand members lived within the state with chapels located in the Puget Sound Region and in Spokane. Washington saw many members move to the state after the completion of the Grand Coulee Dam and during World War II to work in defense industries.[5]

The first branch in Washington was created at Tacoma near the end of 1899, with its first stake being created at Seattle in 1938.[5] Washington's first temple was built in Bellevue in 1980. There are now also temples in Spokane and Richland and another to be constructed in Moses Lake.[6]

In 2020, the LDS Church temporarily canceled services and other public gatherings in response to the spread of the coronavirus pandemic. Church services resumed online and/or in person later that year, depending on the congregation.[7]

Missions

On July 26, 1897, the Northwestern States Mission was organized to search out Latter Day Saints who had moved to Washington, Oregon, and Montana. On January 1, 1968, The Pacific Northwest Mission was created with Joe E. Whitesides as president. On June 10, 1970, its name changed to the Washington Mission and ultimately the Washington Seattle Mission on June 20, 1974. As of 2016, Washington is home to eight missions, three of which are east of the Cascade Mountains, and five are on the west side.

Mission Organized
Washington Everett Mission 1 July 2001[8]
Washington Kennewick Mission 1 July 2002[9]
Washington Seattle Mission 1 January 1968
Washington Spokane Mission 1 July 1978[10]
Washington Tacoma Mission 1 July 1990[11]
Washington Vancouver Mission 1 July 2013[12]
Washington Yakima Mission 30 June 2015[13]

Temples

Temples in and near Washington (edit)

Washington currently has three temples in operation. A fourth temple, the Moses Lake Washington Temple, was announced by President Russell M. Nelson in his concluding talk of the Sunday afternoon session of the 189th annual General Conference on Sunday, April 7, 2019 to be built in Moses Lake, Washington.[14] In addition, members in the Bellingham Washington Stake are served by the Vancouver British Columbia Temple[15] and members in and around Vancouver, Washington are served by the Portland Oregon Temple.[16]

19 Seattle Washington Temple Operating 110,000 sq ft (10,219 m2) 23.5 acres (95,101 m2) November 17, 1980 Spencer W. Kimball edit
59 Spokane Washington Temple Operating 10,700 sq ft (994 m2) 2 acres (8,094 m2) August 21, 1999 Gordon B. Hinckley edit
107 Columbia River Washington Temple Operating 16,880 sq ft (1,568 m2) 2.88 acres (11,655 m2) November 18, 2001 Gordon B. Hinckley edit
182 Moses Lake Washington Temple Operating 28,933 sq ft (2,688 m2) 17.2 acres (69,606 m2) 17 September 2023 Quentin L. Cook[17] edit

See also

References

  1. ^ Category: Washington Family History Centers, familysearch.org, retrieved 24 October 2021
  2. ^ The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints membership statistics (United States)
  3. ^ "The Association of Religion Data Archives | State Membership Report". Thearda.com. Retrieved April 19, 2021. Note:While it's the 2nd largest denomination in Washington, it's the third largest denomination when "nondenominational" is considered as a denomination.
  4. ^ Cite error: The named reference newsroom was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  5. ^ a b c LDS Church News - United States information: Washington
  6. ^ Washington - LDS Statistics and Church Facts | Total Church Membership
  7. ^ Lovett, Ian. "Mormon Church Cancels Services World-Wide Amid Coronavirus Crisis", The Wall Street Journal, 12 March 2020. Retrieved on 31 March 2020.
  8. ^ Washington Everett Mission of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints Accessed 10-04-2016
  9. ^ Washington Kennewick Mission of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints Accessed 10-04-2016
  10. ^ Washington Spokane Mission of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints Accessed 10-04-2016
  11. ^ Washington Tacoma Mission of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints Accessed 10-04-2016
  12. ^ Washington Vancouver Mission of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints Accessed 10-04-2016
  13. ^ Washington Yakima Mission of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints Accessed 10-04-2016
  14. ^ "April 2019 General Conference News and Announcements". Mormon Newsroom. 7 April 2019.
  15. ^ Vancouver British Columbia LDS Temple District
  16. ^ Portland Oregon LDS Temple District
  17. ^ "Two US Temples and One in Brazil Dedicated on the Same Day", newsroom, LDS Church, 17 September 2023, retrieved 28 September 2023

Further reading

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