Location
2930 Cody Drive
Bismarck, North Dakota 58503
United States
Contact
Telephone: 701-258-9590
Facsimile: 701-258-9517
Details
Announcement: 29 July 1998
Groundbreaking and Site Dedication: 17 October 1998 by Kenneth Johnson
Public Open House: 10–11 September 1999
Dedication: 19 September 1999 by Gordon B. Hinckley
Site: 1.6 acres.
Exterior Finish: Granite veneer from Québec.
Ordinance Rooms: Two ordinance rooms (two-stage progressive) and two sealing.
Total Floor Area: 10,700 square feet.
Temple Facts:
The Bismarck North Dakota Temple was the first temple built in the Dakotas (and in North Dakota).
Temple History:
Though the members of the temple district are scattered among a large region, the completion of the temple brought its blessings much closer to the Saints. For example, those living in Grand Forks, North Dakota, made a 16-hour trip to attend the temple in Chicago. Members in Minot, North Dakota, drove 14 hours to Cardston, Alberta. Saints in Rapid City, South Dakota, traveled 7 hours to Denver. Robert B. Dahlgren, the temple's first president, noted that members of the district are highly dedicated and used to traveling long distances. He spoke of a retired couple who lived some distance from Bismarck who readily agreed to move to Bismarck to work in the temple full time.1
President Gordon B. Hinckley's trip to dedicate the temple was his first time in North Dakota, the only state in the United States he had never visited. Having logged millions of miles of travel to most of the countries of the world, this was a welcomed trip to a state in his own country.2
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1. Dell Van Orden, "Shortening the vast distances," Church News 25 Sept. 1999: 3.
2. Dell Van Orden, "Well-traveled president visits North Dakota for the first time ever," Church News 25 Sept. 1999: 3.