The Temple Quarry

Brigham Young picked the spot and would not move it, even after diggers hit springs and the ground turned to bog. Sandstone would crumble in that wet, so they quarried black lava rock from the volcanic ridge west of town instead — seventeen thousand tons, some blocks coffin-sized, hauled by ox team. To make the swamp bear weight, they had to pound the rock deep. Having no pile driver, they filled an old cannon barrel with lead, rigged a hoist, and dropped it again and again until the ground held. The temple has stood on it since 1877.

Where it stands

Worth the stop nearby

• St. George Dinosaur Discovery Site at Johnson Farm — 2.0 mi
  Real dinosaur footprints preserved in ancient sandstone
• Snow Canyon State Park — 7.4 mi
  Red and white sandstone cliffs with ancient lava flows
• Hurricane Canal Trail — 19 mi
  The hand-dug canal that built Hurricane, now a walking trail blasted into the Virgin River gorge
• Kolob Canyons — 34 mi
  The quiet, uncrowded back door to Zion National Park

More markers nearby

• Lucy Bigelow Young — 1.5 mi
• Santa Clara Heritage Monument — 3.7 mi
• Santa Clara Relief Society Hall — 3.7 mi
• Swiss Colony — 3.7 mi