Tuesday, September 1, 2015

"Those Who've Gone Before": Ephraim Tabernacle

This series honors LDS Architecture that is no longer standing. To see all the posts in this series, click here.

The Ephraim Tabernacle was built in 1877 and demolished in 1954.  In this photo, an adult man offers the sacrament prayer with his hands raised. The long pipe at the center of the tabernacle was likely connected to a heating stove. The large picture of Joseph Smith conversing with Moroni was painted by C.C.A. Christensen. I don't know where the painting is currently located, or if it was saved at all.

4 comments:

  1. In doing research last week at the Church Archives, I read that this C.C.A. Christensen painting was flaking and had damage from the weather so it was painted over and hence lost forever. Then the building was razed. So this photo may be the only one remaining of that painting.

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    1. Thanks for the information, Rhonda--sad to hear.

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  2. I could be wrong, but I believe this mural may still exist in the meetinghouse at 942 E 100 S, Salt Lake City. My wife and I attended the Salt Lake Eleventh Ward there from 2003-2007 when Brent Hatch was bishop, and some of the older members of the ward and stake told of how the large mural behind the pulpit was painted by Bro. Christensen and was rescued from a pioneer tabernacle.

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    1. Hi Mike! That painting is actually by Lewis Ramsey: https://assets.ldscdn.org/4a/c0/4ac07d2850f374c445db9274277c334424825c1d/moroni_delivers_plates_to_joseph.jpeg. He was a member of the SLC 11th Ward and painted it for the chapel. It does look similar. He painted several copies of that mural that hung in chapels across the western U.S.

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