Historic Seminary Buildings

A couple of weeks ago, I talked about historic institute buildings. I decided it would be nice to also talk about some historic seminary buildings. I'm aware of.

The first seminary was established at Granite High School in Salt Lake City. It hasn't been standing for decades, but they actually did salvage a brick from this building and put it in a case in the entryway of the seminary building that replaced it (at 3328 S 500 E in Salt Lake). Now that Granite High School is closed, the building is used for offices only, I believe.

Few other historic seminary buildings exist; most have been replaced. A few have been sold or repurposed. One prominent example is the original seminary building for Springville High School, which is now a family history center. I believe it dates to about 1912.

Another example is the Bear River Seminary (located in Garland, Utah), which has been sold and is used as an academy. It was built in 1924:

(Image Source)

A reader alerted me to the old seminary building in Vernal, Utah. It was built in 1937. The Church now uses it as a distribution center:

There are a few others I'm aware of, such as at Grace and Paris, Idaho. You just don't see very many historic seminaries and institutes; they weren't built in as big of numbers as meetinghouses or tabernacles.

Laramie Ward

My blog has only highlighted one other institute building--the one in Logan, built in 1928. As far as I can tell, the only other institute building that is historic (by which I mean, built pre-1950) is the one for the University of Wyoming in Laramie. In 1936, President Heber J. Grant dedicated it to serve both as a meetinghouse and an institute, and it continues to serve in that function today.

(Image Source: Church History Library)

It was constructed of native rock that gives it an original look. It had some really neat prairie style elements along its sides and in details such as the doors (which are no longer there).

(Image Source: Church History Library)

The building still looks largely the same, although it has been expanded and modernized.

From pictures I found online, the interior of the building looks extremely modernized, and I doubt any historic elements remain at all.

South Jordan Ward

Built in 1926, most of the bricks for this chapel came from an old school across the street that was demolished at the same time of construction. It was used until 1972, when it was sold and continues to be owned privately.