Detroit Michigan Temple

Temple History[]

The Detroit Michigan Temple is the 63rd operating temple of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and the first completed in the state of Michigan.

The groundbreaking ceremony for the Detroit Michigan Temple was held on the same day as the groundbreaking ceremony for the Spokane Washington Temple, marking the first time that groundbreaking ceremonies were held on the same day.

When the day of dedication for the Detroit Michigan Temple arrived, so did a cold front that brought a frigid wind and occasional showers of freezing rain. "For the members, it's a warm day," Bloomfield Hills Michigan Stake President Thomas C. Bithell said optimistically. Pointing to the temple, he said, "There's lots of sunshine inside."

During the days of dedication, President Hinckley spoke with the Church News of the temple district's members: "They appreciate it very much. They have indicated that they're so deeply grateful for this sacred structure and we, too, are happy that it has been erected here and dedicated and that the work of the Lord now goes forward here in this part of the earth." President Hinckley also noted that Stephen Mack, a brother of Joseph Smith's mother, Lucy, "surveyed the first road through what became Detroit." Many members pointed out the road in front of the temple as the one Stephen Mack built. The Prophet Joseph Smith, his brother Hyrum and his father, Joseph Smith Sr., visited the Detroit area in 1834, and because of the location of the road and its relationship to the Prophet's uncle, "it would seem likely to me that they went by the temple site," President Bithell said.

The roadway running in front of the temple, eight-lane Woodward Avenue, is one of the Detroit area's major thoroughfares. It gives the temple good exposure to passers-by, but it is remains unobtrusive because of its well-landscaped parkway and location behind a large, grass-covered buffer.

The temple site in Bloomfield Hills was one of the last considered during the search for a suitable site. President Bithell, who was in charge of finding a site, explained that he considered property behind the stake center, but it wasn't selected because the temple would be hidden behind the meetinghouse, and the property to the north of the stake center was assumed to be too small. But after considering several properties near other meetinghouses, Pres. Bithell again looked at the tree-covered lot outside his office window and wondered about the northward property. It was measured "and it was just perfect," he said. He said the lot was part of the original eight acres purchased for Michigan's first stake center in 1952. Although selling the piece was often under consideration, it never happened.

Temple District[]

The Detroit Michigan Temple serves members from 7 stakes and 1 district headquartered in Michigan:

Presidents[]

Kaplin S. Jones 2019–
Raymond W. Pollard 2016–2019
Steven A. Hedquist 2013–2016
Phillip G. Pulsipher 2010–2013
William J. Schilling 2007–2010
David R. Shurtz 2004–2007
Cyrus J. Webber Jr. 1999–2004

References[]