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| History of Nauvoo |
| Perhaps nowhere else can a town of 1100 inhabitants boast such a varied and tumultuous past or such a bright and exciting future. Here the mighty Mississippi bends around an eight-mile curve of fertile farmland ("the flats"). About a mile inland, the land rises about 60 feet up to level grasslands ("the bluff") which extend eastward to the horizon. | Tradition has it that this one-time Indian village of 400 to 500 lodges called "Quashquema" was traded for two hundred sacks of corn in 1824 to Captain James White, who ran a ferry and traded with the Indians. In 1830 a post office was established for the tiny settlement under the name of "Venus", which was changed not long thereafter to "Commerce". |
The incredible transformation of the area began in 1839 when Joseph Smith, Jr. purchased 170 acres for a settlement of the members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. After having been driven out of Ohio and Missouri, the "Saints" descended upon what was a mosquito-ridden swamp and began to build a city named "Nauvoo", a Hebrew word suggesting "a beautiful place". Soon wagons and tents gave way to log cabins, then frame houses and, finally, brick homes and businesses. Within five years, the population had swelled to 12,000, nearly as large as Chicago, with grist and lumber mills, potteries, tanneries, foundries, brickyards, bakeries, a slaughter house, comb and match factories and dozens of shops, stores and other businesses.
| The crowning centerpiece of the settlement, however, was the magnificent Temple constructed on the edge of the bluff... | During the five years of its construction, men gave every tenth day to cut, haul and place wooden timbers and limestone blocks. Women donated their fine china to be crushed to add sparkle to the exterior. Said to be the finest building in the west at the time, the Temple measured 128 feet by 88 feet and featured an 82-foot octagonal tower. |
| In 1844, Joseph Smith was martyred in nearby Carthage and in 1846 mob violence forced the Saints to begin their historic trek westward to the basin of the great Salt Lake. After the exodus, the activity of the town moved to the bluff and the flats began a long period of decay. In late 1848, an arsonist destroyed all the wooden parts of the Temple, and the blackened walls were further damaged by a tornado in 1850. The City Council finally ordered the ruined remains removed in 1865. | In 1849, an orderly and industrious group of french communists known as Icarians arrived in Nauvoo and were able to buy vacated properties for little or no more than back taxes. The Icarians planted orchards and vineyards and operating numerous industries, including a sawmill, large flour mill, numerous shops, a brewery, distillery and wineries. A few years later the communal way of life proved unworkable and the colony dispersed. |
In the latter half of the 19th century, German, Swiss, English, Irish and Scottish immigrants found their way to Nauvoo. German culture and language became dominant and remained so until World War 1. The soil and climate were so favorable for raising grapes that by 1866 the town had 250 vineyards and several wine cellars. Though by 1887 Nauvoo was on its way to becoming the grape-growing center of America, the industry gradually declined and many of the wine cellars were converted during the twentieth century for use in the making of now-famous Nauvoo blue cheese. Each Labor Day weekend, the Nauvoo Grape Festival celebrates these two Nauvoo industries with a pageant which observes the old French rite called "the Wedding of the Wine and Cheese".
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The Sisters of St. Benedict... |
The Catholic Church also has deep roots in Nauvoo. The Sisters of St. Benedict came from Chicago and opened a school (later known as St. Mary's Academy) for the advanced education of young women in 1874. A new monastery was built in 1954, a new high school in 1957 and other additions in 1962 and 1967. This complex, which sits directly west of the site of the Nauvoo Temple, was recently sold to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and the monastery is relocating to Rock Island, Illinois. |
During the latter half of the twentieth century, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has returned to Nauvoo and rebuilt the ruins of many of the original buildings on the flat. Established in 1962, Nauvoo Restoration, Incorporated (NRI) along with the Community of Christ (which owns the original Joseph Smith home and several surrounding buildings), have created the "Williamsburg of the Midwest" with two visitors centers and numerous restored and furnished homes and shops which are open all year round for free guided tours. In addition to free musical theatre productions held daily on the flats, a spectacular outdoor pageant, "City of Joseph" has been held annually since 1976 (in late July and early August).
The latest chapter in Nauvoo's history began in 1999, when the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints announced plans to reconstruct the original Nauvoo Temple. Completed and dedicated in the Spring of 2002, the exterior of this amazing $25 million dollar edifice is virtually an exact replica of the original. The interior has been crafted with the finest materials, replicating the original where possible while accommodating the needs of modern-day Latter-day Saints who now travel to Nauvoo year-round to perform sacred ordinance work.
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