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Iowa City
Des Moines Flood Clean up
Flood Volunteers
IMG_6032
Des Moines Flood Cleanup
Des Moines Flood
Des Moines Flood
Des Moines Flood
Fort Madison
Cedar Rapids
Dubuque
De
Des Moines
State Capitol
Religious Freedom Day
Moroni logo
2018 proclamation governor reynolds pres
Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Sai
Iowa Food Bank farm
Helping at Madrid farm
Davenport Trek girls
Nauvoo statue
Service partners
Eagle Project in Cedar Falls
Susan Easton Black
quilting1
Picnic in Hannibal, MO
Fixing food pantry shelves
Enjoying BYU in Hannibal
Repairing landscaping
Youth
Mormon Trail Iowa
LDS chapel West Des Moines
Youth
LDS Institute Iowa City
CCA Christensen handcart pioneers
Joseph and Hyrum statue
Serving with Habitat for Humanity
Serving with Habitat for Humanity
Serving with Habitat for Humanity
Quad Cities Smoke Alarm project
Jason Giles on Religious Freedom Day
Youth Service 2016
Installing Smoke Alarms
Cleaning Shelter Yard
quartet
Mormon Helping Hands
Eagle Project
Nauvoo Stake President
Sewing for the Elderly
Religious Freedom Day
rally youth 9
Youth Serving with Red Cross
Installing Smoke Alarms
Youth Conference Service

16,313,735

Total Church Membership

188

Published Languages

30,536

Congregations Worldwide

168

Operating Temples Globally

Latter-day Saints In IOwa

After early members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints left Nauvoo, Illinois, to escape persecution in 1846, they embarked on likely the most difficult part of the journey westward: it took 108 days for the first pioneer company to cross the 320 miles of Iowa. Difficult terrain, lack of food, disorganized camps, severe winter weather, and sickness all lengthened the journey. However, these early Church members found merriment in occasional music and dancing. The Nauvoo brass band provided entertainment and also earned money by playing concerts for the settlers in Iowa. Church President Brigham Young said the early settlers "were patient, and endured all their privations without murmuring." 

Nearly 200 Latter-day Saint pioneers established a small community named Garden Grove where they planted crops and built cabins for the pioneer companies who would follow them. Other communities were built at Mount Pisgah and Council Bluffs. When the United States declared war with Mexico in the spring of 1846, President Polk authorized the recruiting of five hundred Latter-day Saint volunteers. These volunteers constituted the Mormon Battalion, coming from the pioneer companies in Mount Pisgah, Garden Grove, and Council Bluffs. The Mormon Battalion accomplished the longest infantry march in the history of the United States. In Council Bluffs (Kanesville), Brigham Young became the official President of the Church in December 1847. He sent an epistle for members to gather in the Great Basin of the Rocky Mountains. From 1856-57, pioneers used handcarts to cross Iowa. Two to three hundred of these 2,500 handcart pioneers died on the trail.

 

During the summer of 1996, communities in Iowa celebrated the sesquicentennial of the Mormon Pioneer trek west by reenacting the event with their own wagon trains.

While the first Iowa congregations of Latter-day Saints were established in the southeastern corner of the state in 1838, most Church members moved West by the end of the 1840s. Congregations were re-established in the 1870s. By 1930, Iowa had branches of the Church in Ames, Boone, Sioux City, and Davenport. Since that time, dozens of congregations have been established throughout the state and in bordering communities. All congregations are purposely kept relatively small to allow for easier administration, since all Latter-day Saint congregations are led by a lay ministry. A congregation is typically called a "ward" led by a lay Bishop who is called to serve for about 5 years. To learn more about the structure of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, visit our Newsroom.

28,408

Total Church Membership in Iowa

1

Mission headquartered in Iowa City

66

Congregations

30

Family History Centers

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