Nauvoo

Nauvoo Visitors' Center

Begin your exploration of historic Nauvoo by examining the 1846 relief map of Nauvoo, viewing an introductory video, and studying historic artifacts and displays. Gather information on over two dozen restored homes, shops, and religious buildings in Nauvoo.

Brigham Young Nauvoo Home

Carthage Jail: Visit the restored Carthage Jail, where the Prophet Joseph Smith and his brother Hyrum were martyred.

 

• Nauvoo Cultural Hal lVisit the heart of Old Nauvoo's social life. During the evening, it's still the place to be! Rendezvous in Old Nauvoo, a musical drama documenting life during the city’s golden age, is performed nightly throughout the year (on demand).

• Heber C. Kimball Nauvoo Home  Visit the brick home that the Kimball family occupied less than a year before they were forced to leave and faithfully gathered with the Saints for the westward trek.

 

• John Taylor Nauvoo Home Visit one of the earliest brick homes in Nauvoo. This beautiful federal-style home was built by John Ivins and later occupied by John Taylor, the third President of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

 

• Jonathon Browning Nauvoo Home and Gun Shop  Tour the Jonathan Browning Home and Gun Shop and learn about the humble beginnings of the worldwide Browning Arms Corporation. See authentic rifles, handguns, and shotguns from the early 1800s and their present-day counterparts.
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•  Nauvoo Land and Records Office
• Lucy Mack Smith Nauvoo Home
• Nauvoo Lyon Drug Store Browse the shelves of an 1840s drugstore and discover the inventory of a period business establishment, including medicines, textiles, hardware, and household items. 
  
• Nauvoo Family Living Center Discover candle making, rope winding, spinning, and other early crafts at the Nauvoo Family Living Center. Get a taste of what it was like to live in early Nauvoo. 
  
• Nauvoo Post Office
• Nauvoo Temple Rock Quarry
• Nauvoo Temple As you visit the grounds of this sacred building, consider what the temple meant to the early residents of Nauvoo. The original temple was built with much sacrifice and hard work, but was later destroyed. The current temple, which was built to resemble the original, was dedicated in 2002.
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• Nauvoo Pageant  
• Celebrate the restored gospel, the prophetic mission of Joseph Smith, and the legacy of early Latter-day Saints in Nauvoo. Enjoy historical vignettes in Old Nauvoo throughout the day and the 1840s Frontier Country Fair pre-show activities at the pageant site before the pageant begins each night.
• This year a cast and crew of more than 1,100 volunteers are bringing early Mormon history in the US and England to life in two musical productions—the Nauvoo Pageant and the British Pageant—July 8 through August 2 in Nauvoo, Illinois. The year 2014 marks the tenth annual production of the Nauvoo Pageant, which tells the story of early Latter-day Saint Church members who, in 1839, fled to Nauvoo to escape religious persecution.  The British Pageant, “Truth Will Prevail,” tells the history of early Mormonism in the British Isles. Both pageants feature scripts based on actual journals and historic records from the 1800s, as well as traditional and original music. Presenting both the Nauvoo and British pageants will allow audiences to view the close and continuing relationship between Mormons in the British Isles and the United States. The faith, devotion, and sacrifice of the nineteenth-century British Church helped make possible the flourishing religious community that was established in Nauvoo.
• Pendleton Nauvoo Log Home and School Discover the interior of a log schoolroom and cabin—the most common housing in historic Nauvoo. Imagine calculating math problems with a slate board and a piece of chalk!
• Nauvoo Printing Office Imagine setting type for a weekly newspaper by hand, carefully placing each tiny letter in a composing stick backwards. Here you can see a period printing press and learn about the time-consuming labors necessary to print documents in the 1840s.
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• Riser Nauvoo Home and Boot Shop Learn how an 1840s shoemaker used different grades of leather and wood to construct shoes. Also learn how pioneers “personalized” their shoes.
  
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• Sarah Granger Kimball Nauvoo Home
• Nauvoo Scovil Bakery Visit the Scovil Bakery to experience a baker's lifestyle before the days of electric and gas ovens. See the baking equipment of the 1840s, including a bustle oven, an open hearth, and a spider pan.
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• Nauvoo Seventies Hall
• Stoddard Nauvoo Home and Tin Shop
• Wilford Woodruff Nauvoo Home Tour the home of Wilford Woodruff, who became the fourth President of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. This is one of the finest and best-preserved brick houses of the 1840s—one of the few homes in Historic Nauvoo furnished with the original inhabitants’ belongings.
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