MORE NAUVOO 7/9/2011

We spent the night of the 8th in the state park in Nauvoo and rose early the next morning to catch a presentation along Parley Street.  A lot of the actors from the pageant were spaced along the road from Nauvoo down to the Mississippi River, the same path the saints took when they were expelled from the city they had built by the governor of Missouri and the government ignored mob violence.

These actors quoted entries from the journals of the people they portrayed.  It was very touching.

There were also signs along the way, in between the actors that quoted other pioneers and their experiences in Nauvoo and their experiences in departing in that terribly cold winter of 1846.

When we got to the bottom of the road, arriving at the Mississippi River, we found a statue of Joseph Smith and Brigham Young discussing the plans to leave for the Rocky Mountains.

There is the river they crossed.  It was a sobering couple hours we spent in this experience, thinking of what those families must have been experiencing and thinking so long ago.  Here we are with our comfortable RV.  We are so spoiled!

Could you imagine being ferried across that massive river on this?

Then we visited more buildings, like this one.  it is the 70's hall.  It was the church's first Missionary Training Center!

Here is the inside.  It was beautiful!

Then we went back to the trailer, hitched up, showered and drove to the temple to attend the noon session.  It is a beautiful temple, both inside and out.

When we left the temple we stopped at the sculpture of Joseph Smith and his brother Hyrum leaving Nauvoo for their last time.

I thought this was a rather poignant shot of them facing the temple as they leave for Carthage Jail and their deaths.

Then we drove down to the section of Nauvoo owned by the church called The Community of Christ.  We paid  a fee and a very nice guide took us on a tour of the last home of Joseph Smith....

.. the graves of Joseph, Emma and Hyrum Smith and a couple other buildings they own.

Then we departed Nauvoo and drove south along the Mississippi River headed for Quincy IL.

In a short space of time we crossed through three states; Iowa,

Missouri,

and back into Illinois.  We sopent the night in a Quincy, IL Wal-Mart.