Church History Museum

Absolutely enjoyed the museum and the peace that I felt here. The volunteers were very helpful, answered questions and thought us things we didn't know. You can see things super quick or you can take your time and spend about an hour. There is also a very neat souvenir store. I would definitely go back.

Free museum to attend. I learned so much here about the history of the church of Jesus Christ of latter-day saints. Lots of great artifacts and a great way to learn more. They have different art on the third floor and a kid area.

Beautiful! Loved the exhibits, the art was amazing. Lovely gift shop. The best part was the feeling of tranquility and reverence while I walked through the museum. If I ever make my way back to Salt Lake City, I will definitely visit the museum again.

Lots of wonderful displays and exhibits. My Granddaughter especially loved the hands on activities specifically for kids.

An excellent place to visit and tour in Salt Lake City. The museum is dedicated to the history of the Church of Jesus Christ of Later-day Saints, but even if you're not part of that church you'll find it interesting. Their history is the history and culture of Salt Lake City and Utah There are three floors, the first has paintings, sculpture, and cultural relics from church history. There are interactive exhibits for all ages. Upstairs there are exhibits about the various leaders (presidents, prophets) of the church but also from April 2025-January 2026 the 13th International Art Competition is in process, with a hundred paintings, sculptures, collages, and automata from artists around the world on a given theme. This year it's about "lifting the hands that hang down" and it's really fun to see the interpretations of that phrase. The competition is held every three years. Would definitely recommend it!

This was a very different museum. The setting is nice, lots to see, I was curious about this culture , everyone there is very helpful . It’s a museum for Jesus Christ Latter Day Saints , the founders of this city. The Mormon Temple is under construction right now, however, they have a nice garden and benches, water scape. I visited this location Sunday 10/6 on a trip to Salt Lake City.

Helpful missionaries are throughout the building to give directions and share insights. Beautifully designed building! A joy to be there. Permanent exhibits are quite child-friendly with hands-on activities and interactive displays Bathrooms are clean. Admission is free. Museum store is also nice to visit. I visited from out of state because of an art exhibit and I'm so glad I was able to see it!

This is a great place to learn about the history of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Free admission! There are interactive exhibits such as video touch screens and holding a replica of the golden plates. We brought a youth group here and everyone had a lot of fun. There are volunteer workers who are around to help and inform. There is a large parking lot on the West side of the museum, that is free after 4pm I believe. There is an information desk just inside the doors. There are drinking fountains, a gift shop, and elevators for visitors who need, for access to the upper and lower level. There is a small theatre downstairs where they have small concerts sometimes (like high school groups at Christmas time). There was a lot to see there and I left feeling like I need to come back soon to see the rest that I didn't have time to see!

Very interesting museum focused on the history of the LDS Church. If you're a lover of history and museums this is well worth the visit. The staff were all very kind and happy to answer questions, the exhibits were well-maintained and informative, and at no point did we feel uncomfortable. Plus, admission is free!

interesting museum about the history of Mormon and LDS. Very informative. Latter Day Saint movement started by Joseph Smith in upstate New York in 1820s. After Smith's death, the movement broke into a few groups, the majority followed Brigham Young. Many Mormons followed Brigham Young to Utah, this make the center of Mormon cultural influence is in Utah.

This museum does a great job of depicting the Mormon history from the Mormon's perspective. It reiterates all the teachings that I remember hearing about growing up-how Joseph Smith was (is) a revered prophet, how the Mormon pioneers were persecuted for their beliefs and how the people were faithful and devoted to their religion. If you are a believer, it's a great testimony builder. However, as another reviewer mentioned, it does lack factual history from other perspectives. I won't get into the details, since this isn't the place for that. But suffice it to say, this museum serves the purpose to driving home the church's beliefs and perspective on their history. It's free to enter and has church volunteers (missionaries) available to answer questions. There's a reverent, calm feeling throughout very similar to what you'll find in any of the churches or other church-owned properties. I'm glad I visited again (after decades of absence) to appreciate how nicely laid out everything is. They really do a good job of telling a story and showing artifacts in an interesting, eye-pleasing manner. I'd just encourage anyone who wants to learn about the history of the church to look at it from every angle.

As someone outside of the LDS faith, we felt welcomed and not out of place. Knowing we had been coming to Salt Lake City, we had been learning a lot about the LDS church history, and were hyped to see the story from the Church's perspective. Although, if you are outside the faith, you should bone up on the history of Joseph Smith and Mormonism before you come. I can see that if you don't, you might not be able to engage with it and get the most out of it. Staff were super friendly, and we loved that it was free admission. Would definitely recommend coming here to learn more about the LDS faith.

I went here with Debra R and Jose R. It is a history museum. I liked the jail exhibit and the quiz speech thing. The gift shop has a good selection of snacks.

A very nice museum to the history of the LDS Church. Sometimes it's a bit simple and lacking in artifacts but a very enjoyable time. I especially enjoyed the displays dedicated to the past Presidents

Like Robyn P. said, it doesn't matter what faith you are and there's no discussion or recruiting for the church at this wonderful free museum, which is located directly across from PeopleSearch. I expected to visit 10 minutes here and spent over 2 hours, It's a wonderful historical record of the settling of Utah by the early Mormon pilgrims. I think it's hard to visit here without learning something fascinating you didn't know. The church has put a. number of priceless historical artifacts on display, such as the printing press used to paint the first 3k copies of the Book of Mormon. A number of other original historical items are on display and a cadre of extremely friendly and passionate volunteers are on-hand to answer your questions. You get a feel for the early printing processes and how tedious everything was in the 1800s. This place should be required for local schools when kids reach HS, so they can appreciate what there is to learn here. The church has done another wonderful public service whilst also highlighting the openness and honesty of the church throughout its history. Instead of locking things away, they preserve and display them for future generations to enjoy and learn. Overall, the layout of Temple Square is like a college campus and very helpful and familiar. It's good orientation practice for young people and the museum teaches how persecution and discrimination have been a part of our unfortunate history. In the same way I was shocked to see the blood soaked clothes of the assassinated Archduke Ferdinand and his wife in Vienna, Austria in the military history museum, herein we see the blood soaked clothes the prophet and his family were wearing whilst wrongly shot through a wooden door. You see the goodness of the early pioneers in an ornate cane the prophet made for a disabled man in his community. They have replicas of the golden plates, or plates of Nephti. I didn't know very much about them, or the quaint things which are so interesting about them, so one of the docents and I had an interesting conversation that allowed me to study far more the historical significance of them later. I discovered that the LDS church teachings go back far before Jesus and so there's interesting historical knowledge that's presented free an in a non-obtrusive way. They have a historical cabin that was built in the 1850's outside and I was so fascinated by the museum I didn't take any photos inside as I normally would. They do have a gift shop which has a few unique items inside and I really think the HS kids should visit here as a field trip if they don't already. In fact, you could really make it a cool trip and do FamilySearch next door at the same time. If that isn't enough, there's some things (like paintings) on display in the convention center as well and it's all quite walkable, despite all the construction going on to seismically retrofit the temple and some of the surrounding buildings. You don't have to pay anything and learn a ton if you have any interest at all. It doesn't get better than that.

I am not a part of the LDS church, but I figured that "When in Rome" learn something new... so I visited the Church History Museum...a history of the Mormon church. The workers there were very nice and I never felt preached to while I was there ( I had some concern about this as I was deciding to go). I was there about 2 hours and watched the short film, viewed and read all of the history exhibits on the ground floor, browsed quickly there the art exhibit on the 3rd floor, and did a 6 minute power museum walk on the bottom floor which was about pioneering Mormons (this area is pretty small). The museum was very interesting. I learned a lot. I did not expect to really enjoy the museum, but I did! The one thing I didn't particularly care for was the short film. It was a really short video of Joseph Smith going for a walk in the woods and being spoken to by a presense. The screen is almost like a 360 degree screen (maybe more like 200 degree screen) and gave me some slight dizziness from the movement. But at least it was short so I could handle. Little Tip For those with an National Park System Cancellation Passport: This museum is a part of the Mormon Pioneer Trail system and they have a cancellation stamp. It is NOT visibile and out. You need to ask someone at the Information Desk for it as it is in a drawer. Apparently people ask about it very infrequently (I only knew because I looked it up ahead of time).

I will preface this review with saying I am not Mormon. The great news is that this museum is very informative and fun to visit regardless of religious affiliation. We love history, and there is plenty of history at this museum. The museum has collections of art, artifacts, documents, photographs, tools, clothing and furniture from the Mormon Church. The museum is FREE, and well staffed by volunteers who are happy to answer any questions about exhibits. The Mormon Church has a fascinating story, and I learned a lot. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is the fourth largest Christian church in America, with 6.7 million adherents in this country. More than half of its members, approximately 9.6 million people, live outside the United States. There are beautiful pieces of art, and the museum allows visitors to select two favorites. We very much enjoyed our visit!

Beautiful. Amazing. Very well done! Loved the Minerva Teichert exhibit!! And the nice docents!

The Church History Museum is a free museum. The ladies at the reception desk were nice and helpful. A couple of tips to make the visit a 5* visit: (1) The reception wanted to take my purse that wears like a backpack, but when I said I would like to keep my purse, I was told to wear it hanging from the front to "protect the museum" while there were lots of young children running around the museum. (2) Make sure you have plenty of time to visit. There are a lot of information to read. If you were like Hubby and I and moved quicker through the museum without reading everything, you will miss parts of the church history story. The gift shop was good with souvenirs and unique gifts.

You may not realize how big of a deal it is, but this is a big destination for travelers coming from all around. After an involved remodel, there's renewed interest in the museum. To address the elephant in the room: you don't have to be Mormon to go here. You don't have to be Mormon to be interested in the place. In fact, I'd call this one of the most approachable of the Mormon destinations in downtown SLC. Admission is free, so that's a big bonus. You will have to deal with downtown SLC parking, but I've never had much of a problem. There are just a few spots of street parking out front along West Temple, and a pay lots to the north and west. If you drive further away, you can street park for free, but you'll pay for that in footsteps; there's nothing too close. Inside you'll find a variety of features. There's a large gift shop featuring prints and gifts based on some of the works in the museum, as well as some of the more well-known LDS works of art. The main floor focuses on the history of the LDS church, with artifacts from its past. Some of this centers around the pioneer movement where Utah was settled, and some of it pre-dates that time period to the early days of the LDS movement. There's also a small theater on this floor, so look at the schedule to see what's playing--they're just short presentation. The second floor was quite interesting--I guess I didn't realize it was also an art museum, and much of the north and western side of this floor just features art. Some of it hold religious imagery, and some of it is just landscape, or everyday life, painted by LDS artists. I *think* this space is a rotational exhibit, so depending on when you go, you'll see different things here. The other part of the second floor is dedicated to the people of the LDS church, mainly the former presidents of the faith and holds a lot of historical artifacts from their lives. There's also a small room dedicated to the Mormon Tabernacle Choir. I haven't been to the basement, to be honest, and it's not for lack of desire; since the remodel I've only been one time and I ran out of time. Apparently there's some movie on a larger screen there? I dunno... but it's probably worth looking into. For Mormons and non-Mormons alike, I think there's plenty of interest here. YMMV, but it felt very much like a specialized museum and is staffed by older couples as missionaries, so I didn't see any active proselyting going on. It just seemed like a low-key, free, interesting space to go check out.

Free museum, however I do not recommend spending any time here. I shall preface the review by saying I am not Mormon, however figured while in SLC I should stop in to learn about the church since I don't know much about it and I love all kinds of history. Honestly all I learned was that this Joseph Smith dude was mentally ill and a lot of people decided to join his cult. I started at the large welcome sign, walking through the early history and enjoying the small artifacts. Two women sitting on a bench invited me to see "the six minute film" and when I asked what it was, they said it was about Joseph Smith's vision. Whatever the heck that was since it wasn't explained yet. I got soooo nauseous in the IMAX style theater due to the movement on the screen. Maybe it was a vision I was having. Anyway be warned if you get motion sick. I was hoping to see the golden book thing, however the museum has a replica because...well, it wasn't explained in the museum but I did some research on google and found that the original golden book thing is still buried in NY and has not been excavated even though the Mormon church owns the land. I learned that Joseph Smith decided god wanted his people to be polygamists, and then a few decades later god decided he didn't want his people to be polygamists anymore. Funny how god changes his mind on things like that! I also learned that after Adam and Eve left Eden, they ended up in Missouri. The museum was incredibly religious and lacking in legitimate history, and didn't piece together a story of the actual history of the church for someone with no prior knowledge. I get the feeling that this museum is really just for Mormons to come and bask in a mind-numbingly cult like fantasy world of their people's history. Probably not a good place to learn science-based history or factual history. As I was leaving a children's choir was singing Christmas hymns, which was quite lovely. The gift shop looked fun but I don't want to give the Mormons any money.

This is one of my absolute favorite sites in Utah. While I'm not a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, I would recommend this museum to any visitor to Salt Lake City as an opportunity to learn more about the religion that has played such a unique role in the city's founding and history. Because of my deep interest in Mormonism, I spent approximately five hours at this museum over two days, but since admission is free, your visit can be as long or as short as you want. The first floor is focused on the history of the church in the 19th century. It's impressively curated, with one of the most memorable features being the 220-degree film of Joseph Smith's First Vision. However, I should note that some of the more controversial aspects of the Church's history are relatively glossed over in a way that may be unsatisfying to non-members. Little is said, for instance, about the practice of plural marriage, which is referred to in the exhibit as an "Abrahamic trial of faith." The second floor will likely be of greater interest to members. The exhibit Presidents of the Church explores the lives of past prophets through personal artifacts and multi-media displays. There are also several halls of religious artwork. Before leaving the museum, I'd definitely suggest a stop at the excellent gift shop, where I purchased a beautiful Salt Lake Temple ornament and greeting cards by Utah artist Brian Kershisnik.

The museum has a self guided experience to learn about the history of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, art gallery, and gift shop. The history part is interactive and interesting to both children and adults. You can do it on your own or you can get a guided tour from museum volunteer. The art gallery has beautiful paintings, digital art, sculptures, quilts, and mixed media works of art. They are beautiful. The gift shop has a lot of different things including unique gifts. It has a beautiful spring garden.

I've visited this free museum a number of times since first going in the late 90's. Although it underwent major renovations a few years back, some displays upstairs remain the same so it's always felt familiar. The main floor is engaging and informative. I enjoyed the Kirtland Temple Room most and would go back when others weren't nearby to just sit quietly and listen to the music. The upstairs includes space for rotating exhibits which I've found worth visiting, some surprisingly so. The gift shop is integrated into the lobby so it's hard to miss. I've come here just for the gift shop on a few visits. Also worth a visit.

After circling around the adjacent Temple Square, a visit to the free LDS Church History Museum was the end of our "Mormon tour" for the day! Upon entering, we were greeted by very friendly volunteer staff, one of whom offered to whisk us through the main floor on a brief guided tour. My friend is Jewish and I'm Lutheran Protestant, and admittedly, neither of us are too religious. Despite this, the history of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints was delivered to us in an easily-digestible manner as we walked through the chronologically-arranged museum path. Along the way, she drew several parallels between their faith and both of ours, illustrating examples where thoughts differed or where they were similar. There was no religious "sales pitch" or anything, just good information as to their take on certain Biblical events. The exhibits themselves were well-furnished, with several original artifacts (or near replications) peppered around. Plaques, interactive features, and other elements further immersed us into each "scene" as we progressed through. We spent most of our time on the main floor, but ventured upstairs for a quick glimpse at some beautiful Indian artwork before heading out. Thank you to our wonderful (and non-judgmental!) tour guide, who was very knowledgable and helpful throughout our visit. If you're already here visiting the nearby Temple Square, set aside 30-60 minutes for a stop at this museum too!

Extensive museum with an impressive array of exhibits in a modern space. Admission is free and open to non-members and members alike. It's just a block from TRAX stations and City Creek. The museum was much bigger on the inside than I pictured from the outside, and not knowing a ton about the church, I spent nearly two hours inside the space. From pioneer days, the line of Presidents, to art work, photography, and more, there's a variety of exhibits to see inside. I happened to visit during General Conference weekend, so it was busy but still easy to navigate around. The staff were welcoming and happy to answer any questions we had about the church, artifacts, or things to do in Temple Square. If you're interested in learning anything about the church, this is the perfect place to go and spend a few hours exploring.

Their curating of exhibits is top notch and every three years the host an international exhibit which is not to be missed.

Very nice museum. Lots of people to answer questions, we had a great time and learned a lot about other religions. We also made friends and got a free book of mormon. Open your mind and enjoy. Joyce was the best!

A-OK. A beautiful museum and very well-staffed, as most of the Mormon tourist attractions tend to be. At the museum are many Mormon staffers ready to greet you not in a big-smile-welcome-to-my-home way, but in a polite-to-strange-others sort of way if you know what I mean. The greetings are friendly, enough. The staffers will keep an eye on you and will give you general, non-specific info and answers to your questions, while proffering pamphlets about the church. There is lots of information about Joseph Smith and the white, male leaders of the church. When I visited, there was an art exhibit with many paintings of the idealized young, nubile, flaxen-haired women at Christ's feet and the idealized wife/mother of Christ along with other heroicized depictions of Bible stories and as a non-Mormon, that was interesting in its own right. Worth a visit, but there's definitely a strange us/them vibe all around. But still interesting.

Great museum. I didn't get to spend alot of time there, but I could have spent the whole day. I love history and I love museums. Everyone wants to move on and I want to move slow and soak it all in. Everyone was very nice and very willing to answer questions. Highly recommended.

This museum provides a good overview of the history of the LDS church. It offers exhibits and artifacts to help explain the migration of Mormons to SLC as well as how the religion came to be. There are also exhibits to explain who the central figures were and their importance in history. They offered a good mix of interactive exhibits, replicas, actual items from that period and short movies. Items are arranged in chronological order, which was very helpful. Special exhibits are housed on the second floor. I did not have time to fully explore them but I did make time to wander through the section on the LDS Church Presidents. Each had his own separate exhibit that explained who they were and what they contributed to the church during their tenure. Overall I thought this museum provided some really good information in a manner that was clear, easy to read and easy to understand. It is good for children as well as adults. The information did not have overt religious overtones but simply explained how the modern LDS Church came to be. I would recommend this museum for a visit, much more so than most of other sites in Temple Square.

This place is really cool. They have a ton of excellent art and there's a huge play area for children. It is super clean, beautiful, and is the best staffed museum I've ever been to. The only downside is how crowded it gets, but I think that goes to its quality so I can hardly complain. I am not of the LDS faith, but it was a cool place to walk around and my kid had a great time.

On Saturday, my family and I headed over to the Church History Museum of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints adjacent to Temple Square. We were encouraged by a sister missionary at Temple Square to watch the 220-degree film of Joseph Smith's First Vision. The film is part of an exhibit titled; The Heavens Are Opened, that debuted in late 2015. It is an exhausting collection of artifacts, historical accounting, and in-depth analysis of the early history of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and the Latter Day Saint movement. The film itself is a moving experience. You genuinely feel as though you are witnessing the monumental event that birthed the United States' 4th-largest Christian denomination and you feel as though you are walking alongside Joseph through the woods to the Sacred Grove. I had the opportunity to return to the museum to explore the entire exhibit. I took many photos of the exhibit, but I have decided that I will not include many of them in this post because I think it is imperative that someone experience this exhibit first hand. I have profiled some of the beautiful artwork from the exhibit and others. I would devote at least 2-3 hours for this exhibit alone. I feel as though 2 hours was not enough for me to get everything out of it. Take your time as you walk through an introduction to Joseph Smith's family and his early years before the First Vision. As you pass through the First Vision, you will learn about the coming forth of and the printing of The Book of Mormon: Another Testament of Jesus Christ. You will be able to see and touch a replica of the golden plates, the original translation, and the printing press on which it was published. Move through the history of the Saints as they trekked from the Northeastern United States to Ohio to Missouri to Illinois culminating in the assassination of Joseph Smith and the succession crisis that followed.

I have wanted to check out this museum that is right by the temple for some time now and I love that it is completely free! It has so much history and knowledge available I was so impressed with the resources that this museum had. It isnt far from the Contemporary Art Museum which asks a donation but then it has a suggested donation price for $10 a piece, so not sure if they are even free or not, considering they put this by there entry information and prices. Anyways this museum is great! They have the most amazing technology and theater that is room wide and they had the first vision depicted as a film which was only about 5 to 10 minutes but it was super neat to see on this cool screen with the sound and visual superior to some of the best! Even though I know a decide amount about the Mormon religion and beliefs, I didn't know so much of this history. It helped put a lot of pieces together for me and separate the facts for me of how this religion came to be. Super interesting with all of the resources they have available and actually personal items from this time period!!! The history of it was so detailed I felt very privileged that they had kept these records so we can learn all of this very relative information, especially in the Salt Lake City area!

This museum was opened after extensive remodeling in October of 2015. It houses many original artifacts such as a first edition Book of Mormon, the actual printing press upon which the book was printed, a short First Vision panorama movie seen no where else in the world, art exhibits, death masks of the Prophet Joseph Smith and Hyrum Smith, exhibits of fascinating material from all the presidents, and even a children's area where they can learn and be creative. The volunteer docents are wonderful in helping all visitors find and learn about so many items of the early church period. Best of all, it's all free and is very family/child friendly.

A very nice museum. Recently updated with great exhibits. Interactive and very kid-friendly. Recommended.

Soups pretty inside with all the paintings. Tours start every half hour at the flag pole!

When it comes to museum quality, this one is fantastic. The curation and displays of the information and artifacts are top notch! I'd recommend anyone coming to learn more about The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. Best part is that it's completely free!

Amazing museum! When we first arrived their was a high school choir performing Christmas music in the entryway. The First Vision movie was short but so cool with the way it made you feel like you were a part of it. Loves the painting area showing how the paintings were created. Lots of activities throughout the museum to keep your attention and make learning for all ages. The videos they had were so neat too. I have been to a lot of the church history sites and it was awesome to see the original items as the other sites just have replicas. The kids loved the play area. You don't have to be a member of the LDS faith to enjoy this museum. Can't beat the price tag either....free!!!

Very cool place to learn about the origins of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. Quiet atmosphere, knowledgeable staff, and right next to the beautiful temple square.

The smell of anything church related brings childhood memories, and walking into the museum almost broke me to tears. I don't consider myself an LDS member, but the wonderful guest service and peaceful lighting puts a mood that relaxes any anxious non-member.

It's amazing! Go see it and ask for a Book of Mormon. This book changed my life. It has helped in so many ways!

We visited in July 2016. It was very pleasant and had lots of neat recounts of history. My kids liked the "Block and Rope" exhibit that allows you to pick up a block using the tools of the past that helped build the Temple. It was super clean and I would recommend it, if you're interested in church history.

I just saw the new Restoration Exhibit and it is incredible. The film surround room is awesome and allows you to feel like you are in the Sacred Grove with Joseph. Such a clean and welcoming place. I took two kids with me and they loved it too. Thank you!

I found this museum to be very informative.I learned so much about the history of the Latter Day Saint religion and its tenets from the time of Joseph Smith to now.The staff and volunteers were very helpful and enthusiastic.I especially appreciated the excellent paintings of Minerva Teichert which depicted the struggles of the Latter Day Saint pioneers in reaching Deseret,now Utah.These pioneers included Brigham Young and John Taylor.I also enjoyed fine Impressionist style paintings by James Harwood("Gleaners") and Loris Pratt("Harvest,Salt Lake County")at this museum(the Latter Day Saint Church sent their members to France to develop Impressionistic painting techniques in the late 19th Century).I also liked their more primitive paintings by C.A.Christenson which depicted early Mormon life in Utah("Mormon Emigrants").

We went to the museum this afternoon. It was really interesting to see. They had possessions of several LDS people, including the clothes Hyrum Smith died in. It was very educational, and had several videos you can watch. The theatre room has a panoramic movie screen, and made my mom a little motion sick while watching it. It had a lot of little activities for kids.