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On June 13, 2004, President Gordon B. Hinckley dedicated the Manhattan New York Temple in four sessions. Having such a sacred structure built in a busy city countered the constant commotion of New York City’s noisy environment. On the day before the dedication, a youth jubilee program and a member fireside were held in the Radio City Music Hall.
While addressing 5,300 people at the fireside, President Hinckley shared journal entries detailing his visit to Manhattan in March 2002. During that time, he pondered how he could help to establish a house of the Lord in the city. He made a promise to establish a temple in the next few years.
Reflecting on his promise, he said, “I have come back to fulfill that promise” and expressed delight for the new temple in New York.
Dedicatory prayer excerpt: “Father, there is so much of evil in the world, of strife, of man’s inhumanity to man. We pray that peace may come where there is war, that conciliation may come where there is conflict, that neighborliness and love may replace hatred and enmity.”
Read the dedicatory prayer of the Manhattan New York Temple here.
On March 24, 2002, President Gordon B. Hinckley spoke at a special regional conference in New York City and told the congregation a temple would be built in Manhattan within the next two years. Four and a half months later, official plans to construct the Manhattan temple were announced on August 7, 2002.
Elder Spencer J. Condie of the Seventy presided over and offered the dedicatory prayer at the groundbreaking ceremony for the Manhattan New York Temple.
A month-long open house for the Manhattan temple started drawing attention from national and international news outlets, said President Brent Belnap of the New York New York Stake, coordinator of the local temple committee. The event ran from May 8 to June 5, 2004.
President Gordon B. Hinckley dedicated the Manhattan temple in four sessions on June 13, 2004. Elder Robert D. Hales of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles assisted him during the cornerstone ceremony.
The Church announced in August 2023 that the Manhattan temple will close in 2024 for extensive renovations that will last approximately three years.
In August 2002, the Church announced plans to construct a temple in Manhattan. The next month, Elder Spencer J. Condie of the Seventy dedicated the site for the Manhattan edifice.
After the construction was completed, a month-long open house for the Manhattan temple allowed members and national and international news media to explore the facilities. On June 13, 2004, President Gordon B. Hinckley dedicated the house of the Lord in four dedicatory sessions.
In 2024, the temple will close for three-year renovations.
The temple was built from an existing stake center within a six-story, Church-owned building. The first, second, fifth and sixth floors of the building make up the temple, while the third and fourth floors contain a chapel and Church offices.
The idea to build the temple from an existing stake center chapel was inspired by the construction of the Hong Kong Temple.
The total floor area of the temple is 20,630 square feet. The exterior is made of light, variegated granite.
7 August 2002
13 June 2004
125 Columbus Ave.
New York, New York 10023-6514
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The temple has been nicknamed by local Saints as the “Miracle in Manhattan.”
Church President Gordon B. Hinckley made a promise to establish a temple in Manhattan two years prior to dedicating the temple itself.
The Manhattan temple was built from an existing building that included a stake center.
The temple has been nicknamed by local Saints as the “Miracle in Manhattan.”
Church President Gordon B. Hinckley made a promise to establish a temple in Manhattan two years prior to dedicating the temple itself.
The Manhattan temple was built from an existing building that included a stake center.