Where It's Located
The Villahermosa Mexico Temple is located at:
Avenida 27 de Febrero #1717
Colonia Atasta de Serra
86100 Villahermosa, Tabasco, Mexico
Villahermosa is the capital of the Mexican state of Tabasco and sits in the southeastern portion of the country, west of the Yucatán Peninsula.
The temple's location places it within the city rather than in a distant suburban area. The property covers approximately 1.36 acres, making efficient use of a relatively compact urban site.
The Temple Announcement
The Villahermosa Mexico Temple was announced on October 30, 1998.
At the time, the Church was undergoing a major period of temple expansion under President Gordon B. Hinckley. A large number of smaller temples were being announced around the world, making temple worship more accessible to members who previously had to travel considerable distances.
For members in Tabasco, the announcement meant that they would soon have a temple much closer to home.
The temple would ultimately become one of several temples constructed in Mexico during this period of rapid growth.
The Groundbreaking
The groundbreaking and site dedication took place on January 9, 1999, only a little more than two months after the temple was announced.
Elder Richard E. Turley Sr. of the Seventy presided over the groundbreaking ceremony.
Interestingly, the Villahermosa groundbreaking took place on the same day as the groundbreaking for the Ciudad Juárez Mexico Temple.
The ceremony had a particularly personal connection to the local Church community. Elder Turley spoke about his uncle, Harold E. Turley, who had previously served as a regional representative of the Twelve in the area. Harold and his wife, Ireta, had lived in a trailer on the property where the temple would eventually be constructed.
The Turleys had developed a deep affection for the people of the region, making the temple site especially meaningful to the local Church community.
A Rapid Construction Timeline
The Villahermosa Mexico Temple moved remarkably quickly from announcement to completion.
The temple was announced in October 1998, construction began in January 1999, and the completed temple opened to the public for tours in May 2000.
This relatively short timeline reflected the Church's efforts during the late 1990s to build smaller temples that could serve local members without requiring the enormous scale and construction time associated with some earlier temple projects.
Architecture and Design
The Villahermosa Mexico Temple has approximately 10,700 square feet of floor space.
Its most prominent architectural feature is a single attached spire, which rises from the center of the building and is topped by an Angel Moroni statue.
The temple stands approximately 71 feet tall.
The relatively modest size of the building is consistent with many temples constructed during the late 1990s and early 2000s. These temples were designed to provide the essential ordinances and facilities of a temple while remaining appropriately scaled to the local population and temple district.
White Marble From Mexico
One of the distinctive features of the Villahermosa Mexico Temple is its exterior material.
The temple is finished with Blanco Guardiano white marble from Torreón, Mexico.
Using Mexican stone for the temple's exterior gives the building a connection to the country in which it stands. The bright white exterior also contributes to the temple's clean and recognizable appearance.
The material is particularly noticeable in the tropical environment of Tabasco, where the temple's white exterior contrasts with the area's lush vegetation.
Temple Ordinance Rooms
The Villahermosa Mexico Temple contains:
- Two instruction rooms
- Two sealing rooms
- One baptistry
The instruction rooms use a two-stage progressive format.
The temple's interior was designed to accommodate the ordinances performed by Latter-day Saints while maintaining the smaller scale appropriate for the building and its temple district.
The Public Open House
Before the temple was dedicated, the public was invited to tour the building during an open house held from May 9 through May 13, 2000.
More than 10,000 people visited the temple during the open house.
The event gave members of the surrounding community an opportunity to see the interior of the building and learn more about the purpose of Latter-day Saint temples.
Open houses are particularly significant for new temples because temples are normally closed to the general public after dedication. The period immediately before dedication therefore provides a unique opportunity for people of all faiths to visit the building.
The Dedication
The Villahermosa Mexico Temple was dedicated on May 21, 2000, by President Thomas S. Monson, then a counselor in the First Presidency.
The dedication took place in four sessions.
Nearly 4,000 members attended the dedicatory sessions.
The dedication was part of an especially busy period of temple construction for the Church. The Villahermosa temple was dedicated on the same day as the Nashville Tennessee Temple, while the Tampico Mexico Temple had been dedicated the previous day.
The Church's official historical record notes that these dedications were part of a remarkable period of temple growth around the world.
A Temple Serving Tabasco
At the time of its dedication, the Villahermosa Mexico Temple served approximately 28,100 Latter-day Saints in its temple district.
For many of these members, having a temple in Villahermosa dramatically reduced the distance required to participate in temple ordinances.
Tabasco had experienced significant Church growth over the preceding decades. Longtime members remembered a time when there were only a small number of Latter-day Saints in the region.
The completion of the temple represented a major change for the local Church community.
A Temple in a Region of Ancient History
Villahermosa lies within the broader Mesoamerican region, an area with an exceptionally long and complex history.
The region is home to important archaeological sites associated with ancient civilizations, including the Olmec and Maya cultures.
The temple site is also relatively close to areas containing archaeological remains and museums that preserve the history of ancient Mesoamerica.
This setting gives the temple an interesting geographical context. It stands in a modern Mexican city surrounded by a region whose human history stretches back thousands of years.
Villahermosa and Tabasco
Villahermosa is one of the principal cities of southeastern Mexico and serves as the capital of Tabasco.
The city is known for its tropical climate, abundant vegetation, rivers, and connections to the oil industry.
One of the city's best-known attractions is Parque-Museo La Venta, an archaeological park and museum featuring monumental sculptures and artifacts associated with the ancient Olmec civilization.
The park is one of the most notable places to visit in Villahermosa and provides an opportunity to learn about the ancient cultures of the region.
Visiting Villahermosa
Visitors traveling to Villahermosa can explore a variety of cultural and natural attractions.
Parque-Museo La Venta is one of the city's most distinctive destinations. The museum combines archaeological exhibits with an outdoor park containing ancient monuments.
Other attractions include the historic center of Villahermosa, local museums, parks, plazas, and the surrounding tropical landscape.
Because Villahermosa is located in Tabasco, the city also provides access to the broader southeastern region of Mexico, including destinations associated with Maya and Olmec history.
The Temple Today
The Villahermosa Mexico Temple remains an operating temple.
The Church's official temple page currently lists the temple at its Avenida 27 de Febrero address and notes that reservations are available, while walk-ins are also welcome. There is no visitors' center or temple housing at the property, but an arrival center and an on-site distribution center are available.
As with other operating temples, the building is primarily intended for faithful Latter-day Saints participating in sacred temple ordinances.
The temple's public open house took place before its dedication in 2000; after dedication, access to the temple itself is reserved for those who meet the Church's requirements for temple worship.
A Growing Temple Network in Mexico
The Villahermosa Mexico Temple was one of many temples built in Mexico during a period of rapid expansion.
Mexico has one of the largest Latter-day Saint populations outside the United States, and the country now has temples in numerous regions.
The Villahermosa temple was among the early wave of smaller temples that made temple worship more accessible to members living outside Mexico's largest metropolitan areas.
Since then, additional temples have been announced and constructed throughout the country.
The expansion has continued into the present day. Mexico now has operating temples as well as numerous additional temples under construction or in the planning and announcement stages.
A Temple With a Personal History
One of the most memorable details about the Villahermosa temple is the connection between its property and the Turley family.
Before construction began, Harold E. Turley and his wife, Ireta, had lived in a trailer on the same property that would later become the temple site.
Years later, the location became the site of a temple serving thousands of members.
That history illustrates how dramatically a local Church community can change over time. A property that had once been associated with missionary and administrative work eventually became the site of a dedicated house of the Lord.
A Meaningful Dedication Day
The dedication on May 21, 2000, was an important day not only for Villahermosa but for the Church's broader temple-building effort.
The Villahermosa Mexico Temple and Nashville Tennessee Temple were dedicated on the same day.
The temple was also among a series of new temples dedicated around the world during 2000 as the Church approached President Hinckley's goal of having 100 operating temples by the end of that year.
The Villahermosa temple therefore represents a specific moment in the history of the Church's worldwide temple expansion.
A Small Temple With a Large Regional Role
The Villahermosa Mexico Temple is not one of the Church's largest temples, but its importance has never depended on its size.
At 10,700 square feet, it was designed specifically to meet the needs of its temple district.
Its compact site, simple architectural form, white marble exterior, and single spire give it a distinctive identity in southeastern Mexico.
More importantly, its presence means that members in Tabasco and surrounding areas have a dedicated place for temple worship within their region.
Final Thoughts
The Villahermosa Mexico Temple has a relatively short construction history, but it represents decades of growth for Latter-day Saints in southeastern Mexico.
Announced in 1998, groundbreaking in 1999, and dedicated in 2000, the temple was completed during one of the most significant periods of temple expansion in Church history.
Its white marble exterior and single attached spire make it a recognizable landmark in Villahermosa, while its location in the culturally rich region of Tabasco connects it to one of Mexico's most historically significant areas.
More than two decades after its dedication, the temple continues to serve Latter-day Saints in the region as an operating house of the Lord.
Scott & Riah
Brough Made
broughmade.com
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