The Seventies Hall Library (Libraries in Church History, Part 1)
This week (April 7-13, 2024) is National Library Week, and to celebrate, we're sharing a 3-part series exploring libraries from the history of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (check out part 2 and part 3 as well!).
The Seventies Hall
(Kenneth Mays, 2018; via Doctrine and Covenants Central)
Soon after the Saints settled in Nauvoo, Illinois, they began construction on a building that would come to be known as the Seventies Hall. This building was intended as a meeting place (sort of an early MTC!) for the recently formed Quorums of Seventy, whose primary responsibility was missionary work.
Construction on the Seventies Hall was completed in 1844.
Church leaders wanted the members of the Seventy to be educated and prepared for their missionary service, so they organized a library-- the first in Nauvoo!-- on the second floor of the Seventies Hall.
Donations Wanted
The Seventies Hall library held at least 675 donated books on subjects ranging from philosophy to history. Church members who donated a book to the library received a certificate for one share of stock in the library (worth $5).
Joseph Smith himself donated at least 35 books to the library, including titles such as Life of Tecumseh, Home Physician, and a copy of the Book of Mormon.
Members of the Seventy also brought back books from their missionary service to add to the library's collection.
Amasa Lyman served as the librarian, and John D Lee, who helped oversee the construction of the building, was the library's registrar.
Praise for the Library
On January 1, 1845, the Nauvoo Neighbor newspaper praised the library: “Among the improvements going forward in this city, none merit higher praise, than the Seventies’ Library. . . . It looks like old times, when they had “Kirjath Sapher,” the city of books.”
The Seventies Hall Library Today
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints owns the Seventies Hall. The Hall, including its second-floor library, is open to the public for tours.
Live far from Nauvoo? Try this 360-degree virtual tour of the first floor!
Resources
For further information on the Seventies Hall and its library, please see the following sources:
Early Quorums of the Seventies (Susan Easton Black)- BYU RSC
Seventies Hall- Doctrine and Covenants Central
Seventies Hall, Nauvoo, Hancock County, Illinois- Joseph Smith Papers
Seventies Hall Tours in Historic Nauvoo- Church of Jesus Christ