After the Mormon pioneers arrived in Utah, they had left behind two temples, one in Kirkland, Ohio, and one in Nauvoo, Illinois. Work began on a temple in Salt Lake City in 1853 but was delayed, and Brigham Young, wanting a temple completed in the new Mormon territory before his death, chose St. George as the site where that goal could be achieved. Construction on the unique structure, located three blocks east and five blocks south of here, began in November 1871, and the white landmark was dedicated in April 1877. The project was a cooperative effort of all the communities of Southern Utah and, much like a public works project, provided employment when money and provisions were scarce, with as many as 250 workers at one time receiving food for their families in return for their labor while those living farther away contributed foodstuffs and other commodities. Difficulties marked the six years of construction, including water and sinkholes in gypsum soil, but Brigham Young would not change the site. A major drainage system was built, and volcanic rock from the Black Ridge to the west was hauled in and tamped deep into the earth with a 1,000 pound cannon dropped from a hoist. The building's walls were made of the same sandstone found in the Tabernacle one block south of here. When it was built, the temple stood alone well south of town, but Brigham Young is said to have declared that it would one day stand in the center of the city, and that day has long since come.