The Corn Grows in Illinois

Have you heard the expression that 

"the corn is as high as an elephants eye".  

Well, it is.

Sunset on the Mississippi

The 2014 Young Performing Missionaries
(Not including the Brass Band)

One of the shows available in Nauvoo most of the summer is Sunset on the Mississippi.  This one hour variety show features many of the senior "site" missionaries and the Young Performing Missionaries (YPM's).  

The YPM's include 20 young people who are selected to present programs in Nauvoo each summer.  The energy and talent of this group is amazing.   In addition to the Sunset show they did many other vignettes and programs.  The YPM's also include a brass band that provided entertainment throughout Nauvoo during the summer.

We attended the the Sunset program several times.  The format is the same each night with variation in the presentation and talent.  It was always enjoyable ... lots of fun.

We took some video of the program and put together some snippets of the evening.  You can watch the video Sunset on the Mississippi - Nauvoo.  Hope you enjoy it ... we did ... a lot.

Nauvoo Entertainment

One of the great attractions to Nauvoo, especially in the summer, is the number and variety of entertainment options available.  Of course, throughout the year the restored homes and many other venues are available.  A complete list of the entertainment options is available at this website: Historic Nauvoo: Official Website.  This website also has information about the historic homes and other places to visit in Nauvoo.

The Temple from the Pageant Stage

The Nauvoo Pageant and, this year, the British Pageant have been presented on alternating nights Tuesday through Saturday.  The average attendance at these pageants has been just over 3,000 people per night.  The pageants are held at the Pageant Stage which is just below the temple.

The Nauvoo Pageant

Joseph Smith teaching children

The Nauvoo Pageant was held on Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday nights. 

Stage Presentation of the Temple

This pageant is the story of the people who came to  Nauvoo and the building of the city and Temple ... ending on their leaving Nauvoo as the result neighboring persecution and the death of the prophet Joseph Smith and his brother Hyrum in June 1844.

The Nauvoo Temple

The Nauvoo Temple was completed in 1846 after the death of Joseph Smith.

The British Pageant

The British Pageant was held on Wednesday and Friday evenings.  Many member of the cast were from Great Britian.

This pageant tells the story of the spreading of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints to Great Britain in the 1840's.  It reflects the impact on families of the gospel being taught, the efforts of many to join the members of the church in Nauvoo, and the events the provided the way for the gospel to be taught in these countries. 

Stories are told of individual families and the challenges and sacrifices they made to travel to America to join with the saints.




The pageants (Nauvoo and British) tie together the events that led to the migration of thousands of people to Nauvoo in the 1840's.

Ox Wagon Ride

Today on our morning bike ride we stopped by the Oxen Wagon Ride as the wagon and oxen were being
prepared for the day.

As the men were hooking up the oxen to the wagon we got to watch the process.

After the oxen were prepared for the day we went on a wagon ride.  The ride is only about 10 minutes.  During the ride one of the men talks about the use of the oxen as the primary means of the pioneers transporting goods to the west.

The advantages of oxen over horses are many.  Oxen can eat just about anything, they don't tire as quickly, they are less expensive to outfit, and they can be eaten as beef when needed. Oxen travel at about the same pace as a person walking ... where horses travel much faster.

Nauvoo has four oxen.  Their names are Abraham and Isaac (the black and white oxen) and Chip and Dale (the red oxen).  Abraham and Isaac are 3 and  4 years old and weigh about 1,400 lbs.  Chip and Dale are about 2 years old and are around 1,000 lbs.

Elder Thomas, one of the men, will complete his mission in about two weeks.  He talked about how he has trained and prepared the oxen for this use.  He was emotional as he  talked about the animals.  He has trained them and will soon be leaving them in the care of others.  They are his "kids".

Some of the oxen (Chip and Dale) are steers that were no longer useful for rodeo roping.  When they come to Nauvoo they need to be trained for this use.  He said they are kinda wild when they come.  It takes time for them to trust the men who care for them.  When they are trained they can be managed well.