How a nineteenth-century wooden dome became an acoustic marvel of the modern world

Countries & Cities · Published 15 October 2026 · Updated 25 October 2026 Swipe more like this →

In short: Built in Salt Lake City between 1864 and 1867, the Salt Lake Tabernacle was an architectural gamble. Its massive elliptical roof, constructed without interior pillars, relied on innovative lattice-truss engineering and raw cowhide. Today, it remains world-renowned for acoustics so precise that a dropped pin can be heard across the hall.

The Salt Lake Tabernacle was conceived by church president Brigham Young, who sought a vast assembly space free of interior obstructions. Civil engineer Henry Grow designed the roof using a lattice-truss system, a technique previously used for bridges. The structure, 150 feet wide and 250 feet long, was held together by wooden pegs and reinforced with green rawhide that tightened as it dried. Skeptics of the era predicted the roof would collapse once the scaffolding was removed, but the design proved remarkably durable, standing for over a century without structural failure.

The building's fame rests largely on its unique acoustics, which were refined by Truman O. Angell with the addition of a gallery in 1870. The elliptical shape of the ceiling was reportedly inspired by the roof of Young's own mouth, acting as a natural soundboard. This geometry concentrates sound from the pulpit and projects it across the hall, allowing a speaker to be heard clearly throughout the entire space. This design was essential in an era before electronic amplification, cementing the Tabernacle's reputation as one of the most acoustically perfect structures globally.

The interior has evolved significantly since its completion. The original organ, built by Joseph H. Ridges in 1867 with 700 pipes, has been expanded over time; the current instrument, completed in 1948, contains 11,623 pipes. In 2007, the building underwent extensive seismic retrofitting and renovation. These updates included reinforcing the 44 sandstone piers with steel, replacing original benches with oak pews, and installing modern recording studios beneath the floor. While the building no longer hosts the church's semi-annual general conference—which moved to a larger facility in 2000—it remains a historic landmark and the home of The Tabernacle Choir.

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