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Many Rexburg citizens had important life events in this building. Some went on their first dates to the movies screened there. The building served as a central location in town where political figures, including George Romney during his presidential campaign, would speak to the people of Rexburg. Ann Reid remembers breaking her foot at the school after jumping down some stairs. Terry Lindsay remembers being in the school hallway when she heard that John F. Kennedy had beenassassinated. Though it was declared unsafe for regular use, it did become a haunted house for multiple years before it was torn down. Washington Elementary holds powerful memories for those who attended classes there.

Washington Elementary School, Rexburg, Idaho

BYU-Idaho podcast titled, "Remembering Rexburg," released 10 July 2019. 

Audio

Originally called "Old Central Elementary", the Washington Elementary building went up in 1904. It did not have a cafeteria, so students would go to either the middle or high school for lunch, since all three were on the same corner. Washington Elementary survived the Flood of 1976 and 
continued to hold classes but eventually closed due to asbestos in the building. Broulims currently stands where it once stood. 


Washington Elementary

Instructor

Rexburg has significant historical sites relating to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, education, and farming. In this tour of Rexburg, Idaho you start at the Southern end of the Brigham Young University- Idaho Campus to learn about the Rexburg Latter Day Saint temple. You then make your way down hill and head north across campus to see other significant and historical sites of Rexburg, Idaho. 

The Rexburg temple is a 57,504 square foot building on a ten acre plot of land that stands at 750 South 2nd East, Rexburg, Idaho 83440. The outside walls are made of concrete with white quartz rock finish which gives it its brilliant white exterior. The spire at the front of the temple carries a tall golden figure called the Angel Moroni. Throughout the temple’s interior and exterior is the repeated motif of wheat, which acts as a tribute to southern Idaho's agricultural industry. Members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints consider temples sacred. It is within temples that important events take place such as marriages and worship. Temples are built to be houses of the Lord where peace and spiritual direction can be found. On every Latter-day Saint temple are the words "Holiness to the Lord, the House of the Lord." The temple’s original dedication date was postponed a week in lieu of the passing of the president of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, President Gordon B. Hinckley. Instead, Thomas S. Monson dedicated the temple after being ordained the new president of the church. Because the Rexburg temple stands so close to Brigham Young University-Idaho’s campus, the Rexburg temple district (the geographical area assigned to that temple) is the only district within the church that is made up of mostly young adults.

Announced in 2003 and dedicated in 2008, the Rexburg temple was the third temple of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in the state of Idaho. It stands on a hill next to Brigham Young University-Idaho. As of the year 2020, it is one of the church’s 168 currently operating temples throughout the world. Because temples are sacred to members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, temples are not open for tours except before their dedication. However, the Rexburg temple’s gardens and manicured lawns are open to visitors year round.

Rexburg Temple

The Women’s Dorms were planned by Ricks College in 1961 to help fill the growing need of housing for students. They were completed by 1968 and opened to student residents. Each building was named after an influential female educator from the history of Ricks College. These buildings were located on the east side of campus and were built with apartments that accommodated four girls in two bedrooms. The halls were built in a u-shape with an open grass area in the middle. One of the former residents of the women’s dorms stated that they were very safe. These buildings housed women for more than 50 years before they were razed in April 2016 to make way for the changing needs of the school — they are now the parking lots just east of the Smith Building. Although they are now gone, they still live in the memories of so many who they touched.  One resident of the dorms, Angie Niccols, has fond memories of her time there. She recalls a time when she and her roommates went sledding and she covered herself in saran wrap, which she commented “actually worked pretty well.” Niccols also had some grievances with the dorms. She described the dorms as “not very homey,” and the walls as paper-thin. She recalls one time she was subjected to the same song on repeat by her adjacent neighbor for days on end. Her semester at the Women’s Dorms ended on a high note, however: she happily recounted the story of having a large food fight with her roommates had at the end of the semester which, she noted, they cleaned up afterward.

Pioneer Halls, the women's dorms at Brigham Young University - Idaho, was built between 1963 and 1971. Each dorm was named for an influential woman who had an impact on the college, many of them educators. In the following decades, some of the dorms remained women's housing, while others became men's housing. The dorms stood until 2016 when they were torn down to create room for a parking lot.

Pioneer Halls

The Jacob Spori building began construction in 1900 and the building was completed and dedicated in 1903. It cost about $60,000 and much of the funds came from local donations. At the time it was built it was the tallest building in Rexburg. The Jacob Spori building was the first building built for Ricks College in Rexburg (a local community college that would later become Brigham Young University - Idaho), and served as an administration building. As the central (and for a while only) building on campus, it served many functions. The College and Student body presidencies had their offices there, and classes, religious meetings, and university events were held. As the campus grew, the Jacob Spori building served as a reminder of the educational and spiritual legacy of the college, and the efforts of early students, teachers, and administrators. The original building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1989.Over the years the building deteriorated. The building was constructed with locally mined rhyolite stone - adding to the local flair of the building, but the softness of rhyolite caused structural problems. In addition to issues with the roof supports, these structural problems led to the decision to demolish the building. Before they could finish demolishing the building it caught on fire and burned to the ground. The timing caused many locals to question whether or not the fire might have been intentional.in 2001, just after the Spori Building burned, Ricks College transitioned from it's humble, one building beginnings to a fully fledged 4-year institution - Brigham Young University-Idaho. To honor and remember their beginnings as Ricks College, the University built a new Jacob Spori Building on the location of the original. The new Jacob Spori building was completed in 2003, and remains an important part of campus life today.

The Original Jacob Spori building was built in 1903. It was the oldest education building in Idaho until it burned down in 2000. It was originally built to be a part of Bannock Stake Academy, and then became the first building associated with Ricks College (later BYU-Idaho). In 2003 building of the same name and style was constructed in the same location to replace and honor the original building.

Jacob Spori Building

In 1976 Rexburg lost the greatest hamburger the area has ever known when Shirley's Drive-In, home of the "Rexburger," was tragically destroyed after the Teton Dam burst, sending a fifteen-foot wall of water crashing through the Upper Snake River plain. When the water receded Shirley's was unsalvageable. The famous "Rexburger" was no more. This was a greater tragedy than it might first appear, for the "Rexburger" was unlike any other burger then or now. Diane Perry misses Shirley's every day. It was a place the whole family could enjoy. Allison Staker remembers how Shirley's was her family's favorite place to eat out. She recalls, "there wasn't any special decor or atmosphere to Shirley's they just made a really good hamburger" and Rhonda Munns "so wishes we had a place like Shirley's now." While the location of Shirley's may be gone, the memories created by its presence, the smells and tastes associated with its food will last for some time to come. What memories of food do you have from your youth? How would you feel today if you could never eat at your favorite restaurant again?

Shirley's Grocery and Drive-In was located on the south side of Main Street about where Pizza Hut is today. It opened for business in 1947 and was owned and operated by Fred Shirley and his son Henry. As his obituary noted, Henry Shirley was more than a local business owner, "he served his country during World War II from 1941-1945 ... [and] was a teacher at Madison Jr High and a city councilman and mayor of Rexburg from 1970 to 1973." 


Rexburg South to North

Washington Elementary

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