Tours
Tours begin at the RED BRICK STORE 610 Water Street
We ask a $5 per person Preservation Fee.
The tour lasts about one hour, and includes the following:
The Nauvoo House
In 1841 a group of investors, led by Joseph Smith, began a joint-stock company to build a massive hotel called the Nauvoo House. Slowly over the course of the next few years, the building began to take shape. Construction continued after Joseph's death in 1844, but the walls were not yet three stories high when work stopped in 1846. Decades later Emma Smith’s second husband, Lewis Bidamon, finished part of the structure and together they operated it as a boarding house called the Riverside Mansion. It was in this building that Emma Smith Bidamon lived during the last eight years of her life.
Smith family Cemetery
The Smith Family Cemetery, a peaceful setting on the banks of the Mississippi River, serves as the final resting place for about twenty-four members and friends of the Smith family. Among those buried here are Joseph and Emma Smith, Hyrum Smith, Joseph Smith Sr., and Lucy Mack Smith, Samuel Smith, and Don Carlos Smith. Thousands each year visit the Smith Family Cemetery to remember the lives of those buried here. The cemetery is open 24 hours a day.
The Homestead
When early church members first gathered in Nauvoo, this cabin on the river became Joseph and Emma's first home. With four children and many guests staying in the log cabin, Joseph soon found it necessary to add a large keeping room for meals and other gatherings. Later, in 1858, Joseph III returned to the homestead his father had used so many years before and completed the final addition where he could raise his family. On the walking tour, guests will view the inside of the Homestead. Guests will see the handhewn construction that was used to create the home and many furnishings from the time.
The Mansion House
As Nauvoo grew rapidly so did the number of Joseph and Emma’s guests. In 1842 Joseph built this fine frame house just across the street from the Homestead. As it was being finished, however, Joseph chose to add a hotel wing on the east to accommodate their many guests. This final home for Joseph and Emma gave them space to raise their children, meet with guests, and provide rooms for visitors. Today the original residence still stands. The hotel addition was demolished in 1890. While on the walking tour, guests enter the home to view the rooms used by Joseph and Emma and hear about events that took place here.
The REd Brick Store
Joseph Smith's Red Brick Store became the center of community life after its construction in 1841. In addition to serving as a general store and tithing office, it also hosted many civic and religious meetings. Joseph kept an office upstairs and the large upper room was home to the first meetings of the Nauvoo Female Relief Society and other important activities. The building was home to Nauvoo’s RLDS congregation by the 1860s but eventually fell into disrepair and it was torn down in 1890. Reconstructed in 1979 and once again an operating general store, the shelves are stocked with goods inspired by one of the original account books. Walking tours of the Smith properties end here, but visitors can also explore the upper room of the store on their own.
Group Reservation Form
For the best tour experience, let us know you’re coming if you have 20 or more people in your group. If your group is 19 or less, arrive at the Red Brick Store and choose your tour time in person (May-October), advanced requests for groups under 20 people cannot be accommodated.
If you have 20 or more people in your group please fill out the form below. We will send you a confirmation for your tour time. Same day requests cannot be accommodated.
For Reservations during the months of May-October, groups of 20 or more can be reserved by using this form. Same day requests cannot be accommodated.
Thank you!