Loa Tithing Office

Loa Tithing Office. Utah Historic Site. Built in 1897, the Loa Tithing Office is historically significant as one of 32 well preserved tithing buildings in Utah that were part of the successful "in kind" tithing system of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, (Mormons) between the 1850's and about 1910. Tithing lots, which usually included an office and several auxiliary structures, were facilities for collecting, storing and distributing the farm products that were donated as tithing by church members in the cash-poor agricultural communities throughout the state. Tithing offices were a vital part of almost every Mormon community, serving as local centers of trade, welfare assistance, and economic activity. This building is also architecturally significant as one of ten existing examples of Utah's tithing offices which were designed in the Greek Revival style. Peter Christensen, who constructed the building, also fired the brick in a kiln located between the nearby town of Lyman and Horse Valley Ranch. The woodwork on the building was carved by Benjamin E. Brown, a local craftsman. In 1972 the building was sold to the local chapter of the Daughters of Utah Pioneers.