FARMINGTON – The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints announced during its annual general conference Sunday that the church will build a new temple in Farmington, making it the second temple in New Mexico for the church.

The president of the church announced Sunday that 20 new temples would be built worldwide, including the one in Farmington and another in Grand Junction. The only other temple in New Mexico is in Albuquerque and was dedicated March 5, 2000, after being announced in April 1997.

The Church of Latter-day Saints has almost 70,000 church members with 138 congregations and 31 Family History Centers in New Mexico, according to the church’s website.

According to the church’s website, in 1831, the church’s leader, Oliver Cowdery, preached to Native Americans in Missouri before the Mormon Battalion made a trek through New Mexico to fight in the Mexican-American War.

In the 1860s, two elders of the church baptized more than 100 converts on the Little Colorado River in New Mexico while working with the Zuni tribe.

The new temple will make up one of the 251 temples around the world that are either announced, under construction or in operation.

mmitchell@durangoherald.com