Spain: Church Chronology

October 8, 1874 • Salt Lake City, UtahMelitón González Trejo—a native of Cáceres province, Spain—was baptized after traveling to Utah from the Philippines to investigate the Church.

1886 • Salt Lake CityThe Book of Mormon was published in Spanish, with Melitón González Trejo as one of the main translators.

1948 • Barcelona, SpainSixteen-year-old Jordi Ventura, who had been researching various religions, wrote to Church headquarters requesting information about the Church and its teachings.

September 28, 1950 • Nice, FranceJordi Ventura and his brother-in-law, Luis Moreno, were the first resident Spaniards to be baptized. Jordi’s brother, Juan, was baptized two years later.

1956 • SpainAmerican military personnel and their families held the first group meetings of Latter-day Saints in Spain.

March 12, 1966 • Bordeaux, FranceJosé María Oliveira from Madrid was baptized. Upon returning home, he began teaching a Sunday School class for investigators, the first such class in Spain to be taught in the Spanish language.

June 28, 1967 • SpainThe Spanish Parliament enacted a law granting religious liberty to non-Catholic churches.

January 7, 1968 • Madrid, SpainThe first Spanish branch was organized, with David B. Timmons as president and José María Oliveira as first counselor.

June 23, 1968 • MadridThe Madrid Branch was reorganized as an independent unit, with José María Oliveira as president.

October 22, 1968 • SpainThe government of Spain officially recognized the Church.

June 6, 1969 • MadridThe first full-time missionaries arrived in Spain, having been reassigned from the North Argentine Mission.

October 1969 • MadridÁngel Herrero Mullor became the first Spaniard to be called on a full-time mission.

July 1, 1970 • SpainThe Spain Mission was organized.

July 15, 1972 • Valencia, SpainIsabel Picazo Garrido and Luis Palacin Rizo became the first converts baptized in Valencia.

September 9, 1973 • MadridThe Madrid District was organized, with Lloyd R. Brimhall as president.

1974 • SpainChurch membership in Spain surpassed 1,000.

July 10, 1977 • Madrid, SpainThe first Church meetinghouse in Spain was dedicated.

August 17, 1977 • Bilbao, SpainThe Bilbao Spain Branch was organized, with Victor Hugo Rodriguez as president.

February 1978 • Vitoria, SpainThe Vitoria Spain Branch was organized, with Nicolás Zarallo Gamero as president and Teresa Peretó Martín as Relief Society president.

August 1978 • MadridDuring a visit to Spain, Elder Gordon B. Hinckley of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles held conferences with members and missionaries and met with Juan Carlos I, king of Spain.

December 6, 1978 • SpainThe current constitution was ratified by the Spanish people, restoring democracy to Spain.

June 13, 1979 • Las Palmas, Gran Canaria, SpainFrancisco Dominguez Peña; his wife, Francisca; his son, Javier; and Juana Vega Garcia became the first converts baptized in the Canary Islands.

September 30, 1979 • Las PalmasThe first missionaries to the Canary Islands arrived.

1980 • Las PalmasConstanza Rodríguez Ortiz became the first Relief Society president on the Canary Islands.

February 16, 1980 • Palma, SpainThe first missionaries arrived in Mallorca.

1981 • BarcelonaThe Book of Mormon was published in Catalan.

March 14, 1982 • MadridThe Madrid Spain Stake was organized, with José María Oliveira as president. Victor Clemente Calvo was called as the first stake patriarch in Spain.

June 12, 1985 • MadridSpain joined the European Union.

1990 • SpainChurch membership surpassed 20,000.

1995–1999 • SpainNew stakes were organized in Cádiz, L’Hospitalet, Elche, and Madrid.

1997 • BilbaoMissionaries in the Bilbao Spain Mission were assigned to learn Basque. A selection of hymns, the Gospel Principles manual, and a few other small publications were translated into Basque.

1999 • MadridThe Spain Missionary Training Center opened, where new missionaries studied Spanish, Portuguese, English, Russian, Italian, and French.

February 25, 2003 • SpainThe Church was granted “Notorio Arraigo” status by the government of Spain, a designation given to religious organizations that have a significant presence in the country. This gave the Church more rights under the law, including the ability to enter into legal agreements with the government.

2003–2009 • SpainNew stakes were organized in Valencia, Granada, and Vitoria.

2012 • SpainChurch membership surpassed 50,000.

May 25–27, 2012 • MadridChurch leaders participated in the World Congress of Families. Among the speakers at the congress was Elder Erich W. Kopischke of the Seventy, introduced by former Relief Society General President Mary Ellen Smoot. Missionaries and local members also managed a booth where attendees could learn the Church’s beliefs about the family.

2012–2013 • SpainNew stakes were organized in Lleida, central Madrid, and Las Palmas.

May 2014 • MadridCarlos Jesús Somoza Díaz and his wife, Rosario García González de Somoza, were called to be president and matron of the Madrid Spain Temple, becoming the first Spanish couple to serve in that capacity.

December 19, 2017 • MadridLocal Church leaders represented the Church at the Plenary of the Advisory Committee on Religious Freedom, convened by the Spanish Ministry of Justice.

August 2018 • A Coruña, SpainThe A Coruña Spain Stake, Spain’s 15th stake, was organized, with Carlos Aguado as president.