Church Marks A Milestone—1,500 Stakes

Antofagasta, Chile, is a mining and fishing city located in an arid land where almost nothing grows. Yet the Church is growing well there, as evidenced by the organization of the Caliche Chile Stake—the 1,500th to be organized in the Church—on 4 November 1984.

The Caliche Chile Stake was created through a division of the Antofagasta Chile Stake. Located about seven hundred miles north of Santiago, Antofagasta is situated in an area where there was no city at all 150 years ago, when the Church’s first stake was organized.

The Caliche stake is another milestone in the rapid growth of the Church. The Kirtland Ohio Stake was organized in 1834. It was 136 years before the 500th stake was organized, in Fallon, Nevada, in 1970. Nine years later, the Church marked the 1000th stake milestone when the Nauvoo Illinois Stake was organized. And now, just over five years later, the Church has added another 500 stakes.

Presiding over the organization of the Caliche Chile Stake was Elder A. Theodore Tuttle, a member of the First Quorum of the Seventy and president of the South America South Area.

The members in the Caliche area are “really grateful for the gospel, which gives them spiritual answers to socio-economic problems,” Elder Tuttle commented. “The thing that is really critical in their lives now,” he said, “is the spiritual strength that comes from the scriptures and covenants and priesthood.”

Ricardo Palma Fuentes was called as president of the new stake. Called to preside over the reorganized Antofagasta stake was Alleman Rivera Arredondo.

1,500 Stakes in 150 Years
Year	Number of Stakes	Location of Stake
1834	1	Kirtland, Ohio
1928	100	Lehi Utah
1952	200	East Sharon (Provo, Utah)
1960	300	Toronto Canada
1964	400	Medford Oregon
1970	500	Fallon Nevada
1973	600	Southampton England
1975	700	Veracruz Mexico
1977	800	Veracruz Mexico Reforma
1978	900	Cedar City Utah North
1979	1000	Nauvoo Illinois
1980	1100	Arica Chile
1980	1200	Hermiston Oregon
1981	1300	McMinnville Oregon
1983	1400	Piura Peru
1984	1500	Caliche Chile