Western Towns Rebuild Library Jeffs Destroyed

Books disappeared under reign of jailed Utah polygamist
By Nick McMaster,  Newser Staff
Posted Jan 21, 2008 3:42 PM CST
Western Towns Rebuild Library Jeffs Destroyed
"There are a lot of people that are starting to step out of their comfort zone and associate and stuff," said one volunteer. "Books are a common thing. Books can kind of bring people together."   (Shutterstock.com)

Two tiny towns on the Utah-Arizona border are pushing to restock the shelves of their library, reports the Deseret Morning News, in a first step toward healing rifts caused by imprisoned polygamist Warren Jeffs. With Hildale, Utah, and Colorado City, Ariz., firmly in the grip of the Mormon splinter group's leader, the library simply disappeared one day.

“Warren had them destroyed,” says a Hildale resident who plans to use part of her home as a makeshift library. “It’s just so sad," zays a local merchant. "It’s from the dark ages.” Now, community members are staging book drives to build up the town’s resources and, it's hoped, eventually mend some of the deep divisions Jeffs left. (More Warren Jeffs stories.)

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