WILMINGTON — The Little Free Library located in downtown Wilmington next to Jen’s Deli was recently replaced with a charming little beauty.
The former library, placed by Kevi Copsey in 2013, was falling apart due to weather elements and vandalism. The materials for the new library were kindly donated by Lowe’s and built by Alex Rinehart, who donated not only his time but his skilled craftsmanship as well.
Little Free Libraries began in 2009 when the late Todd Bol of Wisconsin built a model of a one-room wooden schoolhouse on a post, a tribute to his mother, a former school teacher who loved to read.
He filled his library with books and placed in his front yard for all his neighbors and friends to “take a book, leave a book”. His library was so well received, that Bol built several more libraries, giving them to friends.
In 2012 Little Free Library became a registered nonprofit organization and today there are more than 100,000 Little Free Libraries around the world.
There are several libraries located in Wilmington: Timber Glen Subdivision, J.W. Denver Williams Jr. Memorial Park, Cowan Lake Campground, Holmes Elementary School, East End Elementary School and Denver Elementary School. There are more libraries sprinkled throughout Clinton County which are located in homeowner’s yards.
To learn more, visit LittleFreeLibrary.org .
