Dozens of locals and city officials gathered outside the train station in downtown Flagstaff Thursday for the opening of a new tiny library project.
It’s part of an effort to bring nearly a dozen small libraries to the city — all in iconic British telephone booths.
Sporting gilded royal crowns, the red cast-iron telephone box, full of books, is tucked between the BNSF railway and Route 66.
It’s the brainchild and passion project of longtime Arizona Daily Sun photographer Jake Bacon.
“Literacy is really important to me. I have a family of readers. I have a master's in elementary [education] and it's really rewarding to see how I've created something that can bring completely different sections of our community together,” Bacon says. “Seeing the city work together to make this a reality and overcome challenges has just been really inspiring and I'm just very grateful to the City of Flagstaff for all they've done to make this a reality.”
Bacon says he’s coordinated with the city for seven years, installing the first two library phone boxes on his own street.
“Ironically, the two that are in front of my home, I spend the least time on,” Bacon says. “They have been fully adopted by the community. I come home, and there are boxes of books on the floor. If the box of books stays on the floor more than a day or two, another community member will come and stock the shelves.”
Bacon’s lived in Flagstaff for decades, but he says they remind him of his home in England.
He’s crisscrossed the country to purchase British phone booths that have somehow ended up stateside. This new one comes from Texas.
Bacon says he hopes the community will step up to use and care for the little libraries. He plans to install more throughout the city.
