'Free Little Library' founded at the corner of Adams and First

Chad Boutte, co-owner and operator of Tours by Steven, had an idea: Why not erect in Franklin, on the corner of First and Adams Streets, the first Free Little Library in Franklin, and fill it with free books for the public?
The book exchange stands on the corner of the lawn of the Trowbridge House, and is currently full to capacity, contains books and magazines available to all-comers.
The Free Little Library was installed Jan. 11, and is already a success.
The first Little Free Library was built in 2009 by Todd H. Bol of Wisconsin.
According to Boutte, Bol’s mother was a librarian, and after she passed away, this was Bol’s way of memorializing her legacy.
Boutte said that to date, there are estimated to be around 100,000 of such little library boxes worldwide.
The idea is simple: take a book/leave a book, free of charge. No need for permission and no need for monetary commerce.
“It’s going super-well,” Boutte said. “We see about four or five visitors every day.
“There is a certain amount of joy in seeing it, experiencing it, and knowing that the book is mine. I can share it with others, and I can also bring other books of mine, and circulate them.”
Boutte’s stated goals in erecting the FLL are promoting literacy, advancing the love of reading, advancing reading comprehension through possibly pushing limitations (i.e., picking up a book a bit more advanced than one may be used to), “and it challenges you to pick up a book that you might not normally pick up from a library.”
He also said he wanted to produce another focal point to promote community and sharing in Franklin.
“It’s interesting, everything it promotes,” he said, “literacy, community and community engagement, and it also allows you to understand your neighbors a little better, by the books you find in the FLL.
“So, you get to know your neighbors a little better, too.”
Boutte said he hopes that others around the city put up their own FLL’s, and that it becomes a common sight in Franklin, and parish-wide.
To find out more about the Free Little Library in Franklin, contact Chad Boutte at chadboutte@gmail.com, or ease on down to the corner of Adams and First Streets. There are books there, as a reward. And you can bring a reward for someone else as well.