Brigham Young's Wooden Leg Missing

SALT LAKE CITY, UT - Church officials shocked the world today by announcing that one of its key historical artifacts has apparently turned up missing.

Yesterday, as part of a routine cleaning and inventory of the LDS church's granite storage vaults, crews reported that Brigham Young's wooden leg, which was being stored there, was gone.

According to Mike Smith, LDS Church Historical Curator, the leg was being stored in the vaults to ensure preservation at the proper humidity and to protect it from termites that had previously threatened its destruction.

The leg is believed to be the actual one used by Brigham Young to cross the plains.  It was to have been the key item in a special exhibit at the opening of the church's new conference center.

Smith claims that many Mormons are not aware that Brigham Young had a wooden leg and the exhibit was to have made this little known historical detail public.

"It may have been stolen," said Smith.  "We only hope it was taken by someone who needed it more than we did.  With the lack of trees in the area, however, we fear it may be sitting on someone's wood pile."

The church is offering a 50% discount on tithing to anyone providing information leading to the recovery of the missing leg.

Editor's note: This article first appeared in the Mormon Zone on December 1, 1999. At the time the conference center mentioned in the article was not yet complete. Sadly, the leg was never found and the exhibit was canceled.

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This is a parody article intended for entertainment only and does not document real events or persons.  In other words, this is fiction.  Copyright 1999, 2009 by The Mormon Zone.  All rights reserved.