Utahans had been denied statehood for more than forty years, primarily because of the state's connection to polygamy. Then in 1890, the Mormon Church published the Woodruff Manifesto ending plural marriages, and the promise of statehood was granted. Many Mormon husbands either kept their multiple wives or provided separate accommodations for them and their children. But some sent their wives away expecting them to fend for themselves. As a result, many formerly married Mormon women in Salt Lake City had to work as prostitutes in the brothels. It is in this volatile community that Abigail...