Pamela Jones, married at 15, has shared the unsettling experience of her early marriage. Just a week into her union, she confronted her husband about his strange behavior, only to be met with a shocking declaration: “I’m ready to chase another wife.”
Now 60, Jones discusses her new memoir, “Stains Under Our Doors: My Journey to Freedom After Escaping the Polygamous Mormon Cult,” co-authored with Elizabeth Riley. She reflects on her upbringing in a strict fundamentalist community, revealing, “If I tried to leave, God would punish me by taking away my life and my children.” Fear of death loomed heavily over her.
The Fulness of Times church, established in the 1820s in upstate New York, centered on the practice of polygamy until it was officially banned in 1904. Yet, the custom endured within the sect, prompting members to migrate to Los Morinos, Mexico, where they lived in secrecy, shunning the outside world for fear of their illegal lifestyle being uncovered.
Born into this environment, Jones’s father, Thomas Ottoman Jones, had 11 wives and a staggering 57 children. He was known for spreading the cult’s beliefs into Mexico. Her mother, Pamela Hanson, prior to her husband’s influence, worked as a waitress before relocating and having 13 children, with Jones being the second.
Life was filled with hardships and mostly bleak experiences. Meals often consisted of food scavenged from trash—it’s hard to even imagine, really. At 15, she was coerced into marrying a relative of the cult’s founder, a union that curtailed her contact with family and forced her to live under harsh conditions.
Her husband isolated her, and they resided in a ramshackle sheep pen. There was barely any running water, limited electricity, and insufficient food. She endured multiple pregnancies, ultimately giving birth to nine children while suffering eight miscarriages.
“I married him to escape my abusive father, but I found myself even more depressed and lonely,” she wrote. Her life turned into a “big lie full of curses and deceptions.” When her sister Nancy tragically died, her husband dismissed her grief, saying, “Gentiles have no place in God’s kingdom.”
Jones realized she was under the thumb of a “greedy, physical man” and felt like a second-class citizen among his other wives. As her husband planned to take a third wife, thoughts of escaping began to surface, though fear gripped her tightly.
“I was terrified,” she admitted, acknowledging the deeply rooted influence of the cult, understanding it would take years to break those ties and free herself and her children from such a violent and misogynistic belief system.
In 2000, at age 34, Jones seized her chance to flee. She gathered documents verifying her children’s American citizenship and, using stolen checks and credit cards, orchestrated a daring escape for her eight youngest children. Early one morning, they piled into a van, heading towards the U.S. border in El Paso, successfully reaching safety.
After her escape, she established a new life in Minneapolis, eventually remarrying and finding fulfillment. She now runs a successful house cleaning service employing over 40 people, marking her financial independence and leaving the traumatic past behind.
Jones emphasizes how she now uses her voice, expressing how important it is to make herself heard when it matters most.
