The weekly Minnesotian. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn. Territory) 1852-1858, 1853-05-28
We stern Town Building.

W est, tnere Is, even upon close renectlOn real
ly little wonderfully surprising in the four
years growth of st. Paul. We become-if We
may use the term-hordened to such things
just as a mans conscience becomes callous to
sin, or the tender sensibilities of his nature
to grief. by continual trangression or afhic-
ton and soon we look upon these progressive
and almost Herculean marches of Improvement
as matter of-course affair. But to the Euro
pean, or even the New Highlander, or inhabtant
of any of the old Eastern or Middle States-the
man who has lived from infancy outside the
circle and influence of these yearly revolutions,
which are continually whirling their giddy
rounds throughout the West,-the first realiz-
ing sense of these things must be almost a
breaking down of all doubts in regard to the
earthly existence ofsupernatural powers.
Four years ago, when we were talking of
breaking up life associations at our old home,
and removing to Minnesota, we one day advis-
ed with a friend in regard to the matter, man
but very few years our senior He had had
some experience in frontier life, and advised us
to migrate, by all means. His mistake, he said,
had consisted in not holding on out at the
North West, when he once had chance. He
had let it slip, because he had not, at the time.
possession of the amount of foresight and faith
necessary to believe that great city would
ever exist upon the spot where now stands the
commercial emporium of the NOrth-Wcst.-
When quite young, he had been one of the sur
veyors employed to lay out and plat the town
site of Chicago The proprietors wished to re-
munerate his services in town lots, selected by
himself in whatever quarter he chose but he
demanded, and received, his pittance of two or
three dollars per day in money, and left the
place. Our friend is now no more of earth !;
and although in after years he amassed COM
potency, and left his family in good circum-
Stances he considered this Chicago lot business
the great mistake of his life, so far as the pos
session of worldly wealth was concerned.
We have fallen upon this train of thought
and Renaissance just at this moment, by read
ing in the Cleveland Herald, of the 10th inst,
letter from the senior editor of that paper,
dated Chicago, May II, 1852 1t appears
there has recently been a Canal Land Sale in
Chicago, at which our friend Harris of the
lleEalu, Was pISoCHt. We give SoHC VI
facts and figures, going to show what is pro-
crossing in the Garden City, in the way of
real estate -
"The bidding has been spirited at the Canal
Land Sales, and the prices paid much exceed
the expectations of the Trustees and the land
dealers of Chicago. The advance has been full
ly seventy per cent. on prices at the previous
sale, and the Trustees have bid in but small
L., <1nG 4 AL
S4O3 900 the second day to sac, 900 and the
third day the total amount of sales was swollen
to nearly or quite one million of dollars! The
farming lands located in the neighbOrhood of
the Michigan and Illinois Canal, ranged from
$500 to $500 per acre. The lands in the vi
cinity of Chicago, for ten miles out down to
within mile or two of the city limits, from $50
to Sl75,00 per acre, and Chicago city property
from $500 to $4,000 per lot. Lots 100 feet by
l73, half to mile from dwelling or worked
street, on the fat prairie, and at this time near
ly inaccessible, except by water, brought from
$1,000 to $500, and corner lots often from
Sl,7OO to $4,000. Three lots known as the
Granger property, lying on the river, and run
ming through to the Galena Railroad, so feet
front by ls9 deep, sold for s23,3OO, $4,000 and
S35, 900; the last being corner lot The pro-
perty is unimproved on the north side of the
river and located in regard to Chicago very
uuCH dS pIOpCIty W SlcNtIduu VII lLc west
side of the river at the foot of Superior street
Lots west of the river, in the vicinity of the
Galena Railroad Machine shops. 80 feet by l25
to ITO, ranged from 5000 to Sl,4OO. In the
southern portion of Chicago, a mile more
from the American Car Company Factory.
lands ranged from s. 800 to $4,000 per acre
and at Bridgeport the intersection of the canal
with the river, and four miles from the business
centre of Chicago, at from $4,000 to $4,000
lot Tho Canal forms of sale
ter down, balance in one, two, and three years,
with six per cent. interest on deferred payments
in advance. Ifdeferred payments are not met
when due, the land reyerts to the Canal. This
is the last public land sale to be held by the
Canal Trustees, and nearly every lot was taken
by responsible bidders. The farming lands dis
tant from Chicago were generally bid off by the
people of their neighbnrhood for actual Occu-
pancy."
The writer further states, that although spec
ulators attended the sale from various sections
of the Union, more than three-fourths of the
property sold was taken by resident land deal
ers-men living upon the spot, and of course
more familiar with the value of property than
those coming from abroad. The following an
ecdote is related as an incident of the sale:
cincinnati and Kentucky spectators seem
~ VIC ehc pcst SCI. anu lnc latter nave
bought at public as well as private sale. There
are some twenty or thirty Kentuckians on hand,
with pockets full of rocks Cincinnati land
operators, equally numerous, have bought
largely, mostly at private SALE An operation
will illustrate the spirit of land trade on the
high pressure principle of 1853 One who has
grown rich by Queen City real estate operations,
some two weeks ago obtained the refusal of 800
acres Of unmproved land ten miles southwest
OF Chicago at $50 per acre. He then turned
ms attention to city property, and made some
heaVy Investments. Saturday morning pre-
vious to the Canal sale, the owner of the 500
acres notified the Cincinnatian that he must
close the bargain by noon of that day, or the
price would be advanced to $35. The pur-
CHASER neld on, but in the evening of the same
day declared he should have no peace of mind
over the Sabbath without more land, and took
400 Of the 800 acres at $500? At the land
sale on Wednesday, $40 acres adjoining his pur-
chase brought over $50 per acre! Judge II.
thought his $4,000, the cost of indecision. had
not been quite fooled away"