Semi-weekly south Kentuckian. [volume] (Hopkinsville, Ky.) 1883-1889, 1886-07-23
QUEEN CITY.
"reminiscences Of a Gigantic Land
Swindle Ten Years Ago
in Rowan.
IspecIal Cor. Of tho oonrlor.JournnlI

ana beautiful clues Ill Inc state. III
was the basis of one of the boldest
and most gigantic swindles ever at
tempted in Kentucky, and its history
amply illustrates the gullibility of
the American people.
In 1875 j. W. Sewell, of Covington,
who had moved in early manhood to
that city from Dreathitt county, pur-
chased 1900 acres of land in Rowan
county, lying on the road from
Morehead TO Olympia in Bath coun-
ty, and situated four and half
miles from Morehcad. Sewell also
secured a land patent covering about
ten thousand acres in the same local
itv. lie organized in Cincinnati
"Thc Queen City Land and Building
Association" of which e. Wood, OF
Cincinnati, was President. On the
eighteen hundred acres of land
Queen city was located. The asso-
citation published an elegantly en-
graved map of the city, the most
beautiful and flourishing of all Ken
lucky towns. The illustrated de-
scription of the place showed a
handsomely laid out city with ele-
giant public buildings. Beautiful
churches with lofty spires stood ON
the corners. Here and there were
large school buildings of the most
improved plan, and with all the mod
ern equipments. In the beautiful
park in the center of the city two
fountains sent perennial streams of
wafer. Marble Cupids and laughing
Graces cleaned amid the shrubbery.
"Aphrodite Emerging from the
Waves of the Sea" commanded the
admiration ofthe beholder. In front
of the city ran a rail road, on which
the trains loaded with the products
of the surrounding country were so
numerous that one was never out of
sight of another. 10 the left of the
town lay the wide-spreading waters
of the beautiful lake. Over its silvery
waters floated countless white wing
ed crafts, loaded with happy thou
sands, the little children in whit
cloth-tented elders watched them
making merry. Around the city,
and along the shrubbcry -embowered
shores of the lake were numerous ell
egant country seats, down from which
gently sloped the broad lawns. cover
ed with waving bluegrass, and
shaded by grand old oaks and elms,
through whose dense foliage one
could. catch tleeting glimpses of the
blue waters of the ever peaceful lake.
Lots in Queen City were % by 100
feet, and as their prices ranged from
81 so to $500, they found a ready sale.
and hundreds and hundreds were
bought by people from all over the
country. James Appleby, wealthy
hotel-keeper of Montreal, was espec-
tally impressed with the grand fut-
ure and the fourlshing present of
Queen City, lie exchanged his hotel
property for block in Queen City
and several thousand acres Of land in
the surrounding country. Ills hotel
in Montreal was worth 100000. At
ter the deeds to the property were
made by the Queen City Building
Association, Applcby concluded that
he would come down to kentucky
and look at his Rowan county prop
erty. The C. 4 0. railroad then did
not ron further east than Mt. Ster-
ling, and the site of Queen City, as
given in the map, was at least fifty
miles from any railaoad. After ex-
ploring for some time and inquiring
in vain of the natives the location of
Queen City, Appleby found the great
metropolis. There was no lake there
There was no fresh water for miles.
There were no railroads and no hand
some country residences. The only
building. in Queen City was an old,
tumble-dowm, abandoned farm house.
The eighteen hundred acres of land
was and still is covered with red
brush, and the soil too poor to pro-
duce black-eyed peas.
Appleby at once entered suit in
the Rowan Circuit Court TO recover
his Montreal property, but pending
the suit he died, and the case was
abandoned.
A number of other persons who
had invested in Queen City property
tramped across the mountains to
look at their new possessions. When
they saw what the place was, many
of them abandoned their claims, not
deeming the land worth enough to
pay for recording the deeds in the
clerks Office.
Some of the deeds are now record
ed here, and.on the top of each sheet
of paper is a miniature Autograph of
Queen City in all its beauty. SewelI,
who held possession of the Montreal
property, got up another land swim
die. Among Lis victims was an In
dianian, whe hunted him up and
blew his brains out.
This is not the strange history of
Queen City. Sewell, when he bought
the land, had all the deeds made in
the name of his sister, Mrs. Grigsby.
and, therefore, the deeds of "The
Queen City Land and Building Asso-
citation" were worthless. Mrs. Grigs-
by, after the death of Sewell, sent
money in registered letter to pay
the taxes on the land. The letter
was sent to the post-oflice in Bath
county, when il should have come
here to Morehead. In some manner
one of the defrauded purchasers
learned that the letter was in the
post-ofiice, and The Sheriff attached
1t and held the money for the crcdi-
tors. In the meantime, the l 800 acres
comprising Queen City had been
sold for taxes, and were purchased
by Mr.. Anderson, the merchant of
this place, and others in Morehead.
Mrs. Grigsby still claims the land,
and so do some of the crednlous who
purchased from the Queen City Land
and Building Association. Thus
there are three separate sets of claim
ants for the land, which is really
worth nothing.
Luflr Trouble Relieved