Staunton vindicator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1860-1896, 1891-06-05
staunton's Big Sale.
OVER ONE HUNDRED THOUSAND
DOLLARS WORTH OF LOTS SOLD.

The sale by the Staunton Development
Company this week marked new era in
Virginia lot sales.
There was no drawing before the sale,
and the buyers, not the stockholders, had the
preference.
There were no promoters interests al
lowed-they have to wait.
There was no paid up stock taken for
lots at above par value
The whole thing was down to solid hard
pan money basis.
And on that basis the sales reached
$101 800!
Shortly after clock Tuesday the streets
near the Development Company Office pre-
scented an unusually active appearance,
crowds OF men were in and about the build
ing, while outside q number were filling the
hacks and other vehicles as fast as they
came up and were driven off over the COM
pany s lands, OF directly to the place of sale.
Quite a number followed with private
teams and on horseback At 10 o'clock, a
special train pulled into the depot and soon
steamed out again with its load of passen-
gers on board for the sale. After deposit
ting these at a road crossing opposite the
sale shed, it returned and made a second
trip. From the road crossing to the scene
of auction was right through the 20-acre
reservation for the Bodley wagon works.
This perhaps was fortunate, as it afford
ell the intending purchaser better idea of
II of baH
dreamed Of. Here large gang OF workmen
were engaged inputting the finishing touch
es to the grading of the belt line, while a
portion Of it had already been completed
and freight cars run on from the main line
of the G.. & O. To the right Oh the hill
above us was the new reservoir Of the Bod
ley works under construction, and beneath
we saw the long stretch of tin roofing $40
| feet long, covering the main building of the
works. Into this immense structure many
of the crowd admiringly gathered. With
the ring of the hammer and saw from every
quarter, the scene was an animated one.
| To give an idea of the size of the building,
gentleman remarked that he had failed to
recognize his best friend at a point less
than half it's length. To the North Of the
works and on top of a high hill was built a
large arbor-like shed at which place the
sale was conducted and here the crowd soon
gathered. At one end of it was established
by the Development Company a free res
taurant, and neal the center was erected a
platform for the auctioneers and their
clerks, and in front of this was map on
canvass showing the plat of lots.
OPENING THE SALE.
The sale was opened by Hon. III. st. Geo.
Tucker in afew timely words and he was fol-
lowed by President M. E. Miller at great
Ell length. File, however, confined his re-
marks to business talk, stating what the
company had done, was doing and proposed
to do, and the advantage lot buyers would
now have at the prevailing low prices with
the certainty of handsome advances in the
near future. He also stated that no pro-
moters interests were to be used in the sale,
that the promoters were willing to wait I'M
til the enterprise had become an established
success and that all sales would be upon
precisely the same basis. The sale was
then turned over to the auctioneers, Messrs.
E. M. Gushing & Son of this city, and MI.
w. O. Beckenbaugh of Baltimore.
LUCKY PURCHASERS.
The bidding opened very spiritedly and
in the first half hour thirty-one business
lots were sold at SIG, 100, an average of
1886 each. This property was all located
along Broadway, a new street on the Har-
man place and to the North of the Kroder
works. The first purchaser was perhaps the
youngest-Ma ster Alex. Erskine NJ iller, the
eleven-yea son Of MI. J. Mason Miller,
at $3.50, block 146 No. SO, next to corner.
The corner lot, No. 40, was next offered
and brought 81 900, the highest price paid,
and was brought by Mr.. B. F. Gambrill Of
Baltimore. Later in the day num-
Der of the most desirable residence proper
/ ties were offered, these were scattered in
different sections Of the company lands,
but from the commanding position of the
shed a complete view of the whole proper
ty was had and the auctioneer could point.
) to the very lot he was offering. ''That one
near the Mantel works where the fires are,
now ready to be kindled in her furnaces, -
OF this lying to the North of the smoke
stack of that large three-story brick build
y ing'' (Kroder Bro. S works., or ''the one
lust West of the belt line and the Bodley
I wagon works. all these the auctioneer
would point to as he turned about and the
purchaser looking, saw what he was buying.
Most of the sales were bargains; all of them
we'll worth the money; but one in particu-
ar attracted the attention. of investors af-
r ter it was too late. This was a villa site
, No. in block 3, just opposite the City
, Park on Chmchville Avenue, a corner lot
15Oxl50 fl which lies beautifully. The pur-
] chaser, MI. J. Il. McCrary of W. Va.
j paid 500 for it, refused $500 advance for
y it on the spot and is holding it at 81 800.
THE SECOND DAY.
Wednesday, the second day OF the sale,
, opened actively, additional visitors had
: arrived by the night trans and the attend
ance at the sale was almost doubled. Dur
ing the forenoon the bidding was without
much excitement, but after an intermis-
!, sion of thirty minutes and dinner, there
was quite a furry in real estate, the crowd
being at times enthusiastic and bidding
i with alacrity, as some specially favored
suburban property was offered. The lots
most actively contested for were those
along and adjacent to the Augusta street
extension and those fronting the park. AT
the latter place two villa lots brought $775
J and $3.50 respectively, Mr.. John W. Todd
purchasing the former and MI. j. L.
McCrary of w. Va, the latter. On the
Augusta street extension, two lots, one a
corner, were sold to Mr.. Geo. Glasscock of
Fauquier county, Va, for 1925, and another