The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1894-02-04
JUST THE GHOST OF A TOWN.
Fine Buildings, Graded and Side
walked Streets and Not ons Resi-
dent to Break the Silence.
From the New York Word

FROM tue new 1Ork W Oflu.
Neche, n. D., Jan. 27.-A party of
Psychologists, just returned here from
the northeast corner of the state, tell
curious story of the abandoned city of
West Lynne. The city is deserted, going
to decay; no traffic goes on in its streets
CT business in its stores. No homes are
in the dwellings. The streets are graded
and sidewalked, and trees, shrubbery
and flowers are in the yards surrounding
the residences, but all is silence and
loneliness.
West Lynne is opposite Emerson, just
across the Manitoba line from st. Vim
cent. There, on two sides of the Red
river, and within an area of four square
miles, are four towns-Emerson, West
Lynne, Winston and Pembina West
Lynne IS. on the west bank of the river.
The history of the place is one of the ro-
mances of town building in the boom
period. Mi.
When Winnipeg was the metropolis of
the northwest some schemers plated and
exploited city on the Red river at a
point where, they claimed, the great
Northwestern was to cross. Eastern
capitalists were becoming interested and
money was plenty. There was no sham
about the actual construction of that
town; 1t was not another Arizona desert
farce, only in the minds and on the plats
OF its pro- ectors, but bstan tial reality.
a man namedsMurray, of Chicago, was
the agent. He sold lots at auction in
Chicago for 5000 each. While ne would
be selling telegram would come notify
ing Of. the sale of a certain plat, and it
would be withdrawn. Then he would
sell ad .olning lots at advanced prices.
Meantime the building was progress
sing. No board shanties, sod walls or
canvas shells, but handsome structures of
brick or lumber, thoroughly finished in
approved style. And to-day the town is
a handsome but useless monument to the
credulity OF some and the hardihood of
others, From the day when the carpen-
tiers left the buildings not store had
been opened not a dwelling occupied.
The party drove over the silent streets,
! past handsome blocks of brick stories,
! 2-stories high with plate glass windows
and ornate facadeS, but all were tenant
less. There were residences in the town
which cost $1,000, tastful and spacious.
indicating the people of refinement must
at some time have intended occupying
! them. They are scattered in clusters on
this or that addition, and surrounded
with trees and shrubbery, now grown
rank. The fences are falling to pieces
and the grass and weeds encroach on the
pavements and approaches. The town
IS capable of holding population of 90,
! O0O people.
Across the Red river is a steel bridge,
built for railroad and wagon traffic on
which no train or engine has ever rolled,
and probably never will The wagon
track is used. The structure must have
| cost 800, 600, as there is a great deal of
piling and trestlewOrk in the approaches.
A short time ago citizen OF St. Vim
| cent received letter from Louisville
| (Ky) man inquiring what property in
! West Lynn was worth He said he rep
resented the syndicate which had pur-
chased most of it, and the investors
thought they had held it long enough
to sell and make a good thing, as the rise
in value, through the natural growth of
| the place, must have made tidy sum.
| Inquiry developed the fact that If the
| land was in one parcel, it might be worth
! s. an acre, but. scattered as it was, 1t was
worthless The buildings and other i'm
| provements did not count at ali, as they
were of no earthly use where they were
| The town stands in fat, sandy stretch,
where the overflow is so copious and fire.
quent that no crops can be planted with
safety.
| Across the river in Emerson is the Gus
! tom house, aud the business of the dis
| triet is conducted there. Even in Emer-
son there is a tenantless brick block three
| stories in hight, 375 feet front by 140 deep
comprising fourteen spacious stores. with
French plate-glass fronts and all the ex-
/ pensive accessories of a stylish business
block. Eighty-fve thousand dollars was
| the outlay for that.