Frostburg mining journal. [volume] (Frostburg, Md.) 1871-1913, 1909-05-22
TOWN BOOSTING PLAN
How Advertising Benefited Lost
burg and Paid a Syndicate.
VENTURE OF THREE HUSTLERS
Bought Up Whole Town and Outlying
Lands In Semiard State-DeveIoped
Water by Sinking WeIls-Wonderfu
Change In Less Than Two Years.
Does it pay to advertise Il town?

Here is Il true narrative that proves
how greatly it pays. In this instance
1t has paid a syndicate Of three men,
and the citizens of the town have prof
tied inevitably, but if these same citi-
zcns had done the advertising them
selves. as they might have done, the
big profits would have gone to them
instead of to the three outsiders.
In Il western state there was an old
town very much run down at the heels.
1t had had fairly good population in
years gone by, but owing to lack of
interest In the home place among the
people who lived there this old town
gradually disintcgratcd, went to pieces,
got liver complaint or something and
finally faded almost out of existence.
It's population of COO to 700 dwindlcd
to less than 900. Grass grew in all
the streets, so that the village COW had
no need to go afield for pasture. 1t
was fine for the village cow, but not
so fine for the villaGcr who did not
own the COW and who had to earn
money there in order to buy milk from
his COW owning neighhor.
There was a railroad that ran
through this town. Ran through" is
Just what is meant The trains ran
through, on the through line, too, the
main line, and now and then they hest
tatcd at the station to let off or take
on Il passenger who tagged the en-
ginecr Train crews got to making
this deserted village the butt OF their
Jokes. They took joy In commenting
upon the run down appearance of the
place. They called it 'Lostburg," be-
cause it had disappeared from the
state map and was but an intinteSimal
point on the railroad map.
The few remaining citizens used to
20 up to the 'decpo" and watch the
limited train speed by like a flash of
oiled lightning on stormy day. They
would go up and sit beside the water
tank and chat with the head brakeman
of the local freight. The local freight
sometimes stopped in Lostburg to get
a drink BE 1t known that the lost
village was In one Of the Scmiarid
states, where water is scarce at the
surface. The railroad people had de
vclopcd" water They sank 4 we'll
down about eighty feet and found a
fine supply-just the sort that locomo-
tivcS like to drink. The rest of the
village drank the subSurfacc water
ten or fifteen feet under, which they
could get at small expense. They used
to sit around the tank and talk of the
Possibilities Of Lostburg- if it only had
more wells like the one developed by
the railroad.
''Fln"st farming and orchard land in
seven states around here" was the
common expression, but nothing do
ing because we hain't got the water"
why don't you get the water,
them" inquired keen looking young
fellow of about thirty-five who Hoped
off the limited when it made a slight
pause one day. He Hoped off down
near the water tank because it was
water that he was looking for in Lost
burg and its vicinity.
ooh, we don't just seem to take no
interest" said the languid citizen who
had made the nothing doing" remark.
Huh commented the newcomer
The young man spent a week at the
local hotel, which had not entertained
a guest in six weeks. He went out
into the surrounding lands and made
Investigations. Then he went back to
the states metropolis.
A month or so later the keen looking
young man returned with two other
men, older and just as keen. In six
weeks time they had bought up the
town - actually bought the whole
works, reasonably too. They bought
also the outlying lands for miles
around, so that they had a town and a
tract surrounding it about five miles
square.
Then they brought engineers to the
place and developed water just like
the tank brand, here, there and every
where The wells flowed with wonder
full regularity and volume. There was
water enough in sight to irrigate the
entire tract and plenty more on the
outskirts, or, as the keen eyed young
promoter remarked, the underskirts."
What happened"
Do you ask it?
Just this. The syndicate sold back
to the original owners in many in
stances their houses and lots at a big
profit to the syndicate. They sold also
thousands of acres of farm and or
chard land They set out thousands
Of acres of apples and other fruits for
which the soil and climate were best
adapted. They planted the plains to
alfalfa and sold other acres to alfalfa
hungry farmers. The result Is that
this town IN less than two years has
upward of l,20O happy, satisfied, pros
porous people, while several hundred
more are developing farms near by.
Now the limited stops there because
there is such an thrush Of home seek
ers, land buyers, spectators and pro-
motors.
The syndicate did all this by adycr-
Using. They paid for space In city
and country newspapers. They plas-
tered the plains with posters and del
ugcd the deserts with dodgers.
might IA done 1t ourselves If we'd
had the git-up," now says the water
tank pesslmist, who knew all the time
that the country was underlad with
water.
Any town can boost itself by adyer-
Using Itself. ROBERTUS LOVE.