Evening journal., 1913-05-15
'jOUATTER' CLAIMS
$3OO,OOO,OOO
In REALTY

NEW 1OfAhf MAY lOs--f dl up III
Harlem on a vacant lot a little TO the
east o Broadway and 100 feet or so
to the south OF Nagle avenue there
stands a canvas-topped shack, half
hut hlf tent. and just big enough
to furnish bunk and shelter for an
old mn used to roughing it in the
West.
Justsuch a man could be seen pot
terineabout the shack. putting on the
finishig touches for his comfort. and
the crious few who sought him put
in hi retreat learned that he was
Mario Montrose Molenaor. and that
he ha thus pitched his camp as one
step ! his fight to regain possession
Of hisgrandfather's farm lands.
Thf were only farm lands when
old William NJ. Molenaor died. in 1872
but bday most of the II acres are
covesd with tall apartment houses.
Thelwere worth something like S29,-
600 hen, but his grandson roughly
plats their present value between
S3g000,0 900 and S500,000.000, and 70
recver this property he is arming
hiiBelf for a fight in the courts
agsnst more than 100 realty owners,
amng whom are c. K G. Billings,
Gecge Ehret Vincent Astor, James
Colon Bennett and A. H. Higgins
De first step was the formation Of
the Molenaor Recovery Company,
whh has an Office at No. so Church
stret The latest step was the ap-
perance of the shack and of Martin
Nntrose Molenaor as a settler and
scatter on the land he says is his.
lt is the contention of Molenaor and
Is children that when his grandfather
led in 1912 he left a will which en-
allied a large part of his fine Harlem
cres, that this will was valid and that
was so considered when it was ac-
lepted by Surrogate Silvanus Miller
100 years ago. The will disposed Of
real estate all over Manhattan, leav-
ing it variously for the benefit of his
food wife, Mercy, his son, David Will
lam Molenaor, and even his bond
woman, my black girl Sarah"
According to the provisions Of that
will, as they were interpreted by the
grandson of the testator. his father
David had no right as executor to sell
off tn, entailed land parcel by parcel
and IN these transfers executed by
him we're invalid David Molenaor did
scatta- the ownership of the entailed
acres right and left, and the money
that anne from the succession Of sales
did rot stay with him long He died
pennless more than go years ago and
now his son and his sons sons are
fighting for the land which slipped oil
by h from his possession.
Why didn't you begin this fgh'
earler?' was the question that oc'
cured to all those who visited Mol
ensr in his shack, and at every re
curence of the question the old mans
sorbrero would be tilted a little far
4 the back to make room for his lool
ofieep surprise.
4 began this fight in the seventies,
hesaid, "and the old newspaper file'
vii tell you so. ! fought right through
awinst an army of lawyers, until 1882
Wien went into bankruptcy. | hat
stsrtd with $25.000 and ended withou
a cen. and the litigation was only jus
beg1L So | inst gathered my childTei
about. me-there we're FIVE of ther
then-and struck out for the Wesl
It's cen ranching out in Colorad
sincethen, and what not, so that nov
the ocketbook is pretty full, and m
son MllITtu anu 1 nave tplht baNl
to bgin the fight over again.
mis- time" he said doggedly
4 "wdl see il through to the finish. NJ
souis living over in Brooklyn with
req roof over his head, and if | di
a he5re the fight is over he is prepare
tocarry it on"
n Che biggest single stretch Of Ian
climed by the Molenaors is in tn
e In hft Of 4
a,res. that lies between One Hundre
u md twentieth and One Hundred an
N -wehtt-ninth streets in the one direc
8 ton and between Seventh avenue an
b Hudsoi in the other. The secon
niece il of II acres. west of Broadway
along he old Kingsbridge road. Tha
is whee Mr.. Billings comes in. TIL
third iece is the smallest. seven
acre 1t east of the Kingsbridge road
In ne thick of the fight he starte
& more than 80 years ago Martin MI
lenaoi stirred up a great commotio
" by peting notices on all the proper
ties ffering them for sale and an
" mounting that all rents we're payabl
10 hin. He even succeeded in collect
ing Sme of them in the midst of tn
excitment, and newspaper clippin
OF Fbruary, 1878. tells of the "livel
time" in Kingsbridge and Manhattan
villewhen the signs first appeared.
In1S9S $4,000 in cash was offere
to lr. Molenaor by real estat
|X brohr to relinquish all claim to whs
81 hadbeen his grandfather's lands
Hafem. That $4,000 looked big
NJ himand on he came from the WeI
# preared to close with the offer
81 II did not look so big, howeve
81 WIN compared with the increase
# reaty values in Manhattan. so bac
81 he vent to bide his time In 1906
# tod the precaution to file with ii
register a new map with quit claim
n frn his brothers. Now the recover
company is formed and he wants
Sc stock in it and possibly to bull
X bngalows on unimproved portions
th Molenaor farm.
He had been living at hotel dowi
tom until he entered into possessio
pihis shack It is a substantial hous
b has just built for himself on II
ucant lot, with solid wooden pla
firm. to its floor and with woode
sifs Its dimensions are roughly
fee by II feet and besides his bun
tlire is a stove for his cooking.
sIall table and his trunks.
Fl expect" says Martin MontroI
nDlenaor, who is rs years old, 81
W it9v here duife sOme time /"