The Ely miner. [volume] (Ely, Minn.) 1895-1986, 1930-08-29

the entire Clark street frontage, $50
feet deep, between Monroe and Madi-
son streets. In the center Of the
block he built his home with COW
barn for his COW, Bessie" AS time
went on, Doctor Basset sold most Of
his property but always with a pro-
vision for a 10-foot easement so that
BESSIE" could make her way TO the
barn.
SO in 1925 when the 100 West Mon
roe Building corporation took over the
lease for the property they found the
flaw which preserved the path but too
late TO do anything about it. The
deed was subjected to litigation and
il stood the test While their solution
Of the problem was a little costly, it
was rather unusual. for they usurped
the air rights and left Bessie" her 10
foot path with an 1S-foot clearance,
just in case she should desire TO bring
in a wagon load Of hay some time.
Above the 1S-foot level the building
juts out at right angles, covering the
cow path and extending upward for 20
stories. While setback buildings are
common sights in Chicago this is the
only "set-out" building on record. And
the space lost would bring about S12,-
600 in yearly rentals.
While Bessie" is not as famous as
Chicago's other bovine celebrity, the
one which has the honor of overturn-
ing the lamp that ignited Mrs.
O'Leary's barn, and a goodly portion
of Chicago besides, and while the Chi
cago Historical society hasn't erected
a bronze tablet in her honor, she or
her successors have a more romantic,
and incidentally more expensive mon
ument, for her private COW path at
Clark and Monroe streets still lives
and awaits her return
So that Chicagoans may know of
the cow path and of Bessie" and that
they may be ittingly honored as has
Mrs. O'Leary's pet, r. p. Mulvaney,
official custodian of the path, plans to
remove the present swinging doors
and replace them with a more elab-
crate gateway.
AT present the path is guarded by
bronze doors which are never closed
and have no locks Mulvaney would
replace them with doors with panels
upon which would be replicas of ''Bes-
sic" and the old homestead in bas-
relief
Another curious situation. caused by
a flaw in title. was reported from
Now Nnrly yncnrt1r Thu ctr of Z
as told in the New York World, fol-
lows:
"a legal catch in the title of what
used to be known as City Hall place
a street only about 800 feet long that
ran from in back of the Munipical
building at Duane street to Pearl
streets holding up plans for the
proposed civic center around the new
county court house and Foley square.
The riddle which Assistant Cor
poration Counsel Joel j. Squire of the
bureau of street openings is charged
TO solve is what can the city do with
the forty-foot roadway which bisecfs
one Of the most valuable plots of real
estate in New York.
Part of this riddle is what will the
Church of St Andrew, which stands
on the west of the old street, do about
its parish house which stands on the
east of it. Under the plan drawn by
Joseph Johnson, City Hail place was
to be strapped to make room for the
new federal building and the parish
house was to be torn down and re-
built on plot adjacent to the church.
This new plot was to be exchanged
by the city for the old site of the
parish house. A section of City Hall
place was included in the new site
But when the church officials asked
for a title deed to the land the city
was surprised to find that Ii could
not be given. The reason was that
the city owns only right of way ease
from the original owners of the plot,
but that some unknown heir Of the
original owners holds the free title.
Had the city or federal government
actually erected costly building on
part of the old street and had the
true owners turned up and set forth
their claims, the money loss to the city
would have been tremendous according
to real estate authorities.
'Old City Hall place is estimated as
worth close to S1.O00.O0o. Mr.. Squire
says he is not ready even to venture
a guess as to what can be done about
it."