In 1930, the Interstate Commerce Commission undertook a survey to determine the value of the land and right-of-ways of the Norfolk & Western Railway Company in Williamson, West Virginia. The land appraiser, J.C. Lindsley, collected the short surveys, which had been filled out by respectable residents of the town, and typed up brief notes about the background or experience of the respondents to provide a context for the opinions. They were bound into a three-hole book and apparently sat, in a desk drawer or box in the attic, until now.
The rail yard still exists. Wikipedia article.
The surveys themselves, I won't recreate. It's Lindsley's notes that provide a bit of the history of Williamson, WV. They are recreated here to the best of my ability to copy accurately. Comments or clarifications on my part will be shown in brackets [such as these].
Qualifications of G. D. Poole
Mr. G. D. Poole is a real estate and insurance dealer,
who has been in business in Williamson about eighteen years.
He was for many years in partnership with Mr. J. M. Smith,
that partnership having been dissolved in 1924. Mr. Poole is
well educated, has a keen mind and very good memory, and has
an excellent reputation. He owns considerable property, and
has bought and sold a great deal more. He is one of the best
informed men regarding general conditions and real estate values
interviewed in Williamson.
No comment is considered necessary on the concise answers made
by Mr. Poole to the questions in the letter, except to note the
manner by which he arrived at the answer to question 13 [What
is the relative value of the land owned by the N. & W. Railway
to the privately owned property North of 4th Avenue?]. Mr.
Poole compared sale price of lots on the two sides of East Fourth
Avenue, and found that the level lots on the south side of the
street sold about 25% to 30% higher than those on the north side,
which included some slope, and used that percentage for his answer.
[G. D. Poole's son, George Jr., was born in 1919, and joined
him in the family business, which appears to still exist.
George Jr. died in 2010. His obituary. ]
Qualifications of J. W. Peters
Mr. J. W. Peters is a gentleman of about 65 years
of age, in the real estate business. He is also a large p
property owner. Mr. Peters stated he came to Williamson
thirty years ago, in 1900. At that time there was a popu-
lation of about 150 people in the town, and he has been
there ever since. His first purchase was a hotel situated
where the National Bank of Commerce is now located, and
covering a site 100 feet square. Mr. Peters stated he was
a stockholder in the Lawson Land Company, and in the Coffey
Land Company. He and Mr. Bishop sold the land which is now
Sycamore Heights, in 1913, but that sale, he said, has no
bearing on values between the period after 1920. He and Mr.
Bishop sold a 100-foot strip, partly bottom and partly hill
land to the N. & W. in 1905 at about $2,000.00 per acre, but
this same strip would have been very much more valuable, and
probably in lots, by 1920. Mr. Peters stated that at one
time he owned a good deal of the bottom land now in the yard.
He said it was good level bottom land, about the same level as
the down-town section. It was slightly broken at Williamson
Hollow, and at Sycamore Hollow, with a small drain across it
at Peters Street.
Little comment is necessary on Mr. Peters' statements here-
in, which are clear and concise. In 7-B Mr. Peters stated there
was supposed to have been some "side money" passed, but no one
knew what went on. In question 13, Mr. Peters, having owned both
hill and valley land, expressed his idea of land in bulk for
subdivision purposes, at 50% better for the valley land.
Comment of J. W. Peters
An opinion quoted by Mr. Teal on lots in Zone 53--
50x70' @ $1,000.00 each. Mr. Peters said this an aver-
age price for the lots after that period between 1925 and
1926.
[J. W. Peters was born in 1864, according to
WestVirginia-Genealogy.com ]
[I'm thinking that "100 feet square" isn't the same thing as 100
square feet, or that would have been one tiny hotel!]
Qualifications of A. B. Scott
Mr. A. B. Scott, a real estate dealer and property owner
of Williamson, was interviewed in his office on 3rd Street,
next to the Williamson Daily News. He laughed when he saw
the heading of the letter presented to him, and said he was
all of A. B. Scott Company.
[The letter had been addressed to
Mr. A. B. Scott, President,
A. B. Scott & Company, Real Estate & Insurance.]
Mr. Scott seemed very well versed in Real Estate values
and history, and was able to recall definitely the period
under investigation. He stated that sales made in 1919 were
no measure of values existing in 1920, and the same was true
of 1921, 1922 and 1923. After 1923 values contined to rise
though slowly, for some time, probably becoming stationary in
1924 and 1925, starting to slide a little along 1926, and
are still gradually declining. He stated the failure of the Day
& Night Bank in 1924 hurt the business conditions of the town
very considerably, although the effect in the value of real
estate did not appear immediately. In fact, it was a couple
years before the people woke up to the fact that a period of
depression was with them. He said these recurred occasionally,
and he looked to see things straighten out soon.
In 1924, he stated Mr. James Dameron offered him $1,000.00
a front foot for his 100 feet on 3rd Avenue for a client, but
he refused to take the offer. This property had only very cheap
buildings, that amount being practically for the land, as he
understood the "client" intended to replace the buildings.
Regarding the "Modern Homes Corporation," Mr. Scott state
he was interested in that. It consists of his wife, and her
two brothers, H. P. and Ireland James. Mr. Scott stated he was
a member of the Board of Directors of the Day and Night Bank
at the time of the purchase of the half interest in lot 17
block 5 from Alex Bishop. He stated Mr. Bishop made a give
or take proposition of $40,000.00 for the half interest, and
they bought. At that time it was considered a good buy. In
question 12 he had stated that the railroad property would have
developed before the platted property to the north, if it had
been available. In question 13, he stated 50% more, meaning
that the railroad property was that much more valuable than the
platted property to the north.
[Mr. Scott had also been president of the failed bank at some
point. Lawsuit statement provided by Mr. Scott.]
[He was also overly optimistic about the depression straightening
out soon!]
[The Modern Homes Corporation shows up in Bizapedia
as having started in 1927. The WV Secretary of State, who
regulates corporations, has no such entry.]
Qualifications of J. M. Smith
J. M. Smith is a real estate dealer who has lived in
Williamson for a good many years, being considered one of the
old timers. He owns a good deal of property, and has bought
and sold property in every section of the town; the volume of
his trading in property has been as large or larger than any other
individual in Williamson. He stated he had been in the real
estate business in Williamson ever since 1912. He had for a
number of years Mr. G. D. Poole as a partner, but this part-
nership was dissolved in 1924.
In speaking of the value of the carrier's yard area, Mr.
Smith stated it was worth more for any purpose than the plat-
ted area to the north. He stated that, if Mr. Sweet quoted him
as valuing any part of the yard area at $2,000.00 per acre dur-
ing the period from 1920 to 1926, that he either misunderstood
the question asked, of Mr. Sweet misunderstood his answer, as
he does not believe he made such a statement.
After having spent several months in intensive study of
real estate values in Williamson, I am of the opinion that Mr.
Smith is at least as well informed as any man in the city.
[Mr. Smith owned the J.M. Smith Investment Company,
started in 1926.]
[He also built and occupied a house that is now known
as the Hatfield-McCoy House, taking advantage of current
interest in that historic feud.]
to be continued ...
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