Repository: UIHistories Project: Board of Trustees Minutes - 1892 [PAGE 185]

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188

UNIVERSITY O F ILLINOIS.

The committee on Minnesota Lands made the following report :

MINNESOTA LANDS.

U N I V E R S I T Y OF ILLINOIS, December 5, 3891.

To the Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois. GENTLEMEN: The committee on the sale of Minnesota lands presents this report of what it has done since its appointment at your last meeting Sales have been made as follows:

No. Date. Name of B u y e r . Description. NE^NE^13.124,37 NWJ4,26,117,35 SW M,26,117,35 . . . . N W & , 10,116,35 S W M , 10,116,35 SE XA, 10,116,35 NE M, 10,116,35 .... Acres. Price. 40 160 160 160 160 160 160 1,000 $7 10 10 10 10 10 10 Cash. Total. $70 400 400 400 400 400 400 $2,470 $280 1,600 1,600 1,600 1,600 1,600 1,600 $9,880

74 Sept-26,'91 Berthel P e d e r s o n 75 Oct, 5,'91 Swari J . Hallquist 76 Oct. 5,'91 S w a n J . Hallquist 77 Oct. 15/91 William B u e t h e 78 Oct. IS'91 William B u e t h e 79 Oct. 16,'91 Ole S o r e n s o n SO Oct. 22,'91 William D o e r i n g Total

Of this land 40 acres was in Pope county, 320 acres in Kandiyohi county, and 640 acres in Renville county. Gentlemen who were members of the Board then will remember t h a t at the September meeting, in 1889, the question of selling our Minnesota lands was referred to a committee; t h a t at the December meeting a report was made in favor of selling the lands in Pope county, and t h a t Mr. Bennett, who had visited the lands, said t h a t he did not think there would be any demand for the lands in Renville and Kandiyohi counties. By order of the Board, made at the March meeting, 1890, Professor Shattuck visited the Pope county lands, and upon his recommendation authority was given the committee to fix prices, the minimum being $6per acre, and to sell in 40-acre tracts when desirable. The whole action was taken with reference rather to the Pope county lands than to those in Renville and Kandiyohi counties; but the power to sell was made broad enough to include all the lands, the understanding being t h a t the lands outside of Pope county were not likely to be sold soon, and t h a t they should be held at $10 per acre. In the summer of 1890, Dr. Peabody inspected the lands in Pope county and about four-fifths of the lands in Renville and Kandiyohi counties. When, therefore, your committee found, last October, t h a t there was a brisk demand for the lands which had been least carefully inspected, or not inspected at all, and which it had not been supposed would sell at present, further examination of the lands was thought desirable, as well as an investigation of the conditions causing the unexpected demand. Accordingly Mr. Pillsbury was sent to visit the lands about the first of November. Upon careful inspection he found the lands to be of good quality; also, t h a t most of the townships in which the lands lie have many well-improved farms, and t h a t they have churches and some school houses. He learned, also, t h a t unimproved lands in this vicinity have been advanced in price during the past six months from one to three dollars per acre. The leading crops have been good, and the prices which farmers are getting are such t h a t money is more plenty there than it has ever been before. I t seems to your committe that a still further advance in the price of lands in the near future is probable, and it recommends t h a t for the present no effort be made to sell the lands in Renville and Kandiyohi counties, and t h a t no sales be made now for less than $15 an acre. The outlook for any considerable advance in the price of the lands in Pope county does not seem very promising, and your committee will, unless otherwise ordered, continue their sale, making, however, the minimum price $10 an acre.